Letter From the Editor Another Delco icon bites the dust
A little bit Saturday.
Right there on
No, we are not writing another story about a fatal accident on Route 322, the notoriously dangerous road that snakes its way from Route 1 (Baltimore Pike) in Concord to I-95 in Chester.
But the passing less momentous.
They closed the doors at John’s Doggie Shop, an institution on the Conchester, for the last time Saturday. Fittingly, it went out with a bang. Hundreds flocked to the tiny hot dog stand for one last irresistible taste of the “Boss With the Sauce.”
The expected rain held off; the crowds did not. The place was packed. In fact, they actually ran out of rolls and sauce about 3 p.m.
Lines started forming outside the tiny eatery on the Conchester early Saturday morning as fans lined up for one last taste of the shop’s signature “Boss With the Sauce.” Many took containers home so they could savor a flavor of their childhood.
It looked like a scene straight out of “Happy Days,” complete with a car show in the parking lot and guys peeling out, “laying rubber” in the parking lot.
By the end of the day, Delco had one less icon as John’s Doggie Shop now resides in the memory vault next to other county legends such as the Bazaar of All Nations and Granite Run Mall.
The hot dog stand that started on Seventh Street Chester in 1948, grew to five locations and has been in the Eleutheriou family for nearly seven decades, is making way for long-awaited improvements on Route 322.
I could not resist the idea that the socalled “Killer Conchester” is claiming one more victim.
Only this one does accident. But it is about a death in the family. The Delaware County family. We’ve lost another one of those special things that simply screams, “Delco.”
No, this was not Sun Oil. Or Sun Ship. Or Westinghouse. Or Scott Paper. of Delaware County the Conchester not involve died Highway. is no a fatal
But it people.
The Eleutheriou family opened the door to their first shop 69 years when John Eleutheriou bought the Texas Lunch restaurant at 100 E. Seventh St., Chester, in 1948. The new spot quickly became a staple, its special sauce proving irresistible to the then booming industrial town’s factory workers, along with downtown office workers and shoppers.
The Conchester store opened in 1978 when George’s father Pete and a cousin bought the former Wolf’s Restaurant. It was one of five satellite stores – along with locations in Media; Wilmington and Newark, Del.; and Wildwood Crest, N.J. All stores were run by relatives with the exception of Media.
Soon the Texas Lunch name gave way to John’s Doggie Shop. A Delco legend was born. It was quickly followed by another nickname bestowed on Eleutheriou by his many fans: “The Boss With the Sauce.” Eat your heat out, Jerry Blavat. probably affects just as many The Eleutheriou family beat you to the punch when it comes to the “Boss With the Sauce.”
The nickname soon popped up on signs, takeout bags and store merchandise.
On Saturday, to say goodbye.
The Sinnott family, natives of Linwood in Lower Chi, actually traveled all the way from their home in Virginia for one last taste. They were not alone. Describing John’s Doggie Shop as just a hot dog stand is a little bit like saying the Waldorf-Astoria is just a hotel.
Generations of Delco folks have beaten a path to the Eleutheriou family’s doors for an indescribable taste.
That concoction of mustard, onions and chili sauce made them a one-of-akind dining experience.
And for so many it meant one down memory lane Saturday.
Pete Eleutheriou sat next to its legions of fans came last his trip friend Jean Francis and her husband, Rich. They’ve known each other since they were in the third grade. Rich’s mother even worked for Eleutheriou for a time.
“They’ve never changed,” Jean Francis said. “They got better.”
When asked to reflect upon her final bites inside the shop, Jean put it simply: “Sad, real sad.”
I guess you could “last stand.”
That’s the way I chose Sunday’s front page.
They closed the doors House Saturday.
But the “Boss With the legend will live forever. call Saturday to to record John’s the it on Doggie Sauce?” The