Talking Chicago food with Lt. Gov. candidate Christian Mitchell
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Lieutenant governor candidate Christian Mitchell at Billy Goat Tavern enjoying a double cheese, Old Style beer and a bag of chips — no fries. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
Candidates for Illinois lieutenant governor don't often gain the spotlight for their food choices.
Yes, but: That changed earlier this spring when Aaron Del Mar gave his GOP gubernatorial running mate, Darren Bailey, a much hyped eating tour of the city.
Naturally, that got me wondering about the culinary bona fides of the Democratic Party's lieutenant governor candidate, Christian Mitchell.
- I asked if he could meet me at the Billy Goat Tavern to talk about his take on Illinois — and especially Chicago — food.
The big picture: The former Illinois state representative and deputy governor grew up in the Western burbs (Maywood and Westchester), but enrolled at UChicago in 2004, "and I've been a South Sider ever since," he tells Axios.
Between the tines: Mitchell loves to cook, does meal prep every week and even took over the kitchen at the governor's mansion when lawmakers got snowed in after a State of the State address and the house staff was gone.
- "I made steak tacos, mashed potatoes and vegetables and breakfast," he said.
Top picks: During the interview, we quizzed him on his faves in various categories:
- Lem's Bar-B-Q for rib tips;
- Home of the Hoagy for sweet steak;
- Jim's Original for a Polish;
- Vito & Nick's or Italian Fiesta for pizza;
- Piccolo Sogno for Italian;
- Cinco Rabanitos for al pastor tacos;
- Virtue in Hyde Park for best Chicago restaurant;
- 17th Street Barbecue in Murphysboro for downstate BBQ.
The intrigue: The candidate is also concerned about people who grow food in Illinois and the impacts of federal policies.
- On visits to counties where voters usually demolish Democrats, farmers are telling him: "My input costs are up, but my markets and yield per acre are down, and no one seems to care in the White House."
- He thinks this may make some stay home in November, "but I want to give people a reason to come out and vote affirmatively for our ticket."
The bottom line: Mitchell is full of surprises and solid food choices.
- "I'm not quite what you might think when you think of an African American Democrat from Chicago," he says, noting his time staying with southern rural relatives.
- "I'm also in the National Guard, there's a gun in my safe, and I've got a rifle on the way … I don't think I'm superior because I'm from Chicago. I see more in common with us than I see that separates us."
What's next: Axios has scheduled a similar tasty interview with GOP candidate Aaron Del Mar.