'We Believe In The Flavors': Piggy's Blends Chicago, Texas BBQ In Plainfield

PLAINFIELD, IL — To get a taste of Chicago and Texas barbecue, suburban restaurant-goers don't have to go far, as Piggy’s BBQ, Wings & Fish owners are on a mission to bring those flavors to Plainfield.

Matt Warren, a Chicago native, and his wife, Elizabeth Meyer Warren, who grew up in Indiana, helm the establishment, where they want people to "feel like they're coming to our home," Elizabeth said.

Elizabeth fell in love with barbecue while visiting family in Texas, she said, and Matt spent years discovering Chicago joints during his time as a DJ. Upon moving west of the city, "[we] saw a need for the type of barbecue that we do in Chicago," Matt told Patch.

"There's plenty of great barbecue out here, don't get me wrong, but [there's] a little different flair that we give things with what we do," he said.

Originally established in Oswego in 2018, the barbecue joint moved to its first Plainfield location — by Dairy Queen at the intersection of Renwick Road and Route 59 — during the COVID-19 pandemic, a notoriously difficult time for restaurants. Piggy's survived in large part because of carry-out orders.

As the world began to return to normalcy, customers started — "we missed having that whole atmosphere," Matt said. The move? Taking over the former Crab Boil 59 space at 15507 S. Route 59 in December 2022 and reopening there in April.

With the move to its first Plainfield spot, Piggy's incorporated more Chicago-style barbecue into its menu. In Oswego, "we were going for a more of a Texas barbecue." The original location also didn't have seafood.

Today, Piggy's specializes in rib tips and hot links — "which are a total Chicago thing," Matt said — as well as "kind of legendary" mac and cheese made using recipes from Elizabeth's family. Notes of Texas come in through the beef brisket and hickory wood-smoked pork butts.

"If you know anything about Chicago barbecue places," Matt explained, "you'll walk into a barbecue shop, and they won't just have barbecue: They'll have wings, they'll have shrimp ... so I kind of wanted to incorporate all those things in our menu."

He continued: "As we got into the Plainfield area and being a little bit closer to Chicago, and then knowing that we have a lot of Chicago natives out in this area, we decided to really go with the Chicago thing."

What further sets Piggy's apart is their decision not to add sauce to any of their meat. Instead, each dish comes with a variety of sauces, allowing customers to choose their own adventure.

"I always like to say we use a lot of love and seasoning when we make our food. We believe in the flavors," Elizabeth said.

A barbecue dinner wouldn't be complete without a dash of sugar, and Piggy's only offers two kinds — "they're powerhouses," Matt said — banana pudding and peach cobbler, a family friend's recipe.

"Everything that we make came from somewhere in our family," Elizabeth said, while Matt added, "Even the sauces are all inspired by different people."

With Piggy's, the couple is also hoping to bring more nightlife to Plainfield. Since the restaurant has two dining rooms, they transformed the smaller one, incorporating a DJ booth, a dance floor and strobe lighting. On top of that, the restaurant also offers a late-night menu until at least 11 p.m. each Friday and Saturday.

"We might be a little older, but we're not done partying yet," Matt said.