Berghoff Trivia

The Berghoff Family Cookbook: From Our Table to Yours, Celebrating a Century of Entertaining

According to Berghoff family stories, young Herman Berghoff was captivated by tales of the American Wild West and fancied that he might share those adventures and strike it rich. The closest he got to the Wild West was working for a year in Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show.

During the 1893 World's Columbia Exposition in Chicago, Herman couldn't get a license to sell his beer on the fairgrounds, so he set up a stand outside the grounds and sold beer as long as the fair lasted. Large murals in the restaurant depict scenes from the 1890s and the 1893 world's fair.

When the Berghoff Café opened in 1898, Berghoff Dortmunder Beer, light and dark, sold for five cents a glass and 10 cents a stein. The sandwiches were free.

The Berghoff moved from its original location at West Adams and State when the building was razed in 1913 to a location one door down at 17 West Adams, where it now stands.

The day after Prohibition ended in 1933, Berghoff's was issued Liquor License #1 (for the bar) and Liquor License #2 (for the restaurant). The city has awarded the first liquor license to Berghoff's every year since then.

Carlyn Berghoff first learned how to make a bow by tying an apron onto her mother's waist.

During the rationing of World War II, the Berghoff's 1944 menu referred to "Our Ceiling Prices," including Fried Jumbo Frog Legs for 80 cents and Veal Goulash for 55 cents.

For as long as anyone in the family can remember, Wiener Schnitzel has been Berhoff's best-selling entrée. In 2005, the Berghoff Restaurant cooked and served 41,872 plates of Wiener Schnitzel.

The Berghoff's beloved Creamed Spinach—created by Swiss-born executive chef Karl Hertenstein, who manned the kitchens from 1948 to 1964—is the only dish on the menu that's not made from scratch. It's made from frozen spinach.

Because of its potent aroma, sauerbraten at the Berghoff was kept in its own walk-in refrigerator.

In its last two months of operation the Berghoff Restaurant served more meals than it had at any time in its history, including the 4,000 meals a day that it traditionally produced during the Christmas season.

Berghoff Apple Strudel was always the best-selling dessert, and was listed on the first printed menu.

Until 1980, Berghoff waiters—whose no-nonsense demeanor was legendary—operated on the old German system of coins. The waiters were independent contractors and, at the beginning of each shift, bought metal coins from the restaurant (sold in bags at the cigar counter). The coins were used to buy food and beverage from the house to fulfill their customers' orders. The customers paid in cash. At the end of the day, all the waiters' checks were audited and each waiter was expected to "zero out." Cash tips were their bread and butter. In 1980, computers, credit cards, and the new automated ordering and billing systems instantly eradicated a century-old way of doing business.

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Contact: Tammie Barker, (800) 851-8923, ext. 6921, tbarker@amuniversal.com

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