Columbus to Chicago and back.

Ok, I am not a veteran traveler. But I have decided, since no one seems to want to hire me, I am taking the Hot Dog University course in Chicago at the end of November and hire myself. First of all, I can go any route. The I70 to I65 seems the most expedient. But hey, I'm unemployed. What else do I have to do? So, what route would be the most Roadfood accessible. In fact, if any moderators out the are looking, that might be a good sub-topic page. Title each post as FROM (pick a city) TO (pick a city) and give opinions on the best Roadfood paths to take. Call the forum "Roadfood Routes." It might eliminate a lot of repeats in this forum as mine might be. However, I did utilize the seach function and didn't find too much to go on other than Kewpies in Lima and some places in Chicago proper (which I've never been to), but not much in between. Thanks all!! If there is an informative thread that I missed, forgive me. I lack patience at times.

This is one time that I vote to avoid the I-70/I-65 routes.  Use US 23 north from Columbus and then US 30 or parallel roads across Ohio and Indiana. It is interesting countryside, with a lot of Amish influence along the way.  Just so long as you do it before the real winter sets in.  Good Luck.

Depending on how far out of your way you want to go, check out Carolina Bob's trip reports about Indiana, Kentucky, and North Carolina as the Chicago area was his starting point.  I know he's a big fan of US-41 and US-52, which can be used in place of I-65 to get you from Indy to Chicago.
 
Of course, at the end of November it may be in your best interest to take the interstate due to the weather!
 
Brad

I'd recommend a stop at Shapiro's in Indianapolis.  To get there you would have to take 70W into downtown Indianapolis.  Rather than take the first opportunity to get onto 65N stay on 70W to West St (I think).  Shapiro's is just one block off the expressway.  Very easy to get on/off.  Excellent (but a little pricey) corn beef and pastrami to be had there.

Also in Indy, and just a few blocks off 70, is PapaRoux, great po boys and cajun food, very inexpensive. 

 I sure wouldnt take US 30. It is  4 lane limited access all the way now from north of Columbus to Ft Wayne, bypasses Ft Wayne completely, and the stretch from Ft Wayne to Chicago is as boring and roadfoodless as it gets. Might as well take the freeways.
 
 I would take 33 out of Columbus to 6 in Indiana.

We enjoyed the ride along US 33 and US 20 in Northern Indiana a couple of weeks ago. We were shopping the Amish communities and not in a hurry. It was a good ride ! Stayed in Goshen and had a very good dinner at Tony's Italian Grill on 33 in the downtown area.

I did get a triptik from AAA which recommended taking 23 to 30 due to a lot of construction on 70 and 65. I guess the weather will be the determining factor.

If you insist on taking US30, which will be one boring drive from central Ohio to Chicago,  you better eat in Ft Wayne as there is little else on that route. It is also at about the halfway mark. If you decide to eat in Ft Wayne, let me know what kind of food you might be looking for, and I can give you some suggestions. The food choices here have improved greatly of late.
 
I would still suggest 33 to 6 however.

you taking the cart or stand class? Been thinking the last couple of years of taking the Stand class.
  Ft Wayne has a good burger place as well as a hotdog joint. Kewpee isnt that far from 30 if you dont mind slight detours. As for 70. Urbana isnt to far and you can hit Crabills.
  After Ft Wayne its pretty much dead space.
  Of course you could start your trip with a nice piece of pie at Henrys in West Jefferson.

You have not ever had a coney dog til you've been here   Koney King Restaurant - Google Maps
 
Been in business well over 70 years.
 
Take US 30 , to Broadway (Indiana 51 or 55, I believer)  . North on Broadway.  Then continue on Broadway to the Borman Highway (interstates 80/90) and head West on to Chicgago.
 
 
 
 

Baughman - I am taking the cart class. I will not be attempting anything until Spring, however so I have loads of time to practice up.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. I might have to look at the 30 to route 6 more closely.

If you take US 30 there is a Schoop's Hamburgers right on 30 in Warsaw.  This is a Roadfood favorite.
 
If you listen to Mayor Al and take US 20 across there are several interesting places in and around Middlebury, In.  Just east of Middlebury there is the Rise N Roll Bakery.  This has two of the finest dishes I have ever had of their kind.  The cinnamon/caramel donut is the best donut I have ever tasted in my life, bar none.
 
They also have a dish for breakfast that is sausage bread with sausage gravy.  It is smoked sausage, eggs and cheese rooled in fresh bread dough and then baked to perfection.  They slice it thick and cover it in sausage gravy.  The absolute best sausage gravy dish I have ever had and I have eaten biscuits & gravy all over the US and in the military in Europe and nothing compares to this.  Even more astonishing it is $2.99!!!!  A meal by itself except that you have to have a cinnamon/caramel donut.  I will check back on this post and add some more suggestions later.

