Joe's 5 Best Fried Bites of 2011 in Chicago

[Photograph: Huge Galdones]

I've only been writing TGI Fry-Day for about a month and a half, which means I've barely dipped my toe into the bubbling fry pot that is Chicago. But that doesn't mean I just started eating fried food. If I'm wet behind the ears, it's only because I had an itch in the middle of my order of fried pickles. Submitted for your approval, here are my top five fried obsessions from 2011.