Gene & Jude's

Gene's & Jude's or Gene & Jude's is a popular and iconic hot dog stand in River Grove, Illinois,^[1] founded in 1946 by friends and Chicago city workers Gene Mormino and Jude DeSantis.^[2] 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.^[3] The menu is limited to hot dogs, double dogs, tamales and fries, and, typical of Chicago hot dog stands, lacks any trace of ketchup.^[2]

History

In 1946 city workers Gene Mormino and Jude DeSantis were at a Cubs game at Wrigley Field when Gene decided if he added French fries to his hot dog it would give it a gratifying dose of saltiness and crunchiness. Based on that idea, the two partners started a hot dog stand at Polk & Western Streets in Chicago. Their restaurant quickly gained popularity, but 3 years later Gene lost the entire stand in a card game in 1949.^[4]

In 1950 they gathered enough money and moved operations to their current location in River Grove, Illinois. Since 2004 it has been owned and run by Joe Mormino, Gene's son.^[4]

In 2006, Gene's & Jude's was inducted into the Vienna Beef Hot Dog Hall of Fame.^[5] In 2011, in a competition of 64 hot dog stands across the country, it was chosen by the magazine "Every Day with Rachel Ray" and the food blog Serious Eats as the best hot dog in America.^[6] During the 50's Gene and Jude’s was a frame building. It wasn't even called Gene & Jude's. They didn't have a name on their sign. It was just Vienna Red Hots. Customers referred to it as River Road Hot Dogs. During the 1950’s, Gene & Jude's drinks were sold in bottles. They also had a takeout window. They also served Cock Robin for desert. Cock Robin (Formerly known as Prince Castle) was an Ice Cream Restaurant located in what is now the parking lot of Gene's & Jude’s. It was on the north east corner of the lot and they served ice cream sundaes, sodas, floats, shakes and blizzards. They used a square shaped ice cream scoop. Until 1978, Gene and Jude’s did not serve napkins. Gene Mormino had a gambling problem. In 1949, Mormino lost big in a poker game. He wagered the small hot-dog stand he had been operating for four years at Polk Street and Western Avenue. Mormino lost the game, and with his tail between his legs, the 30-year-old took his outsize personality and no-nonsense cuisine to a new stand in the burbs.(1) Interesting Facts: If a customer goes into Gene and Jude’s and asks for Ketchup they will either get yelled at, or made fun of. Gene and Jude’s is very open on how they feel about Ketchup and if a customer so happens to talk about it to the employees they will get feisty. Gene and Jude wanted to get the message across that this hot dog joint was a Chicago style hot dog place and made sure there was no ketchup in there store. A Chicago style hot dog includes relish, onions, sweet peppers and mustard. Gene and Jude wanted to keep that tradition. With of course there extra topping of fries on top of the hot dog. This was to make the partnership they had started unique. Store Layout Gene and Jude's is a free standing hot dog stand in the middle of a large parking lot. There aren't any tables, so you can either eat in your car or somewhere along the counter. There's one large counter where you order at one end and pick up your food at the other. Behind this counter seems to be a variety of employees ranging from teenage years to older 60’s. Some of the employees have been working there since the beginning. (2) Awards Gene and Jude’s has one Best Hot Dog in America and it is always in the top ten for Chicago’s best quick eats yearly. Citations 1.Lake, Chris. 2008 http://timeoutchicago.com/restaurants-bars/57404/the-minimalist 2.Pearl, Jeff. 2010 http://www.jeffeatschicago.com/2010_04_01_archive.html

References

External links

• Gene's & Jude's
• Gene's & Jude's Roadfood review
• Gene's & Jude's Tripadvisor review