Gino's East facts for kids
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| Industry | Restaurant |
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| Founded | 1966 |
| Headquarters | , |
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Number of locations
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10 |
| Products | Deep Dish Pizza, Tavern Style Thin Crust, Salads, Pastas, Sandwiches |
Gino's East is a famous restaurant chain from Chicago, known for its delicious Deep Dish pizza. It was started in 1966 by two cab drivers.
Contents
The Story of Gino's East
Gino's East first opened its doors in 1966. It was founded by three friends: Sam Levine, Fred Bartoli, and George Loverde.
They bought a building in Chicago but weren't sure what kind of business to open. Someone suggested a pizza place, even though they didn't know much about making pizza!
The first Gino's East was at 162 E. Superior Street, near the famous Magnificent Mile. It served deep dish pizza there from 1966 until 2000. In 2000, the building had to be torn down because it had structural problems. Just two days later, the restaurant moved to a new spot on North Wells Street.
In 2006, Gino's East moved back to its original address at 162 E. Superior Street. A new building had been built there, and Gino's East was able to return home.
The Secret Recipe: Alice Mae Redmond
Even though the original owners were Italian, they didn't create the famous deep dish pizza recipe. That credit goes to Alice Mae Redmond, a talented Black woman.
Alice Mae was hired by the founders. She had worked for 17 years at a competing pizza place called Pizzeria Uno. There, she developed a special dough recipe. She didn't like Uno's crust, saying it was "too hard to push."
Alice Mae worked at Gino's East as a pizza cook and recipe developer for 29 years. She retired in 1989, and her nephew, Glenn Hudley, continued to work there as a manager.
Writing on the Walls
Gino's East is famous for letting customers write all over its walls! This fun tradition started by accident in the 1970s. Customers would carve their initials into the tables using forks and knives.
To protect their furniture, employees started encouraging people to write on the walls instead. They even gave out pens and markers! Now, graffiti covers almost every part of the restaurant.
Most newer Gino's East locations and franchises don't allow writing on the walls. This makes the original restaurant at 162 E Superior Street special, as it's the only one that keeps this unique tradition alive.
A Special Beer Purchase in 2015
In 2015, a brewery called 5 Rabbit Brewery decided to stop selling a special batch of beer to a bar in Trump Tower Chicago. A few days later, Gino's East bought that entire batch of beer from the brewery.
Deep Dish Pizza Ingredients
Gino's East gets its sausage from a family-owned business in Chicago.
For its vegan pizza, Gino's uses vegan cheese from a company called Daiya.
Gino's Brewing Co.
Gino's Brewing Co. opened in 2015 inside the Gino's East River North location. The brewery focuses on making beers using traditional methods. They often make beers with lower alcohol content.
In 2015, all four of the brewery's main beers won awards at the U.S. Open Beer Championship. They competed against over 4,000 other beers! The Lasalle St. Lager won a gold medal, Broken English won silver, and Killarney Connection and Gino's Pale Ale both won bronze medals.
Where Else Can You Find Gino's East?
Gino's East has opened many other locations in the Chicago area. Some of these places include Naperville, Rolling Meadows, Lake Zurich, Deerfield, Oak Lawn, and Highland, Indiana. Some of these locations have since closed.
There was also a Gino's East in Manhattan Beach, California, but it closed in 1991.
Gino's East also has a mail-order business. This means you can order frozen pizzas and have them shipped to your home overnight!
In 2014, the company announced it would open restaurants in Texas. The first Texas location opened in The Woodlands in November 2014. Other Texas cities like Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas-Fort Worth also got Gino's East restaurants.
Nashville, Tennessee
In 2019, Gino's East opened its first location in Nashville. It's located at 311 3rd Avenue S. This spot is also home to The Comedy Bar, a comedy club from Chicago.
The Nashville restaurant opened on March 14, which is National Pi Day! They offered a special deal for the first 100 guests: a slice of thin crust pizza and a can of Old Style beer for just $3.14. There was also a pizza eating contest where the winner got free pizza for a year.
The Nashville location has a big outdoor patio with fun yard games like Jenga and cornhole. It also has a late-night pizza window and a bar that serves both inside and outside. You can see cool murals by Nashville artist Brett Hunter throughout the restaurant.
Los Angeles, California
In 2020, a Gino's East franchise opened in Los Angeles, California. It's located at 12924 Riverside Dr. in Sherman Oaks. This new restaurant took over a building that used to be a place called Rock 'n Pies.
Today, Gino's East has 10 locations where you can enjoy their famous deep dish pizza.
