Today we’d like to introduce you to Antonio Passaro.
Antonio, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
After many years of working for a printing company, I decided to follow my true dream and open a restaurant selling hot dogs, gyros, hamburgers and Italian beef. With the guidance of my best friend who was in the industry, I learned what I needed to succeed. That place was called Devil Dog, but once the location on Route 59 became available, I decided to get creative and opened The Dogfather.
I derived the concept of The Dogfather from one of my all-time favorite movies, The Godfather. It became an instant hit in the town of Bartlett, IL, not just because it was a very clever, original idea but also because the food is delicious, the staff is especially welcoming and the atmosphere is superbly pleasant, with colorful surroundings & tastefully selected black & white Italian photographs lining the walls.
I got where I am from being a big part of our community, from fundraising to being one of the biggest sponsor of youth sports. I try to get involved as much as possible with the community because they all get involved with The Dogfather! One of the best community events happens every Tuesday with Dogfather Hot Dog’s $.99 Hot Dogs all day!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Smooth???? Ha! This is the restaurant business so it always keeps you on your toes. My biggest struggle would be finding the right employees to promote the image of the Dogfather. We are like Cheers, its friendly, everyone knows everyone and we have great food with great service, so finding people to fit that is sometimes a struggle.
Dogfather Hot Dogs – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We specialize in Hot Dogs, Italian beef sandwiches, Gyro’s ….
We are most known for our Hot Dog Tuesday!!
I’m proud of what we have become to the community.
Our atmosphere is different than most restaurants, I have a little more people working to move people in and out quickly, and I sit and talk to many of our customers to form relationships with them so they are not just a number to us.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
That’s a hard one, since we were just rated Best Hot Dog in Chicago by The Daily Herald readers’ choice, plus in 2014 we were featured on Chicago’s Best. My proudest moments are seeing how happy people are that come into our restaurant. I not only have my business in town, but I also live here so no matter where I am, I am interacting with our customers.
Contact Info:
- Address: 957 S. Route 59,
Bartlett, IL 60103 - Website: www.dogfatherhotdogs.com or www.dogfathercatering.com
- Phone: 630-540-7500
- Email: tony@dogfatherhotdogs.com
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
Patti Hanson
August 16, 2017 at 4:18 pm
The Dogfather is a community gem……..Tony has been involved in every aspect of the village activities………and the food is fabulous….from baseball, 4th of july, fishing derby…….he participates and gives back…….we love our Bartlett GEM……..He is the best !!!