Cleveland, OH
Best Chili in Greater Cleveland: Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers among top finishers in readers’ poll
CLEVELAND, Ohio — It’s National Chili Month and as promised, we’ve got some hearty reading this week on the top three finishers in our Best Chili in Greater Cleveland readers’ poll.
In second place (but forever in first place in the hearts of many) is Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers of Richfield with 20.55% of the vote.
We sat down with Whitey’s general manager Robert Shaffer last week to talk about (and eat) all things Whitey’s. Here’s what we gleaned before the “food coma” set in.
Whitey’s Chili Garden – crushed tortilla chips layered over a large bed of garden greens topped with your choice of Whitey’s Chili, cheese, diced tomato and sour cream from Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers located at 3600 Brecksville Rd., in Richfield
– Photo by Yadi Rodriguez, cleveland.com
Background: Local legend Harry “Whitey” Bigadza first started making his chili in 1939 and would “wander down the hill every day to share with folks — straight from his home kitchen,” said Shaffer. Today, the demand is so great that they “must mass produce.” While that does take away the small-batch approach of the other top finishers in our Cleveland’s Best Chili contest, who can deny four saucy success stories — each with a mythology to match? Not us. “Everything about the chili remains the same, except the size of the marquee,” he said.
Construction and Flavor Profile(s): Of four offerings, original Beef Chili with Beans “is our most popular” (midweight gravy, ingredients of matching gauge chunks) and maintains the “homemade and homestyle feel that customers fell in love with,” Shaffer said. The Jalapeno Beef Chili is “more heat-forward and geared to people who don’t like beans.” Best of Cleveland teammates Yadi Rodriguez & Peter Chakerian found the JBC silkier (brothy?) and more peppery than the original, forgoing beans (and by proxy, starch) as a focal point. Chipotle Garden Vegetarian Chili was remarkably mild. A white bean-laden Chicken Chili was a stew consistency.
If Your Chili Had a Commercial: “We stand by our chili. It’s what people come here for. What I tell people: if you’re looking for it, go to whiteyschili.com and use the locator. It will give you a list of where to find it. We supply restaurants, stores, everyone… we’ve been doing this for a long time,” Shaffer said.
Coliseum Fries – Our famous homemade fries baked with your choice of Whitey’s Chili, cheese and bacon from Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers located at 3600 Brecksville Rd., in Richfield
– Photo by Yadi Rodriguez, cleveland.com
Presentation: “People get chili flights every day,” said Shaffer. “But you can get a lot of menu items with any of our chili options. We do Chili Chips & Cheese, we have [Richfield] Coliseum Fries — named for our former neighbors! —a Chili Burger, Whitey’s Footlong, Chili Garden [a taco-esque salad with chili], the Mac & Cheese Dinner can be smothered with it.” We didn’t ask Shaffer if people sub Whitey’s Original for pizza sauce on a pizza, but we did wonder. With a combo-options list longer than the shrimp fantasy sequence in “Forrest Gump,” we figured the answer was yes. (If you’re bold enough to order a Whitey’s pizza that way, email and let us know how that works out). Pro tip: Whitey’s Footlong is precisely that and nearly 1.25 inches in diameter to boot. Eat one and you won’t feel bad sleeping through the second half of that Browns game. Nighty night.
Oh, as for straight up? Shredded cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips.
Reflections: Only the Original Beef Chili with Beans is a Bigadza original. The other recipes have been picked up along the way; none of them have been changed or altered and Shaffer was nonplussed when asked if there were any plans to. “No, oh no. No changes. Not at all. And I think we’re pretty capped out at four.”
Robert Shaffer, GM of Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers located at 3600 Brecksville Rd., in Richfield
– Photo by Yadi Rodriguez, cleveland.com
Sales: During the summer, Shaffer estimates “20-25 cases and 35-40 cases during peak season — at 40 pounds a case.” That’s just the restaurant. “We sell take-home sizes on-site, including two party pack options,” Shaffer said. “The Super Bowl will always bump those numbers up, too.”
Verdict: Yadi & Peter are all about Whitey’s lore. The place is always a vibe — replete with townies, outdoor enthusiasts, bikers, business lunchers, sports fanatics and more. Who else in our seven-county reader footprint is offering a “chili flight” the way that a microbrewery would for beer? Exactly. Fun fact: Whitey’s business “actually picked up” in 1994, after the permanent closure of Nick Mileti’s “Palace on the Prairie,” Richfield Coliseum. Seems counterintuitive, right?
The charismatic Shaffer had a one-word answer on what changed for the better — traffic.
Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers, 3600 Brecksville Road, Richfield, OH 44286 330-659-3600
whiteys.com / whiteyschili.com