When Guy Fieri came to Cincinnati to promote his new Santos Spirits tequila Monday, he probably didn't imagine his Cincinnati-style chili concept would come to fruition.
Thanks to Skyline Chili, it did.
The Mayor of Flavortown and celebrity chef, who proclaimed he's a Cincinnati-style chili-lover, told The Enquirer his ideal chili order during the event. This dish, which was described as a spicy take on the classic 5-Way, included jalapeños and Fritos.
"I like spice, I want jalapeños, but I don't think you can go past a 5-Way, right?" Fieri said. "If you go to Flavortown with it ... because how great would it be to have some crumbled-up Fritos on top and some jalapeños on top, maybe some fried shallots. I could let it roll."
After word got out of Fieri's ideal dish (thanks to our stellar reporting), Skyline got to work making his spicy meal a reality. The restaurant announced the custom Way with crushed Fritos and jalapeños on Wednesday with a Fieri-inspired Instagram post.
"Skyline’s got the flavor, and you brought the fire. Let’s ride!" the Cincinnati-style chili restaurant wrote, linking toThe Enquirer's articlethat sparked the new item.
Since our hard work led to the Fieri-inspired Skyline dish, we, of course, had to try it.
My colleaguesHaadiza Ogwude,David Wysong, Grace Tucker, Rasputin Toddand I ventured to Skyline's Downtown location at 254 E. Fourth St. to get a taste of the chili chain's custom 5-Way, which hit menus Wednesday. It consists of all the regular 5-Way fixings, such as noodles, chili, beans, chopped onions and a mound of shredded cheese. The only additions include crushed Fritos and jalapeños.
Here's what we thought.
Skyline's Guy Fieri-inspired 5-Way took us all the 'Way' to Flavortown 🔥
None of the team members consider Skyline's 5-Way to be their go-to dish, with most of us settling for a classic coney. And, in a shocking turn of events, I did not shed a tear trying the spicy dish (although I came close). Rasputin, on the other hand, was a ball of sweat, as he chose to add more than enough jalapeños to his Way.
Haadiza started us off, taking the honorary first bite, but not before adding extra hot sauce. Her thoughts? "It's good. I don't know if I need the Fritos, but I definitely love the addition of the jalapeños," she said. "First trip to Flavortown was a 10 out of 10 experience."
Grace and I really appreciated the crunchiness of the Fritos with the classic spaghetti noodles. While she isn't usually too keen on jalapeños, she didn't mind them this time around and admitted she might have been converted to a 5-Way lover.
"I like the crunch of the Fritos," she exclaimed. "I like that! I might like that more than a regular 3-Way, and I don't mind the jalapeño, actually. Maybe this converted me."
Rasputin, who is not a fan of Fritos, said the dish was a "no" for him, despite finishing the whole meal. He was, however, a big fan of the added jalapeños.
Meanwhile, David, who is a big fan of Fritos, said he liked the addition of the curly corn chip. Before taking his first bite, he added a hefty amount of hot sauce (which, in his opinion, makes Cincinnati chili) to his 5-Way.
"I really like the addition of Fritos just because I love Fritos, and since Guy Fieri likes spice, I wonder if he's done the hot sauce (with the 5-Way) because that makes Cincinnati chili, in my opinion."
It's safe to say Fieri was onto something, as the custom 5-Way took us all (minus Rasputin) on a spicy ride straight to Flavortown.
Where to get the custom Guy Fieri-inspired Ways at Skyline Chili
The new Way in honor of the celebrity chef is available at participating Skyline locations while supplies last, the chain announced in its Instagram post.
It's best to call your local Skyline to see if it is offering the new dish.
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