Rocky,
My favorite breakfast is sausage gravy and biscuits, eggs and cheese can only put it over the top. Yours sounds like an emphatic endorsement worhty of serious consideration. If you have other suggestions, please let me know.

Good Comment Rocky, Thanks. We found plenty of interesting stops between Ft Wayne and the Metro Chicago area on our recent visit that way.
US 33 had it's share of RV's heading South, but since we were heading the other way they were no bother. Goshen was a good stop...and we by-passed Elkhart on US 20, but there were several coffee stops on the road making the morning a real pleasant ride.  We timed our arrival into Chicago for about noon to beat the weekend going-home traffic as much as we could.  Got to Milwaukee (airport area) by 2 PM and relaxed a bit.
A good ride across rural northern Indiana!

Now  have a few more minutes I can give you a couple of other stops in northern Indiana.  In downtown Middlebury there is the Village Inn that is reputed to have excellent home cooked meals.  Right on US 20 just a few miles west of Rise and Roll there is the Das Dutchmen Essenhaus complex.  They have very good comfort food meals including fried chicken, meatloaf, pot roast etc.  Another mile west brings you to The Hilltop home of out of this world fried fish, chicken and manhattans.
If you are following Mayor Al's route you woul want to break off from US 33 at Ligonnier (go straight at the light instead of turning left) and take SR 5 north to US 20.
A side note, if you go to Goshen again Mayor Al on SR 15 (Main St) just about a mile south of where 33 goes through downtown there is the South Side Soda Shop.  This has been a favorite of my wife's and mine for years.  It was featured on one of the very first episodes of Diners, Drive Inn & Dives.  Wonderful food & homemade desserts.

While Rocky has made some good suggestions, I must strongly disagree about Schoops. Dry, crusty,flattened, flavorless burgers ala Steak and Shake, and they now use frozen, bagged fries.
 
One last time, if you are looking for roadfood, dont take US30.
 
 
 

I agree that the fries at Schoop's leave something to be desired ( always have ), but your description of their hamburgers certainly doesn't sound like any that I've ever had at any of their locations. Schoop's burgers are among my favorites since, in my experience, they're always juicy and flavorful.

"Cooked to crispy perfection" is their trade slogan. Check their website pictures. To me they were exactly like Steak and Shake burgers. Repeatedly flattened ( watch them cook them), and just this side of burned around the edges.

I love those crispy "burnt" edges on Schoop's burgers, and I'd be very ticked off if they ever changed their way of preparing them. I'm also a big fan of Steak n Shake's burgers. Different people have different tastes and that's one of the things that make the world go 'round.

Rocky,
  Here is a self-degrading confession that caused us a bit of extra time in Goshen. We went to the South Side Soda Shop for a well-recommended dinner the night we stayed in that town. Unfortunately the place was busy and the ONLY table in the place had a party of 12 that had just been seated when we arrived. The booths all had fixed tables (un-adjustable) that were much too close to the benches to allow me any access to seating. That doesn't happen often, but it made sitting an impossible result for me. So we left with the promise to try again another night...and went to Tony's Grill downtown. We enjoyed our dinner, but it was our 'Second choice'
For lover's of 'Thrift Store Shopping', The Mennonite Mission Service runs a great (big-clean&well organized) store just a block off of US 33 near the Bag-Factory. Well worth a stop and look, if you're into good-thrift store stops !!

Mayor Al,
I feel for you, I absolutely will/can not sit in those booths.  I am not a small man by any stretch of the imagination but those booths are ridiculously small.  Must harken back to the good old days.  The table for 12 usually is broken up in to 4-5 tables.  There is also a counter.
 
Next time you get back in town give it a try
 
Rocky

Update - My doctor put me on new cholesterol medicine two weeks ago (Lipitor). Since then, I have been shaky, can't catch my breath, sweating and nauseus to no end. So my end result was drove to Chicago Sunday, ate nothing, went to bed at 7:45, got up at 6:30 for the first day of Hot Dog University. After the Vienna Beef factory tour, the Professor sent me home to try again another  class session. He could not have been more understanding and gracious.  I had been really excited to go and learn from the master and eat well with my son in Chicago but my body had other ideas and I was ready to pass out at that point. Told my son in Chicago goodbye since I was being nothing but a collapsed mouth-breathing, sweating, shivering lump on his couch and drove home to Columbus. No pictures, no report, in fact didn't even look at food on the way, there, or back. What a disaster. But I will be going again either this month or next when I am Lipitor free (as per doctor's new instructions) and ready to learn the cart business properly and feast in Chicago proper. My apologies to all for no report and especially to the Professor whom I anxiously am looking forward too seeing again soon and thanks for your concern. I feel better today.