Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Flashback: How the Sausage Got Made
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 14, 2011
Modified Jan 14, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
View all 3
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 14, 2011
Modified Jan 14, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Check out this photo of two guys making sausage back in 1912 in a basement on West 41st Street! Mmmm, botulism. The photograph was taken during an inspection by the state Factory Investigating Commission, which was created in the wake of the Triangle shirtwaist factory fire. The commission was charged with "investigating the conditions under which manufacturing is carried on," and that historic task brought an inspector to this cellar on the edge of the Hudson River at 656 West 41st Street. The description of what they found isn't specifically too appetizing.
Barrels and machinery filled the room, which one investigator described as "excessively hot, humid and foul smelling." For more on what we see here and how things have changed, we turn to fastidious butcher Tom Mylan, who founded The Meat Hook in Williamsburg after leaving the Diner/Marlow & Sons franchise. Mylan tells us:
That image is actually of guys sorting casings (one of the steps of sausage making) before they get filled. As far as today's sausage making goes, it is much less spooky and certainly not hot or stinky. Obviously, industrial sausage production includes some less than savory sounding ingredients but in general sausage production is fairly well regulated and, at the very least, made in sanitary conditions.
At the Meat Hook we make sausage 5 days a week in full view of customers in an effort to demystify the process and we even offer sausage making classes once a month for anyone who has more than an interest in whether or not their sausage contains lips and buttholes.
Given the trendiness of snout-to-tail eating, we're not really sure if animal lips and buttholes are considered a gross thing to eat anymore. After all, one of the most popular entrees at The Breslin is the pig’s foot. Head cheese is also on the menu. Can locally-sourced, artisinal assholes be far behind?
Tagged
meat hook
sausage
the meat hook
tom mylan
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Sep 12, 2026
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
Food
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Can a congressional candidate's dumpling diplomacy win over Queens’ immigrant communities?
By
Caroline Shin
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .