Essie's Original Hot Dog Shop Explained

Essie's Original Hot Dog Shop
Established:1960
Closed:April 2020
Food-Type:hot dogs, french fries
Street-Address:3901 Forbes Avenue
City:Pittsburgh
State:Pennsylvania
Coordinates:40.4421°N -79.9565°W

Essie's Original Hot Dog Shop (commonly known as The Original Hot Dog Shop, The O or The Dirty O)[1] was a restaurant in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States.

History

The Original Hot Dog Shop was opened by Sydney “Syd” and Morris “Moe” Simon in Pittsburgh, in June 1960[2] [3] near Forbes Field and the University of Pittsburgh.

The restaurant was originally named "House of Beef", later "The Original Franks & Burgers" and eventually "The Original Hot Dog Shop". Over time, Syd bought out Moe's interest, becoming full owner of the restaurant. "Essie’s" was added in 2000 in memory of Syd's wife, Esther, after her death. Syd's children Terry Campasano and Bruce Simon owned and managed the restaurant starting in the mid-2000s.[4]

The restaurant quickly became known for its hot dogs and large portions of French fries, although the menu also includes sandwiches, salads and pizza. In 2001, Gourmet Magazine ranked the hot dogs fourth-best in America,[5] and The New York Times named it to a list of one of the "high spots in a nation of hot-dog heavens" in 2002.[6] The O was also featured on Rick Sebak's nationally distributed PBS program A Hog Dog Program[7] as well as on an episode of the Food Network's Unwrapped.[8]

As part of CNN's 100 Places to Eat series, Travel+Leisure's Laura Kiniry ranked the O's fries among the best in the U.S.[9] The University of Pittsburgh's student newspaper The Pitt News named The O "Best French Fries" in 2002,[10] 2003,[11] 2004,[12] 2005,[13] 2006,[14] 2007,[15] and 2008.[16]

A location at Carnegie Mellon University lasted from 1996 to 2006, closing in the wake of an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint and declining profits.[17] [18]

The restaurant closed in April 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.[19] [20]

See also

Notes and References

  1. http://triblive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/tribpm/s_404330.html Pittsburgh Tribune-Review "Long live "The Dirty O!"
  2. Web site: Sebak . Rick . The 'O' Turns the Big 5-0 . 2010-09-03 . Pittsburgh Magazine . 2020-04-23.
  3. Web site: Reed . Amanda . From Forbes Field to french fries, a brief look at the (foot) long history of "The Dirty O" . 2020-04-22 . Very Local Pittsburgh . 2020-04-23.
  4. News: Johnson . Rebecca . 2020-04-18 . Longtime manager confirms The O's closure . The Pitt News . Pittsburgh . 2020-04-23.
  5. Web site: Fitzgerald Michael R.. 2006. 'O's hot dogs ranked fourth best in the United States. The Pitt News. December 9, 2006.
  6. News: Lukas Paul. High Spots in a Nation of Hot-Dog Heavens . The New York Times . May 29, 2008 . July 3, 2002.
  7. Web site: Hot Dog Places. WQED.org. November 5, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131105094646/http://www.wqed.org/tv/natl/hotdogs/hd_places.shtml. November 5, 2013.
  8. Web site: Unwrapped: In the Bun Episode CW1204. FoodNetwork.com. November 5, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131105094027/http://www.foodnetwork.com/unwrapped/in-the-bun/index.html. November 5, 2013. dead.
  9. Best French fries in the U.S.. Laura. Kiniry. Travel + Leisure. CNN.com. November 26, 2012. November 5, 2013.
  10. http://media.www.pittnews.com/media/storage/paper879/news/2002/11/13/BestOfIssue2002/Best-Of.Grub-1796874.shtml Best of Grub – Best of Issue 2002
  11. http://media.www.pittnews.com/media/storage/paper879/news/2003/11/12/BestOfIssue2003/The-Best.Grub-1791123.shtml The Best Grub – Best of Issue 2003
  12. http://media.www.pittnews.com/media/storage/paper879/news/2004/11/10/BestOf2004/Best-Of.Food-1788435.shtml Best of Food – Best of 2004
  13. http://media.www.pittnews.com/media/storage/paper879/news/2005/11/09/BestOf2005/The-Best.Grub-1785874.shtml The Best Grub – Best Of 2005
  14. Web site: The Best Food - Best Of 2006 . 2008-03-14 . https://archive.today/20070810223925/http://media.www.pittnews.com/media/storage/paper879/news/2006/11/14/BestOf2006/The-Best.Food-2457922.shtml . 2007-08-10 . dead .
  15. Web site: The Best Food - Best Of 2007 . The Pitt News . 2007-11-14 . https://web.archive.org/web/20071114021002/http://media.www.pittnews.com/media/storage/paper879/news/2007/11/09/BestOf2007/The-Best.Food-3091008.shtml . dead .
  16. Web site: 2010-09-02 . Best of 2008… The Best Grub. The Pitt News. 19 November 2008 .
  17. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06263/723235-28.stm Post-Gazette "EEOC says Original Hot Dog Shop is racially biased"
  18. http://thetartan.org/2006/5/1/news/hotdog The Tartan "The 'O' to close on campus"
  19. Web site: Saunders . Alan . Original Hot Dog Shop, Legendary Pitt Eatery, Closes . 2020-04-18 . PGH Sports Now . 2020-04-23.
  20. News: Hagerty . James R. . Coronavirus Shuts Some Beloved Local Restaurants for Good . 29 April 2020 . . 29 April 2020.

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