Geno's Steaks

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Geno's at night

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Geno's Steaks is a Philadelphia restaurant specializing in cheesesteaks, founded in 1966 by Joe Vento. It is located at the intersection of 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue, directly across the street from Pat's Steaks, who invented the cheesesteak in 1930. The cheesesteak has become a signature dish for the city of Philadelphia.

According to Vento, the name Geno's was chosen because there already existed a Joe's Steak Place, and he improvised the name from a broken door on which someone had painted GINO and modified the spelling to prevent confusion with yet another business called Gino's. Vento later named his own son Geno, and the latter now works in the family business.

The sidewalk, roof, and tables around Geno's are decorated with hundreds of autographed and framed photos and memorabilia of celebrities who have patronized the venue. Since Geno's is open 24 hours a day, the eating area on the adjacent sidewalk never needs to be locked up, and is open to the air.

Geno's was awarded Best of Philly for Best Takeout by Philadelphia Magazine in 2000. In April 2004, a branch of the shop opened in Citizens Bank Park, the home of the Philadelphia Phillies. This location was closed in 2006 and replaced with a Rick's Steaks.

Vento is a prominent supporter of the family of murdered police officer Daniel Faulkner. The family supports the death sentence of Mumia Abu-Jamal, who was convicted of Faulkner's murder, and is against Abu-Jamal being retried or exonerated. Geno's has sponsored several fund-raising events in support of Faulkner's family, including the 2000 [First Annual Justice For Daniel Faulkner Block Party] and an annual [Daniel Faulkner Memorial Motorcycle Run].

In 2006, during the immigration controversy, people began to notice a sign posted that said: "This Is AMERICA: WHEN ORDERING PLEASE 'SPEAK ENGLISH.'"; ; both articles note that pointing at the menu item is not allowed; (includes use of caps in sign); (includes picture of sign) The sign, however, was put up six months before by owner Joe Vento. The city of Philadelphia's Commission on Human Relations filed a discrimination complaint. However, in an interview with Fox News analyst, Neil Cavuto, Vento stated that he does not turn away any customer, and therefore does not discriminate. He also vowed to keep his sign displayed no matter how much pressure he receives. He even remined Neal about how his parents had to learn English when they came to this country. He said that if his customers order in any other language, he'll give them cheesewiz on bread. The sign on his store that says store says: "This is America! Please Speak English!" has the bald eagle on it. Joe also pays homage to his competitors. Joe mentioned that if you go into a Puerto Rican neighborhood, how many signs would you see in English? When you are one the telephone, it may say press 1 for English, press 2 for Spanish, but where is the number for, say, Italian or Korean, for example? Many disagree with Joe Vento.

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