Geno's Steaks | |
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![]() Geno's Steaks seen at night in 2007 | |
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Restaurant information | |
Established | 1966 |
Owner(s) | Geno Vento |
Previous owner(s) | Joey Vento (1966–2011) |
Food type | North American cuisine |
Street address | 1219 South 9th St |
City | Philadelphia |
State | Pennsylvania |
Postal/ZIP Code | 19147 |
Country | United States |
Coordinates | 39°56′01″N75°09′32″W / 39.933702°N 75.158898°W |
Website | www.genosteaks.com |
Geno's Steaks is a Philadelphia restaurant specializing in cheesesteaks, founded in 1966 by Joey Vento. Geno's is located in South Philadelphia at the intersection of 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue, directly across the street from rival Pat's King of Steaks, which is generally credited with having invented the cheesesteak in 1933. [1] The cheesesteak has since become a signature dish for Philadelphia.
After Joey Vento's death in 2011, restaurant ownership was passed to his son Geno Vento. [2]
Owner Joey Vento started a small grill venue at 9th and Passyunk in 1966 and over time his business gained praise from locals. Joey had a son in 1971 and named him Geno, who from 17 on, worked in his father's business. [3]
According to Vento, the name 'Geno's' was chosen because 'Joe's Steak Place' was already in business. He improvised the name from a broken door on which someone had painted 'GINO' and modified the spelling to prevent confusion with a regional fast food chain called Gino's. Vento later named his own son Geno, who now is in charge of the family business. [4]
Geno's was awarded Best of Philly for Best Takeout by Philadelphia Magazine in 2000. In April 2004, a branch of the shop opened in Citizens Bank Park, the home of the Philadelphia Phillies. This location was closed in 2006 and replaced with Rick's Steaks (operated by Rick Olivieri, grandson of Pat Olivieri, founder of Pat's King of Steaks).
On August 23, 2011, 71-year-old owner and founder Joey Vento died of a heart attack. [5]
Geno's Steaks has branch locations at Terminal B of Philadelphia International Airport [6] and at Rivers Casino Philadelphia. [7]
On September 20, 2015, Geno's Steaks opened a location at Xfinity Live! Philadelphia. [8]
Geno's menu is very similar to that of Pat's. Geno's does not chop the meat while Pat's does. [9] Geno's claims to have sold up to 4,500 sandwiches daily. [9]
The walls, roof, and interior of Geno's are decorated with memorabilia and hundreds of autographed and framed photos of celebrities who have eaten there.
In June 2006, a sign on Geno's window gained press notoriety during a national controversy over immigration. [10] The sign reads: "This Is AMERICA: WHEN ORDERING Please "SPEAK ENGLISH"." [11] The Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations filed a discrimination complaint, arguing that Geno's violated the city's Fair Practices Ordinance, which prohibits discrimination in public accommodation, by "denying service to someone because of his or her national origin, and having printed material making certain groups of people feel their patronage is unwelcome." [12] Vento had previously said the signs are directed at the Mexican immigrants in the surrounding neighborhood. [13]
Vento said that no one has been refused service for not speaking English, but said, "If I can't understand you, you might not get the sandwich you thought you ordered." [12]
The Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations found probable cause that the sign is discriminatory. The commission says the sign could make non-English speakers feel unwelcome or discriminated against. [14]
Vento enlisted the aid of the Southeastern Legal Foundation, a public-interest legal organization. [14] In 2006, the Foundation had defended a bar owner cited by the Ohio Civil Rights Commission for a sign reading "For Service, Speak English." That case was settled when the owner removed the sign. [15]
Responding in an interview with Fox News analyst Neil Cavuto, Vento stated that he does not turn away any customer, and therefore does not discriminate. He also vowed to keep his sign displayed no matter how much pressure he receives. He explained to Cavuto that his parents had to learn English when they came to the U.S. He said that if his customers order in any other language, he will give them Cheez Whiz on bread. Vento posed some rhetorical questions: "If one goes into a Puerto Rican neighborhood, how many signs would be seen in English?" and "When one is on the telephone, it may say press 1 for English, press 2 for Spanish; but where is the number for, say, Italian or Korean?" [16]
On March 19, 2008, Philadelphia's Commission on Human Relations ruled that the restaurant did not violate the city's Fair Practices Ordinance. [17]
The sign was quietly removed at some point before the 2016 Democratic National Convention to avoid offense. [18] [19]
A cheesesteak is a sandwich made from thinly sliced pieces of beefsteak and melted cheese in a long hoagie roll. A popular regional fast food, it has its roots in the U.S. city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south, and the Schuylkill River to the west. A diverse working-class community of many neighborhoods, South Philadelphia is well-known for its large Italian-American population, but it also contains large Asian American, Irish-American, African-American, and Latino populations.
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Pat Olivieri (1907-1974) was an American restaurateur. He is credited, along with his brother, Harry Olivieri, as the 1930 co-creator of the cheesesteak. The brothers opened Pat's King of Steaks in 1930, one of the best known purveyors of steak sandwiches in Philadelphia.
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