Since the pope was born in Chicago, the Windy City-based restaurant chain has launched a new menu item dubbed The Leo
- Portillo’s has unveiled a new Italian beef made in honor of Pope Leo XIV
- Dubbed The Leo, the sandwich is now available at all restaurants and online
- The limited menu item channels the pope’s Chicago roots
After it was announced that Cardinal Robert Prevost — who now goes by the papal name Pope Leo XIV — was elected as the 267th leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Portillo’s unveiled a new menu item in his honor.
“In the name of the gravy, the bun, and hot giard, we introduce The Leo: a divinely seasoned Italian beef, baptized in gravy and finished with the holy trinity of peppers — sweet, hot, or a combo,” the Windy City-based restaurant chain announced on Friday, May 9 via a press release shared with PEOPLE.
They added, “It’s our original sacred sandwich, bold, unapologetically flavorful, and made in honor of a moment that’s historic for Portillo’s hometown.”
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Pope Leo XIV, who made history as the first American pontiff, was born in Chicago on Sept. 14, 1955. According to the Chicago Sun Times, he received a masters of divinity from Catholic Theological Union, which is located in the city’s Hyde Park neighborhood, and was a teacher at St. Rita of Cascia High School.
Portillo’s, meanwhile, was founded by Dick Portillo on April 9, 1963 in Villa Park, Ill., a suburb of the Chicago metropolitan area.
The restaurant chain — which now has locations throughout the state area as well as select cities in Arizona, California, Indiana, Florida, Minnesota, Texas and Wisconsin — specializes in Chicago-style hot dogs and Italian beef sandwiches. (It’s not to be confused with Mr. Beef, the sandwich shop that inspired the restaurant business central to The Bear‘s first season.)
While sharing the news on Instagram, Portillo’s made sure customers knew that this was a real item by adding in the comments, “Yes, you can really order this.”
A representative for Portillo’s also confirmed to PEOPLE that the Leo is, in fact, currently available on menus at all locations, including online and kiosks. The sandwich starts at $8.29.
The sandwich, however, is only available for a limited time.
“This heavenly creation is available for the month of May (Italian Beef Month),” Portillo’s said, per the release, adding that the Leo “channels the passion, flavor, and pride that Chicagoans are known for — right down to the last juicy bite.”
