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Industry | Food |
---|---|
Founded | 1893 |
Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
Key people | Jack Bodman (CEO) |
Products | Hot dogs, pickles, various |
Revenue | $130 million |
Website | www |
Vienna Beef Inc. is the main manufacturer of the hot dog used in the classic Chicago-style hot dog, as well as Polish sausage and Italian beef, delicacies of independent Chicago-style hot dog and beef stands. The company also produces a variety of deli meats, some of which are available at Chicago area supermarkets.
The company's headquarters is at the intersection of Elston, Damen, and Fullerton Avenues in the city, on the Chicago River. The company has been located in Chicago since the Columbian Exposition of 1893. Originally, the factory was in the same building as the headquarters. In 2016, the factory was relocated to 1000 W. Pershing Road in Chicago's Bridgeport neighborhood.
Emil Reichel and Sam Ladany emigrated from Vienna, Austria, to Chicago in the 1890s. During the Columbian Exposition they sold hot dogs to the many visitors of the Exposition. In 1894, Reichel and Ladany opened a storefront on Halsted Avenue on Chicago's West Side. In 1900, Vienna Beef began to sell and deliver to other stores and restaurants in Chicago. During the Great Depression, a number of Vienna Beef vendors begin advertising that their hot dogs have a "salad on top," giving rise to the traditional Chicago-style hot dog. In 1950, Vienna Beef distribution spread to other Midwestern states, and in the 1960s, Vienna Beef began selling in supermarkets.
Henry Davis (1904–1974), a one time VP of sales, was instrumental in making Vienna Beef the Chicago hot dog. Henry was honored by Vienna Beef, the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois for his contributions in helping create Chicago's independent hot dog stands. There is a permanent collection of documents, photos and memorabilia in the Chicago Historical Society Archives called the "Henry Davis Collection" that was inaugurated in 1989.
Vienna Beef's revenue for the year 2015 was estimated to be $130 million. [1]
The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, held in Jackson Park, was a large water pool representing the voyage that Columbus took to the New World. Chicago won the right to host the fair over several competing cities, including New York City, Washington, D.C., and St. Louis. The exposition was an influential social and cultural event and had a profound effect on American architecture, the arts, American industrial optimism, and Chicago's image.
A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or extenders.
A hot dog is a dish consisting of a grilled, steamed, or boiled sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term hot dog can refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener or a frankfurter. The names of these sausages commonly refer to their assembled dish. Hot dog preparation and condiments vary worldwide. Typical condiments include mustard, ketchup, relish, onions in tomato sauce, and cheese sauce. Other toppings include sauerkraut, diced onions, jalapeños, chili, grated cheese, coleslaw, bacon and olives. Hot dog variants include the corn dog and pigs in a blanket. The hot dog's cultural traditions include the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest and the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile.
A chili dog is a hot dog served in a bun and topped with a meat sauce, such as chili con carne. Additional toppings may include cheese, onions, and mustard. The style has multiple regional variations in the United States, many calling for specific and unique sauce ingredients, types of hot dogs, or types of buns and referred to regionally under region-specific names.
A Chicago-style hot dog, Chicago Dog, or Chicago Red Hot is an all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun, originating from the city of Chicago, Illinois. The hot dog is topped with yellow mustard, chopped white onions, bright green sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices or wedges, pickled sport peppers, and a dash of celery salt. The complete assembly of a Chicago hot dog is said to be "dragged through the garden" due to the many toppings. The method for cooking the hot dog itself varies depending on the vendor's preference. Most often they are steamed, water-simmered, or less often grilled over charcoal.
Vienna sausage is a thin parboiled sausage traditionally made of pork and beef in a casing of sheep's intestine, then given a low-temperature smoking. The word Wiener is German for 'Viennese'. In Austria, the term Wiener is uncommon for this food item, which instead is usually called Frankfurter Würstl.
A Maxwell Street Polish consists of a grilled or fried length of Polish sausage topped with grilled onions and yellow mustard and optional pickled whole, green sport peppers, served on a bun. The sandwich traces its origins to Chicago's Maxwell Street market, and has been called one of "the classic foods synonymous with Chicago".
A Coney Island hot dog, Coney dog, or Coney is a hot dog in a bun topped with a savory meat sauce and sometimes other toppings. It is often offered as part of a menu of classic American diner dishes and often at Coney Island restaurants. It is largely a phenomenon related to immigration from Greece and the region of Macedonia to the United States in the early 20th century.
A hot dog bun is a type of soft bun shaped specifically to contain a hot dog or another type of sausage.
A hot dog stand is a business that sells hot dogs, usually from an external counter. Hot dog stands can be located on a public thoroughfare, near a sports stadium, in a shopping mall, or at a fair. They are often found on the streets of major American cities. According to one report, some hot dog stands are paying up to $80,000 in rent for prime locations in Manhattan.
Different areas of the world have local variations on the hot dog, in the type of meat used, the condiments added, and its means of preparation.
A half-smoke is a type of hot dog found in Washington, D.C., and the surrounding region. Larger, spicier, and with more coarsely-ground meat than a regular hot dog, the sausage is often half-pork and half-beef, smoked, and served with herbs, onion, and chili sauce.
A cheese dog is a hot dog served with cheese or processed cheese on it or stuffed within it, as a filling.
A vegetarian hot dog is a hot dog produced completely from non-meat products. Unlike traditional home-made meat sausages, the casing is not made of intestine, but of cellulose or other plant-based ingredients. The filling is usually based on some sort of soy protein, wheat gluten, or pea protein. Some may contain egg whites, which would make them unsuitable for a lacto-vegetarian or vegan diet.
Marathon Enterprises, Inc., is a major regional supplier of meats and gourmet delicatessen products to the food service industry in the New York City metropolitan area. Headquartered in Englewood, New Jersey, it is a private corporation, and sells its products under the Sabrett brand name.
Gene's & Jude's is a popular and iconic hot dog stand in River Grove, Illinois, founded in 1946 by Chicago city worker Gene Mormino. The stand is famous for its limited approach to the Chicago-style hot dog, its toppings departing from tradition by including only mustard, onions, relish, sport peppers and fresh cut French fries placed on top, known as a Depression Dog. The menu is limited to hot dogs, double dogs, tamales and fries, and lacks any trace of ketchup even for dipping the fries.
A hot link is a type of sausage used in the cuisine of the Southern United States, and a part of American barbecue, soul food, and Cajun and Louisiana Creole cuisines. It is also a part of Texan cuisine and the cuisine of Chicago, Illinois. The hot link is usually prepared using pork, beef, or a combination of both. It is sometimes used as an ingredient in other dishes, such as jambalaya and gumbo. Hot link sausages are mass-produced by some companies in the United States.
Jeff's Gourmet Sausage Factory is a glatt kosher sausage factory and restaurant in Los Angeles, California. Established in 1999 in a small storefront in the Pico-Robertson district, it serves a variety of Eastern European Jewish– and Mediterranean-style sausages, hamburgers, and deli sandwiches and wraps. All of its meats are prepared in-house.