# what Gives "Old Vienna: Relish its NEON Green Color?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [July 6, 2015, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391 "2015-07-06T13:40:53Z")
**Posts on this page:** 10
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/1 "2015-07-06T13:40:53Z")
There is a guy near here who sells hot dogs-Chicago style. He sells the Chicago-based “Old Vienna” brand. I recently had one-they are good, but not noticeably different from the local brands.
The thing I noticed-the relish is so green it almost fluoresces-it is a shade of neon green never seen in nature. Anybody know what kind of dye they use? Do Chicago people like the odd color?
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### Author:  [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/2 "2015-07-06T14:22:32Z")
I’ve never heard of “Old Vienna” brand, but Vienna brand is the (in)famous Chicago neon green relish. The coloring is FD&C Blue 1. I’m born and raised Chicago, and I personally think it looks stupid, but the hot dog places around me didn’t use the neon green stuff.
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### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/3 "2015-07-06T14:24:09Z")
Good question. I would have assumed dye, good to see it confirmed. Or bad depending on your opinion of dyed foods.
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### Author:  [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/4 "2015-07-06T14:48:29Z")
It’s radioactive.
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### Author:  [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/5 "2015-07-06T19:39:26Z")
Kryptonite.
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### Author:  [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/6 "2015-07-06T19:41:34Z")
My grandmother made her own sweet pickles, and she used ordinary green food coloring from the supermarket. They always looked a bit unnatural, but they sure were good.
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### Author:  [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/7 "2015-07-06T19:50:25Z")
I’ve found that mixing any ordinary jarred sweet pickle relish with a few drops of McCormick green food coloring produces the exact same coloration as the Chicago-style relish.
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### Author:  [@Sauron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sauron)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/8 "2015-07-06T20:29:56Z")
Okay, so if it’s food coloring, who started this process? Who decided “What this hot dog needs is to look like it was touched by a monster from the old Scooby-Doo cartoons!”?
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### Author:  [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/9 "2015-07-06T21:22:50Z")
> [@Sauron](#):
>
> Okay, so if it’s food coloring, who started this process? Who decided “What this hot dog needs is to look like it was touched by a monster from the old Scooby-Doo cartoons!”?
[Here’s the story.](http://www.lthforum.com/2013/08/relish/) It’s not definite, but it was apparently Fluky’s in Chicago (at least in relation to the Chicago-style hot dog) in the 70s that first added a bit of blue food coloring to produce the neon green color. But why? I assume to make it distinctive.
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### Author:  [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)
#### Post date: [July 6, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-gives-old-vienna-relish-its-neon-green-color/724391/10 "2015-07-06T21:26:39Z")
Perhaps inspired by [Maraschino cherries](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maraschino_cherry).