America’s Dog & Burgers (Navy Pier)
700 E. Grand Avenue #121Our be a tourist in Chicago vacation got started in the most touristy way possible. We picked the kids up from my parents near Kankakee then headed back in to the City to Navy Pier.
The last time I was actually at Navy Pier would have been sometime in 2002. I took one of my friends daughter and her friends to see Beauty and The Beast at the IMax theater (which is no longer there.) Navy Pier looked a little different then. It was before the redevelopment that started in the early 2010’s.
We chose to park at our hotel on the Mag Mile and walk to the Pier. It’s about a mile or so from the Marriott we were staying in. A mile walk really isn’t that big of a deal anymore thanks to all the hiking we’ve done since the pandemic began last year.
J and I had spent the night before in Chicago without the kids. The kids had spent the previous week at my parents so we had to go pick them up. By the time we got back to Chicago and made our way to Navy Pier, it was a little after 2:00.
Our plan was to just get lunch at the Pier. We tried going to a couple of the bigger sit down restaurants but they had hour and a half to two hour waits. J was hungry and needed food so even though she put us on the wait list, we had to find food quickly
Navy Pier has a couple food court type options inside the Fifth Third Bank Family Pavilion and the lines didn’t look too long. J had gotten in line for Snow Dragon Shavery which is right next to a burger place. She stayed in line for drinks then sent me to go grab some burgers.
America’s Dog & Burgers, or ADB, is set up kind of in the middle of the Family Pavilion near the entrance to Navy Pier. It’s a fast food style set up with a queue leading to a cash register to order. Once the order is taken, you’re given a receipt with a number to wait for your order to be called.
J wanted a bacon cheeseburger so that’s what I got for her. I got myself the Jalapeno Jack burger and B a kid’s meal burger. L doesn’t really like burgers or dogs so I just got her an order of fries. The cost was just under $40.
I was actually quite surprised how quickly our order came up. It was maybe a little over five minutes before I heard the number called out. While I was waiting, J went looking for a place to sit. There’s indoor seating in a large food court type setting but we really didn’t want to have to sit inside and take masks off if we didn’t have to.
J went outside and got pretty lucky. She noticed a family packing up so she stalked the table and waited for them to leave. The outdoor seating area is a little bit smaller but you do get a nice view of the Centennial Wheel and all the tour boats being loaded up. Good people watching.
I passed everything out so we could eat lunch and get on with our day. We had tickets for the Centennial Wheel which was the main purpose of the trip.
My burger was the Jalapeno Jack Burger. The sandwich is 1/3 lb black angus patty on a brioche bun with Monterey Jack cheese, beer battered jalapeno chips, and a chipotle mayo. The way I’d describe this sandwich is, it’s fine. It’s a good sandwich and a 100x better than the McDonalds option nearby but it still has all the hallmarks of a fast food burger. The jalepnos did make the burger a little bit more unique and gave it some heat.
J’s pick was the Bacon Cheddar Burger. Same burger and same bun as mine but this sandwich has hardwood smoked bacon, cheddar cheese, and AD&B Sauce. I left the sauce off because I didn’t know what it was and couldn’t ask J if she wanted it. She’s not always a hamburger eater but this is the kind of patty she likes. Fairly thin and cooked all the way through.
I got B the kid’s meal burger and I really should have just gotten him the same thing J did. The kid’s burger is the same burger but with nothing on it. B, like any sane person, likes cheese and bacon on his burger. J was nice enough to share a little bit of her bacon with him so he got a little something extra. The kids meal did come with fries and a juice box so there is a little bit of an advantage to ordering it.
I got fries for all of us to go with the sandwiches. These were probably the best part of the meal to me. The skin on fries were were crispy and salty on the outside but soft and pillowy in the middle. B didn’t eat his so L and I split them giving us both a little extra.
America’s Dog & Burgers did what we needed it to do. We were really hungry and needed food right away. Burgers and fries are always something that easy and delicious. We got the lunch we needed then got on to the rest of our day at Navy Pier.
SW Michigan Dining 