Our Rich History: Northern Kentucky’s leading performer in Cincinnati Chili Wars — Dixie Chili

By Raymond G. Hebert, PhD
Special to NKyTribune

Part 7 of an occasional series about fast food restaurants

In an earlier article in this “Fast Food” series, Dr. Paul Tenkotte included Dixie Chili as one of the versions of Cincinnati chili, “invented and perfected by Greek immigrants” (from Macedonia in particular).

Significantly, for the creators of Empress, Skyline, and Dixie Chili specifically, chili was similar to the stews of Macedonia, but used beef instead of lamb. In Tenkotte’s words, the concoction became popular “as a way for people to stretch their food budgets.” In this article, it is my intention to focus on Dixie Chili by showing its particular importance to Northern Kentucky and its people.

First, for context, Dixie Chili, Northern Kentucky’s first chili parlor (equivalent of a diner), was started by the Sarakatsannis family in 1929 (Nicholas D.). As stated on their website: “’Papa Nick’ developed his secret chili recipe using only the highest quality ingredients: 96% fat-free beef chuck, Wisconsin cheddar cheese, Bermuda Onions, and 100% Semolina wheat spaghetti. He passed the recipe down to his sons George, Chris, Penny, and Spiros – who continue to serve the delicious and nutritious chili Nick served back in 1929, fresh from the kettle, every day” (dixiechili.com). Spiro, the youngest, still serves as the president of the company today.

As the 100th anniversary of Dixie Chili approaches, it is important to recall how difficult it was for ‘Papa Nick’ to get here in the first place and how serendipitous it was that he survived at all. The family lived in an area of Macedonia where Turkish guerillas were massacring entire villages. His mother sent him away to a “safer” village with his brother, but a swollen river from heavy rains stopped their path. Later, they discovered that everyone in that village had been massacred. Their plans changed quickly.

At age 15, Nicholas arrived in the United States with no knowledge of English. His first jobs were for $1 per day in New Hampshire shoe factories and wool mills until, at age 17, he came to Cincinnati where he worked in a candy store having been hired by “his father’s godson.” Then, he moved to Portsmouth, Ohio working for a candy maker. Next was Marion, Ohio, where Nicholas opened his own hot dog stand, and later to Mansfield, Ohio. In a trip back to Greece in 1925, he married his wife. Returning eventually to Cincinnati, he worked at Empress Chili Parlor. Later, with his own recipe, he found a location in Newport “in an 8×30 room; just north of Eighth Street, where he opened his own chili parlor.” He did everything from cook to serve and often worked 18-hour days.” He remembered making nine gallons of chili on the first day and never looked back. Today, “up to more than 150 gallons a day are still prepared in their Newport Commissary.” It is said that the Newport store, the original, is still the busiest of them all, with others doing well in Erlanger and Covington (dixiechili.com/history.php). The Newport location retains a retro flair, complete with booths, a juke box, and nostalgic photos lining the walls.

Dixie Chili and Deli, as it is now called, has a special place in the Cincinnati Chili Wars as I will get to shortly, but there is first a timely story worth sharing from 1974 when Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona (R) vehemently complained about a menu item at the National Press Club listing “real Texas Chili,” proclaiming that Arizona Chili was superior. Senator John Tower (R-Texas) rebutted, and the debate was suddenly on until Senator Robert Taft (R-Ohio) said in the upper house, in an often-quoted speech “Each (Tower and Goldwater) likened the other of their two chilis to barnyard apples and possibly both spoke truly. The only real chili comes from Cincinnati, Ohio.” Suddenly, Cincinnati Chili was in the national consciousness (Greg Hand, “17 Curious Facts about Cincinnati Chili,” June 21, 2022).

On a personal level, a number of years ago, I was part of a group of colleagues who decided that a fun summer project should be a series of visits to many of Greater Cincinnati’s chili parlors so we could compare them and, for our purposes, see how Northern Kentucky’s Dixie Chili and Covington Chili (now closed) compared. There were six of us and we all ordered the same thing at all twelve chili parlors that we visited, a 3-way or 4-way plus a cheese coney. We had a rubric and ranked them in multiple categories, from taste to presentation. Interestingly and most surprisingly, with only one Empress Chili Parlor still in existence (in Campbell County), the top two in our survey were Dixie Chili and Skyline, with several others like Camp Washington Chili and Price Hill also faring very well. The difference, according to our reviews, was that Skyline’s 3-way seemed watery so Dixie Chili, among our group, emerged as the winner.

Years later, with a friend from the West Side who would not consider eating any other chili but Skyline, I mentioned our survey results and convinced him to try Dixie Chili, which he reluctantly admitted he enjoyed. Also important to him, though, was that he liked being served at his table. I returned the favor and tried Skyline Chili, with one admonition from him: to order a 3-way dry. By asking for it dry, which I had not known was possible, it was not watery and quite good. This was a lesson learned and this lover of Dixie Chili now is willing to join friends who prefer Skyline Chili on occasion. In an interesting follow-up, several of us in the Thomas More community committed to consistent lunches, exclusively at Dixie Chili and we became the Dixie Chili Club, a group that still exists (though with some members no longer with us) to the present day.

In the final analysis, many would agree that Cincinnati is judged by its chili, which is not the Tex-Mex style from Texas and Arizona or Chili Con Carne from the East Coast. It is the unique blend typically served as a three-way: over spaghetti and covered bountifully with shredded cheddar cheese. Impressively, from the 1922 roots of the Empress Chili’s Kiradjieff brothers to the 1929 offshoot of Nick Sarakatsannis in Newport, Kentucky with Dixie Chili to the burgeoning network of Skyline and Gold Star Chili Parlors, the result has been a multi-million-dollar industry with over 300 chili parlors in Greater Cincinnati/Dayton alone. Many have come and gone, with only one remaining with the Empress name (in Alexandria, Kentucky) but others have survived to tell this amazing chili story, with Dixie Chili as the primary Northern Kentucky leader continuing what “’Papa Nick’” Sarakatsannis started almost 100 years ago.

Not to be forgotten in Dixie Chili’s past is the bad luck of Nick Sarakatsannis starting his own chili parlor at the beginning of the Great Depression in 1929. Not only did it survive then, but it has stood the test of time with two additional locations and the original location in Newport (to this day the oldest chili parlor in Northern Kentucky). In a 2010 Blogspot entitled “Cincinnati Coney Quest,” the blogger states that “since the beginning of the quest, Dixie Chili has been one of the most recommended by readers.”

For those wanting to know more about Dixie Chili or Cincinnati Chili in general, there is no better source than Dan Woellert’s The Authentic History of Cincinnati Chili. This Cincinnati culinary historian has compiled much of what needs to be known. As an example, for our final appreciation of Dixie Chili, he reminds us of their little-known but time-honored specialties. These include deli options that were added for non-chili lovers like my New York City-born wife: the “Alligator,” which is a hot dog with a dill spear, mayo, mustard, and cheese (with no chili at all). Other specialties include the six-way, with added garlic; or the popular (particularly with younger patrons) chili cheese fries. The Greek Fries version also has feta and Greek dressing as an option. With these creative menu items, Dixie Chili has survived admirably by neither changing the secret recipe nor the favorite dishes but by expanding the menu items to meet changing times and the new tastes/desires of its patrons. In an article entitled “Dixie Chili Offers History Lesson on Cincinnati’s Signature Dish in Newport” (River City News, July 16, 2013), after praising the quality of the service, the author concluded, as he was ready for his meal:

“Go ahead and take a deep breath as you admire the daunting helping before you. Pause and marvel at your culinary accomplishment after devouring the small Everest on your plate. You don’t need to shout that you ate it because it was there. Or maybe you do.”

As an aside in another bow to its beloved customers, Dixie Chili lovers can also buy a six-pack or even a case of chili cans as well as what they call a “chili survival kit” online or at one of their delis.

In a recent article by Daniel Walton in Bon Appetit, entitled “The 8 Best Places to Find Cincinnati Chili in Cincinnati,” he brags at the outset of how “this misunderstood meat sauce is a cultural cornerstone, a testament to immigrant ingenuity, and the crowning jewel of Midwest cuisine.” Notably, then, of his “8 Best Places,” Dixie Chili is #1 – the first that he highlights, implying that it is his favorite. The biggest surprise is that none of his eight are from either of the larger regional brands (Daniel Walton, “The 8 Best Places to Find Cincinnati Chili in Cincinnati” Bon Appetit, April 12, 2024, p.2).

Highlighted in Walton’s article is the observation that part of the uniqueness of this “oldest continually operating Cincinnati chili parlor” is its affinity for “the tile floors and cozy booths that help retain the vintage charm.” He emphasizes what makes the chili special and classic:

“The perfectly weighted blend of sweet and savory with notes of cinnamon and cumin… with the spaghetti cooked to a toothsome al dente that holds up beneath the chili, while its Wisconsin cheddar is thinly shredded to lend melty goodness to every bite” (p.4).

It was hard not to be hungry after reading that article.

As one final story, just a few years ago, a City Beat food critic (not named in the online version of the article) set out on what he called “The Cincinnati Chili Trail.” Most of the top chili parlors were covered (Empress, Price Hill, Camp Washington, Chili Time, Blue Jay’s, and Cretan’s but interestingly enough, not the regional Skyline or Gold Star). As a Northern Kentuckian, the author admitted to preferring Dixie Chili over the others, before and after the “Trail.” To that point, the author concluded:

“Just a block from my childhood home, the Erlanger Dixie Chili’s drive-thru was a regular stop for my grade-school self. I remember riding in the back seat of my grandmother’s car, a Styrofoam box of cheese coneys buckled into my lap – still warm. I’d pop the lid when I got home, letting the smell of fluorescent yellow cheddar cheese waft through the living room. My boyhood nostalgia is paved in chili” (“The Cincinnati Chili Trail,” City Beat).

Many Northern Kentuckians would agree with that observation and, like me, we still take pleasure in meeting friends for our favorite lunch, at the Dixie Chili and Deli in either Erlanger, Covington, or Newport. The brand might not have many locations, but it is ours and, in many polls, and hearts, it is thought to be the “best” chili in Greater Cincinnati.

Dr. Raymond G. Hebert is Professor of History and Executive Director of the William T. Robinson III Institute for Religious Liberty at Thomas More University. He is the leading author of Thomas More University at 100: Purpose, People, and Pathways to Student Success (2023). The book can be purchased by contacting the Thomas More University Bookstore at 859-344-3335. Dr. Hebert can be contacted at hebertr@thomasmore.edu.

Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD is Editor of the “Our Rich History” weekly series and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Northern Kentucky University (NKU). He can be contacted at tenkottep@nku.edu. Tenkotte also serves as Director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Enrichment). For more information see orvillelearning.org/