People love to visit The Windy City for a multitude of reasons, but hot dogs have to be one of Chicago's main draws. Chicago-style hot dogs are the stuff of legends, bucket lists, and countless discussions from city locals to food historians around the world. Originally called "red hots," Chicago-style hot dogs became a popular meal in the city during the Great Depression. As the mass meatpacking industry started life in the Chicago stockyards, it's no surprise that people were eating a ton of hot dogs (made from animal by-products) at that time. Turns out, hot dogs can tell you a lot about American culture, and Chicago in particular.

Chicago's geographical location as a railroad hub connected to Midwestern farming regions set the city up as a place where cheap meat could be shipped, packaged, and sold. Low wages at the time also played a large role, along with immigration to the city. Immigrant workers and locals on brutal schedules helped Chicago meatpacking plants grow to the point where they were sending tons of cheap meat products -- like hot dogs -- to market and developing new culinary touchpoints as they went. The Chicago-style beef hotdog is one of the most famous examples of this.