One of the very first entries I had on Road Tips (it will be six years this fall!) was a little ditty on one of my favorite places to visit when I go to Sioux City (which, unfortunately, doesn't happen all that often) - George's No. 1 Hot Dog Shoppe. George's has been around since I first started to go visit dealers in Sioux City 25 years ago this month. Always on the lookout for a good chili dog, I found George Demetroulis' little shop tucked back into a small strip mall along busy Hamilton Ave. on the west side of Sioux City (see map). It had been a long time since I'd been to Sioux City to see the guys at Pflanz Electronics, so I decided to stop in to get some chili dogs at George's. The place is so near and dear to my heart that I wanted to do a write up on George's that was better than the original one I did about five years ago.
When I first found this little hot dog place, it wasn't called George's No. 1 - it was called Milwaukee Wiener House No. 2 - an extension of the Milwaukee Wiener House No. 1, a long time fixture in downtown Sioux City. The original Milwaukee Wiener House opened in 1918 when a couple brothers from Greece, the Dione's, brought the "Coney Dog" concept to Sioux City. (The same year, another Sioux City icon - Coney Island - opened their hot dog restaurant. It's still in existence today.) In 1930, another Greek immigrant, Gus Avlichos, bought the place and ran it for another 30 years before selling the place to Tom Eliades and Gus Demetroulis.
About ten years later, Gus convinced his younger brother, George, and his wife, Mary, to move to Sioux City to help out in the Milwaukee Wiener House. When they opened up their second location over on Hamilton Avenue, George and Mary went over there to run the place - hence, the name "Milwaukee Wiener House No.2".
In 1989, Gus Demetroulis retired from the business and George and Mary ended up buying their location for themselves. And that's how the "George's No. 1 Hot Dog Shoppe" got its name.
George's is open from 10 to 5, six days a week. During working hours you'll find George and Mary behind the counter making hot dogs for the steady flow of people who come in for their chili dogs. The hot dogs are cooked on a flat grill at George's (I've been told this cooking technique exemplifies "Michigan-style Coney Dogs") and are stacked up for quick serving on the side of the grill. The hot dogs are also smaller than most hot dogs that you'll find at most other hot dog places or at the grocery store. George always grills a handful that are a little more crispy than the others for those - like my father-in-law - who like that burnt taste on their hot dogs.
The menu at George's No. 1 Hot Dog Shoppe is pretty basic. "Regular dogs" are the main item, a hot dog topped with chili, mustard and onions. Shredded cheese is also available on request. Or you just go in and say that you want a hot dog with everything and that's the same as a Regular Dog. And they also feature a Hawaiian Dog that is a chili dog topped with pineapple (I don't know if I'd like that, even though I do like pineapple). And George also has something called the Hot Dog Supreme that is topped with chili, mustard, onions, relish, pickles, sauerkraut, ketchup and jalapenos.
Being that he is Greek, George also features gyros and with homemade tzatziki that Mary makes on her own. Mary also makes her own baklava. I've had a piece and it's damn good.
I got into George's around 1:00 p.m., just after the lunch rush. Three of the booths were filled with people - there's only about a dozen booths in George's. Along the south wall of the place are a number of historical pictures from around the Sioux City area. A large portrait of George is centered among all the pictures on the wall.
Mary greeted me and I ordered three with everything. Because the hot dogs are smaller than others, three are pretty easy to eat. She asked if I wanted them a little crisp and I said, "Yeah, sure. I'll do it that way."
George's chili is a Greek style chili - very similar to Cincinnati-style chili where they don't use chili beans and all-spice is the more prevalent taste than chili powder. It's not overly thick, but does have an abundance of ground beef in the chili. George's chili is not very spicy and easily covers the hot dog in the bun.
And compared to other hot dog joints, George has a specific way that he chops his fresh onions. George likes the onions to have a little "crunch" to the bite and he doesn't chop them so fine that they get mushy.
Getting down to the hot dog through the chili, onions and mustard, each bite yields a little "snap" from the casing. There's something that is appealing to me about a flat top-grilled hot dog over one that is boiled or steamed. The hot dogs remain juicy and flavorful when they're cooked on a flat grill, even when George puts a little char on the outside of the dog. This is just about as good as a chili dog can get.
While I wasn't able to close the deal on this visit, I really hope to be able to do more business with Pflanz Electronics so I can get back up to Sioux City and visit George's No. 1 Hot Dog Shoppe more than just once every couple three years. George and Mary make some of the best chili dogs I've ever had.
I cannot stop myself from laughing so hard. There is a friend of mine who has a pet named George. The pet is a dog. Also, my friend has business that is hot dog stand.
Posted by: Rebecca Lindsay | November 06, 2012 at 08:36 AM