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Dick Portillo to talk about his hot dog career

In 1963 Dick Portillo opened a hot dog stand on North Avenue in Villa Park.

Built with $1,100 that Portillo and his wife, Sharon, had saved for their first house, The Dog House was a 6-foot-by-12-foot trailer without a bathroom or running water. Four years later, it was remodeled and renamed for its owner.

Since then, Portillo's has grown into an enormously successful fast-casual restaurant chain with a wide-ranging menu of all-American favorites and highly regarded customer-service and business models. A multistate operation that includes outposts in Indiana, Southern California, and Arizona, the Portillo's chain was sold to the private equity firm Berkshire Partners in 2014.

Portillo will talk about his career and life with his friend Lee Daniels, senior adviser to the president of Elmhurst College, during "From Hot Dogs to Top Dog: A Conversation with Dick Portillo" at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22, in Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel at Elmhurst College, 190 Prospect Ave., Elmhurst.

As a consultant, Portillo continues to be involved in the business as he helps guide its growth into Wisconsin, Florida and other states over the next several years. A recipient of numerous awards, he actively supports the Wounded Warrior Battalion at Camp Pendleton, California, where he once was stationed as a Marine; as well as The Chicago Diabetes Project, because of his wife's struggle with the disease.

Admission to Portillo's talk is $10 for the general public and free for Elmhurst College students, faculty, staff and alumni. For information, visit elmhurst.edu/tix or call (630) 617-5186.

If you go

What: "From Hot Dogs to Top Dog: A Conversation with Dick Portillo"

When: 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22

Where: Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel at Elmhurst College, 190 Prospect Ave., Elmhurst

Cost: $10; free to Elmhurst College students, faculty, staff and alumni

Info: (630) 617-5786 or elmhurst.edu/tix

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