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Business & Tech

Bites Nearby Celebrates "Doing This For Decades": Pamy's Hot Dogs

First in a series of featured restaurants in the Darien, Lemont and Woodridge areas who've stayed in it for the long haul.

June 26, 2012 will be a significant milestone for Pam Gialanas and her mother Georgia Tsakalakis, owners of at 7516 Cass Ave. in Darien.

It marks their 30th year in business.

“We’ve seen Darien start from a very small little community,” said Gialanas, noting that and existed then, but not much else. She began working at Pamy’s in high school and returned after graduating from college with a business degree.

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Mom Georgia has always been an entrepreneur, said Gialanas, and she instilled that spirit in Gialanas and her sister, who owns a floral business.

Although well-known for their gyros and homemade sauces, the charbroiled chicken sandwich runs a close second along with homemade burgers, Gialanas explained. Chicken breasts are marinated overnight in fresh herbs and extra-virgin olive oil.

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And then there are the garlic fries.

Gialanas recalls “playing around in Pamy’s kitchen” with her mom 15 years ago trying to concoct tasty seasoned fries. During the day, they’d offer the “experiments” to their customers, and thus the garlic fries were born.

Tsakalakis and Gialanas make fresh every menu item possible, including desserts such as crème caramel, baklava, brownies, cheesecake and seasonal cookies.

“We definitely focus on quality,” Gialanas said. She and Georgia are not fans of taking shortcuts in the kitchen. “We strive to make everything home-cooked and flavorful.”  She added that all menu items are cooked to order.

They even accommodate whenever possible special menu requests for people with allergies or health issues.

Gialanas has a regular customer who orders an item not on the menu — a sandwich made with egg whites and peppers. If they have the ingredients, she says, they will honor requests.

Gialanas and Tsakalakis value their customers, noting that 85 percent are regulars. Some of the 3 and 4-year-old children who originally ate at Pamy’s with their parents are now bringing their own kids.

Being part and watching the growth of the Darien community has been a positive experience for the mom-daughter duo, and they’ve tried to give back in support of local and school fundraisers whenever possible. It hasn’t always been easy in a rollercoaster economy, Gialanas said.

But the customers make it all worthwhile, noted Gialanas, adding, “It’s a pleasure to go into work.”

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