With Wieners Circle, Daisies Pastry Collabs Coming In Hot For 2024
Daisies award-winning pastry chef Leigh Omilinsky shocked this "grown-up pig in a blanket" took off. Plus, I'm loving on a white pinot noir and delicious Indian fare.
Who doesn’t love a good collaboration? Steven Spielberg and George Lucas gave us Raiders of the Lost Ark. CSNY, Temple of the Dog, and boygenius gave us rock supergroups. And lots of people have given us delicious food collabs.
Oh, do people love a food collab. Whether that’s mustard-flavored Skittles (frankly, do we really need this?) or Mac & Cheese ice cream (OK, maaaybe we need this), the bringing together of disparate flavors, concepts, or talents always garners attention. And this one is worth your attention.
Just before New Year’s, a video — shot inside Michelin Green Star, Midwestern pasta restaurant Daisies — lit up Chicago social media. In the video, we see Poochie Jackson, the H.B.I.C. at the Wieners Circle, the infamous Chicago hot dog joint where the counter staff tosses playful shade to late-night (generally) drunk customers who lob it right back.
“Hey white girl, what’s up?” Jackson asked with a smile after casually sauntering up to Daisies’ partner and executive pastry chef Leigh Omilinksy behind the front coffee bar. “Are you Leigh? That’s right, you’re the heavy bitch in charge.”
And this is how we get introduced to the Chicago Style Croissant.
The savory treat starts with Omilinsky’s croissant dough, spread with yellow mustard and topped with diced onion, bright green relish, and celery salt. It all gets rolled up with a charred Vienna Beef hot dog. Poppy seeds get sprinkled on top before baking, then it gets finished off with a pickle, half cherry tomato, and sport pepper speared into the pastry.
How can you get this, you ask? The golden baked goodness went on sale Jan. 2 at Daisies (2375 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago) and will remain on through January for $8.50. So if you’re not in Chicago and you want a hot dog real bad, find your way here.
Omilinsky said she expected a line when they opened at 7 a.m., but even a slightly later start didn’t stop people from helping Daisies sell out of nearly six dozen hot dog croissants on the first day.
“At one point, I looked around and a hot dog was on every table,” she said. “I’m shocked this blew up the way it did. People have done this before; they’ve made croissant dogs. It’s a grown-up pig in a blanket. But people get excited about it.”
Matthew Dominick, who is behind the popular YuckingItUp Chicago food and drink Instagram account, made a point of going on that first day.
“This will easily be one of the best bites of 2024.” — Matthew Dominick
“I wasn’t sure what to expect at first considering the hot dog isn’t served hot, but the croissant makes for the most luxurious bun I’ve ever had on a Chicago hot dog,” Dominick messaged me via DM. “Buttery, flaky, and the generous coating of poppy seeds provide the perfect texture. It’s early, but this will easily be one of the best bites of 2024.”
Past and future collabs
This “best bite” is Omilinsky’s latest collaboration, the fourth in Daisies’ continuing series. In September of 2023, she kicked things off with Derrick Tung from neighboring pizza shop Paulie Gee’s for a soppressata and ricotta croissant drizzled with hot honey.
Then came an ube-toasted, coconut pastry cream-filled flaky croissant topped with an ube glaze and more coconut from James Beard Award-winning chefs Genie Kwon and Tim Flores from Michelin-starred bakery and modern Filipino restaurant Kasama.
Then it was Michelin-starred Boka chef Lee Wolen and a chicken smashburger croissant with smoked gouda, Dijon, and pickles from his GG’s Chicken Shop.
“A lumpia croissant idea was thrown out there, but thought the sweet croissants would be more popular,” Kwon said after Omilinsky asked her to do a collab. “I mentioned a coconut ube croissant. We knew it would work because it is a unique flavor. Anything that is purple with ube will sell.”
What’s on tap after Wieners Circle? In February, Omilinsky will team up with her former boss, the award-winning pastry chef, Meg Galus. The James Beard Award-nominated Galus, who has led pastry programs at NoMI, Boka, and Momotaro, recently joined the West Loop’s Good Ambler as executive pastry chef. She has become a master chocolatier of sorts so the duo’s pairing for Valentine’s day will almost certainly contain chocolate in some fancy-yet-approachable form.
Omilinsky said another close chef friend will follow in March, but wouldn’t yet reveal who. Beyond that, anything is possible. She said she has talked with Dana Cree from Pretty Cool Ice Cream about doing something together and has talked about reaching out to other Chicago spots like Galit (“I mean, brisket and hummus?”), QXY Dumplings, and Manny’s Deli. Places outside of Chicago aren’t off the table either as she said Ann Arbor, Mich., acclaimed Zingerman’s Deli, LA’s Republique, and Nashville’s Hattie B’s are all dream collaborations.
“There’s something I like about doing the not super fine dining food,” Omilinsky said. “It makes things more approachable. People get nostalgic. It’s familiar, but not familiar — and that’s the fun part.”
So is eating it.
SG LIST: Things I’m high fiving this week
Domaine Serene Coeur Blanc
I opened a bottle of the 2018 just before New Year’s and man did it blow my mind. Sourced from 100% Willamette Valley estate-grown pinot noir, the grapes get whole-cluster pressed, but the juice is carefully limited from skin contact, resulting in a beautiful white wine. Yes, white pinot noir. This one had a bit of creme brulee, rich caramel apple, and chamomile. The 2021 is currently available so if you can get a bottle, you should get a bottle.
Rome’s late-night pastry scene
Yes, you read that right – pastry scene. Not party scene (although Rome definitely has that). This article was published earlier in 2023 (on my birthday, actually), but I just saw it in a year-end round up on Eater and now I can’t wait to go back to Rome. Whether I stay up clubbing (unlikely) or get up early and queue up (also unlikely) I will gladly explore these bakeries for those golden-baked pastries.
Maharaj Indian Grill
Just before Christmas we ordered in Indian food with our friends in Highland Park. We found this restaurant randomly and it turned out to be some of the best Indian take out I’ve had in the Chicago area. Every bite — chicken tikka, shrimp vindaloo, chana masala, dal makhani, garlic naan, and more — was fragrant, spicy, and aromatic. The chicken was tender, the shrimp had snap. They have three locations in Chicagoland. If you like Indian fare, bookmark this place.