Editor's Note: In this great city of ours, one could eat a different sandwich every day of the year--so that's what we'll do. Here's A Sandwich a Day, our daily look at sandwiches around the Windy City. Got a sandwich we should check out? Let us know!

[Photograph: Joe Roy]

Going to Al's #1 Italian Beef and ordering anything but the namesake dish seems to be missing the point—unless it's one of the various franchise locations in the Chicago area. As our beef crawl indicated a few years back, you can feel free to explore their menus a little more without feeling too bad.

Al's Original Char-Grilled Chicken Sandwich ($6.50) is as good a place to start as any. Although "char-grilled" may be a bit of a misnomer (the chicken breast on my sandwich was pretty pale even after an extended stay on the grill), it definitely picks up that appealing flame-taste that makes grilled food so appealing. The surprisingly juicy chicken breast paired nicely with the barebones shredded lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise. Adding some dill pickle slices perked up the sandwich a bit, and a side of the hand cut fries ($2.35 for a small) made for a well rounded lunch. Just be sure to order them "extra crispy."

Al's Italian Beef

601 W Adams Street Chicago, IL 60661 (map)
312-461-9292 
alsbeef.com