Certificate as awarded to Gene's & Jude's following this nomination.
If I can be ever so brash and provocative (perhaps a bit mean-spirited on this Thanksgiving holiday
), can I point out that LTHForum is not a hot dog board? I say this not because there are no hot dog posts on this board (and boy does this board love Hot Dougs), but the core of this board, perhaps not the majority, but many, are not Chicago natives. And these people do not have the pull to a Chicago hot dog the way a native does, and this is why I think there has not been a lot of great threads on Chicago hot dogs, nor why I think you will find much LTH mention of the world's greatest hot dog stand.
Before I reprint my words of nomination, let me point out two bits of background. The first, I was telling my wife, the Condiment Queen, just the other day, about how I associate Thanksgiving with a good hot dog as much as with turkey. Growing up, we nearly always had a hot dog from Ira's in Northbrook as a hold-me-over. Ma did not want to cook lunch while she was knee deep in dinner, and it was left to Dad (or later me), to run over to Ira's for hot dogs. If nothing can equal family Thanksgiving, it tells you how good those dogs could be if they came close. My other bit of background is to point you to this
post to show you my bona fides on thinking about this subject.
Now, on to the World's Greatest Hot Dog Stand (as written by me long ago):
Quote:
The greatest hot dog stand in the world serves neither hamburgers, nor polish sausage, nor grilled chicken sandwiches. There is no grill, no char-broiler, no spinning mound of gyros. At the greatest hot dog stand they only need buckets of simmering water for dogs, steamers for steaming buns and Supreme tamales and ever bubbling vats of oil for the fresh cut fries.
You can see the greatest hot dog from far up the street. Beecause the greatest hot dog stand is all glass and harsh flouresant lights and stands as a beacon for all who are hungry. If you see a line, you know it will move fast.
The greatest hot dog stand follows few of the rules laid out by the experts. Their buns are poppy-seedless. They offer few condiments beyond mustard (no ketchup on site). They do not dust their dog with celary salt. Yes, it is a Vienna sausage, but a skinnyish one at that. You really need to eat more than one at the greatest hot dog stand in the world, and many of the customers do (Sample customer, "I'll take seven hot dogs and an [extra] order of fries).
The cooks at the greatest hot dog stand in the world occupy their time in between orders by thrusting fresh idaho potatos through a machine that converts them into perfect sized french fries. These amazing sticks of pure pototo get tossed on top of each offering so that if you want to eat them inside your hot dog bun, well you can and maybe should.
The greatest hot dog stand in the world is a throwback to a world when people ate hot dogs. A throwback to a time when a great stand could keep their buns steamed just right, and their red hots, hot but not limp. So a Gene and Jude hot dog snaps right back at you. Interactive eating. With a side of hot fries, you will know you are at the greatest hot dog stand in the world.
Gene and Judes
2720 River Road
River Grove, IL 60171-1325
708-452-7634
On the corner of River Road and Grand
VI
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My current favorite hot dog stand, Herm's on Dempster, uses out-of-the-bag skinny fries, but makes them nice and crisp, which is a real plus.
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