Fred Usinger, Inc., better known as Usinger's, is a sausage

Sausage

A sausage is a food usually made from ground meat , mixed with salt, herbs, and other spices, although vegetarian sausages are available. The word sausage is derived from Old French saussiche, from the Latin word salsus, meaning salted.Typically, a sausage is formed in a casing traditionally made...

-making

Sausage making

Sausage making originally developed as a means to preserve and transport meat. Primitive societies learned that dried berries and spices could be added to dried meat. By 600-500 BC there is mention of sausages from China, Rome and Greece. Sausages come in two main types: fresh and cured. Cured...

 company located in downtown Milwaukee

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...

, Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, on Old World Third Street.

History

In 1880, a few years after arriving in Milwaukee from Frankfurt

Frankfurt

Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, Fred Usinger Sr. took over a little butcher shop on what is now N. Old World 3rd St., where he had been an employee, and married a niece of the former owner. The company remained in family hands.

A German immigrant and artist named George Peters painted murals in the Usinger's store depicting elves

Elf

An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...

 making sausage in 1906. In the 1950s, Usinger's began using the "Head Elf" of these murals, nicknamed "Fritzie," as the company's mascot

Mascot

The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...

.

When Frederick Usinger III died in 2006, his son Fritz and daughter Debra were still running the business.

Products

Usinger's produces many kinds of sausages and meats, in many cases using traditional 19th-century recipes. Examples include varieties of bratwurst

Bratwurst

A bratwurst is a sausage usually composed of veal, pork or beef. The plural in German is Bratwürste....

, salami

Salami

Salami is cured sausage, fermented and air-dried meat, originating from one of a variety of animals. Historically, salami has been popular among Southern European peasants because it can be stored at room temperature for periods of up to 10 years, supplementing a possibly meager or inconsistent...

, kishka

Kishka

-Food:* Kishka , various types of sausage or stuffed intestine with a filling made from a combination of meat and meal, often a grain* Kishke , a Jewish dish traditionally made from beef intestine stuffed with flour or matzo meal, schmaltz and spices-People:* Kyszka , a szlachta family in the...

, chorizo

Chorizo

Chorizo is a term encompassing several types of pork sausages originating from the Iberian Peninsula.In English, it is usually pronounced , , or , but sometimes ....

, liverwurst

Liverwurst

The German , that translates literally as "liver sausage," is the typical sausage served in Germany, Austria, Hungary, Serbia, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden and Romania . Liverwurst normally contains pigs' livers, rather than calves' livers and also contains veal...

, beerwurst

Beerwurst

Bierwurst is a German cooked, smoked Brühwurst sausage originally from Bavaria, with a garlicky flavor and dark red color. It is seasoned with black peppercorns, paprika, and mustard seeds for flavor....

, bologna

Bologna sausage

Bologna sausage is an American sausage derived from and definitely not similar to the Italian mortadella . It is commonly called boloney, baloney or, more formally, bologna...

, pastroma

Pastrami

Pastrami , is a popular delicatessen meat usually made from beef and, traditionally in Romania, also from pork and mutton. In Israel, "Pastrama" is the term used for sliced chicken and turkey. Like corned beef, pastrami was originally created as a way to preserve meat before modern refrigeration...

, frankfurter

Frankfurter

Frankfurter may refer to:* a hot dog* a sausage as made in Frankfurt* a resident of Frankfurt am Main, Germany* a resident of Frankfurt , GermanyFrankfurter is a German Jewish surname and may refer to:...

s, summer sausage

Summer sausage

Summer sausage is any sausage that can be kept without refrigeration. Summer sausage is usually a mixture of pork and other meat such as beef or venison. Summer sausage can be dried or smoked, and while curing ingredients vary significantly, curing salt is almost always used...

, blood sausage

Blood sausage

Black pudding, blood pudding or blood sausage is a type of sausage made by cooking blood or dried blood with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled. The dish exists in various cultures from Asia to Europe...

 (blutwurst), ham

Ham

Ham is a cut of meat from the thigh of the hind leg of certain animals, especiallypigs. Nearly all hams sold today are fully cooked or cured.-Etymology:...

 and head cheese

Head cheese

Head cheese , or brawn , is a cold cut that originated in Europe. A version pickled with vinegar is known as souse. Head cheese is not a cheese but a terrine or meat jelly made with flesh from the head of a calf or pig , and often set in aspic. Which parts of the head are used can vary, but the...

. It is not uncommon to see a worker from the surrounding restaurants pop in to get Usinger's products for their tables when they urgently need to restock.

Michael Bartlett's 1984 book The Book of Bests decreed, "If we were forced to pick just one "great" hot dog we'd probably go with Usinger's of Milwaukee. Usinger's line of cold cuts reaches heights of quality and flavor rarely achieved in this country." Former New York Times food writer Mimi Sheraton wrote in 1973, "Now, the good news. If ever I decide to move to Milwaukee, it will be because of Usinger's..."

Usinger's was the official supplier of frankfurter

Frankfurter

Frankfurter may refer to:* a hot dog* a sausage as made in Frankfurt* a resident of Frankfurt am Main, Germany* a resident of Frankfurt , GermanyFrankfurter is a German Jewish surname and may refer to:...

s to the 2002 Winter Olympics

2002 Winter Olympics

The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...

 at Salt Lake City.