Right, Skyline is fast food, and should be held to fast food standards. I hate when people call Cincinnati-style-chili “slop” when their only experience with it is the fast-food version though. Like, first of all, duh Skyline is slop, in the same way that Taco Bell beef is slop, and people (myself included) eat that shit up. Because fast food tastes good, even if it’s slop. There wouldn’t be hundreds of Skyline locations, or thousands of Taco Bell locations, all serving up various versions of slop, if that slop doesn’t taste good. And second of all, if people would take 5 minutes to read up on the history of the dish and understand it a bit more, they’d probably understand all the “weird” ingredients and quirks that make it different than The One True 'Merican Texas Style Chili ™️ (which traditionally uses chocolate/cocoa powder as well, by the way). It’s an Americanized version of sauces/dishes commonly eaten in Greek and Macedonian cuisine, which explains why the spice profile is so different. It was first served over hotdogs with mountains of cheese instead of the more-traditional pasta to cater to the American audience. But Cincinnati-style chili is essentially Greek bolognese, and it’s a beautiful, wonderful dish.

I’m sorry, none of this is directed at you, I’ll get off my soapbox now. I don’t know why I’m so passionate about Cincinnati chili, it just really grinds my gears when people get up on a high horse to look down on some food just because they happen to dislike it.