# Would you pay thirty bucks for a great wiener? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [July 19, 2023, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236 "2023-07-19T01:44:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/21 "2023-07-19T13:25:28Z")
I would in theory. Heck, I’ve eaten at The Dog Haus on more than one occasion. The one in the article doesn’t intrigue me though. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/22 "2023-07-19T13:38:41Z")
A hotdog costs a buck. A really good hotdog might cost five bucks. A really good hotdog at a premium venue where it’s not really the dog itself that you’re paying for, maybe ten bucks, but that’s already over the limit where I’d just eat before or after. If you’re charging $29 for a hotdog, you’re doing something wrong. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/23 "2023-07-19T13:50:38Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > A hotdog costs a buck. Prepared? Or you talking one you cook up yourself? I haven’t seen a $1 hot dog since the 90s. I guess Costco’s $1.50 dog with drink costs about a buck in spirit, but if you’re running a hot dog stand and selling them for a buck, I’d think you’d be making next to nothing after expenses. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/24 "2023-07-19T15:15:41Z")
It’s not just a hotdog it’s a curated handmade chefs creation not available in bulk from a mega store. A baked potato is a baked potato even if it comes with a steak but this is not any old wiener on a ballpark bun. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/25 "2023-07-19T15:42:56Z")
Reading the article and the menu for this restaurant, it’s not like they’re charging thirty bucks for an Oscar Meyer wiener on a supermarket bun with French’s mustard. The condiments are all housemade, as are, I think, the hot dog and the bun (though the article doesn’t seem to make that clear). And other things on the menu are similarly priced, like the roast beef sandwich for the same price on the lunch menu. This is a nice sit-down restaurant. So I’d probably not pay that much for the hot dog, though I might get something else from the menu. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/26 "2023-07-19T15:52:26Z")
> [@chela](#): > > Guess what the condiment tray leaves off? > > Ketchup! At least they got that part right! 😃 I suppose they can charge whatever they want - heck, here in CA anything that’s advertised as “non-GMO”, “Free-range”, “Artisan”, “All Natural”, “Local”, or other vernacular can charge a few extra bucks, even though it’s pretty much on-par with the usual versions of those products. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/27 "2023-07-19T15:57:57Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Reading the article and the menu for this restaurant, it’s not like they’re charging thirty bucks for an Oscar Meyer wiener on a supermarket bun with French’s mustard. The condiments are all housemade, as are, I think, the hot dog and the bun (though the article doesn’t seem to make that clear). And other things on the menu are similarly priced, like the roast beef sandwich for the same price on the lunch menu. This is a nice sit-down restaurant. I should hope people expect/assume that for a $30 price tag. That’s at least what I expected. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/28 "2023-07-19T16:24:19Z")
When I told the genie I wished for a great wiener, this wasn’t what I had in mind. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/29 "2023-07-19T17:01:58Z")
First of all, it’s mislabeled. A half-smoke may or may not technically be a hot dog (whatever the standards for ‘technically a hot dog’ are - the hell if I know), but no hot dog stand calls it a hot dog. Ditto a sausage; that and a hot dog are two very different things. And something described as a ‘gourmet sausage’…I don’t know if I’d pay thirty bucks for one (probably not), but I wouldn’t pay thirty bucks for a hot dog. > [@DSeid](#): > > sometimes playing with elevating our old favorites works. Well sure - but it usually doesn’t require a drastic elevation of the price tag. Jimmy Hula’s in Florida makes tacos that IMHO redefine the genre, but their prices, while not cheap, aren’t stratospheric either. When Truby’s was still in business in Whitefish, MT, they made amazing pizzas that nobody else I know of made - I’d still like to travel through a time warp and have one of their Thai or Jamaican jerk pizzas. But their prices were at the high end of normal, not out of this world. > [@chela](#): > > Guess what the condiment tray leaves off? > > Ketchup! For what they’re selling, that makes sense. > [@snowthx](#): > > At least they got that part right! 😃 I agree, it would be a sacrilege if someone’s emulsified slurry of lower-grade muscle trimmings, fatty tissues, head meat, animal feet, animal skin, blood, liver and other edible slaughter by-products was corrupted by the presence of ketchup. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/30 "2023-07-19T19:29:26Z")
There is a food truck in Vancouver, likely a hundred similar ones in other cities, famous for its JapaDog, a hot dog served with numerous Japanese toppings. This does not much appeal to me. I loved the hotdogs in Chicago, much more than the pizza and as much as the Italian Beef with spicy giardeniera. I like good street food, and I try to have a hotdog in every country I visit. The regional differences between bright red Copenhagen dogs, Montréal _steamies_ (hopefully without a contribution from Cleveland), South American crunchy toppings or Mexican salsa is notable. In Iceland it may be the only cheap snack available! I would possibly try this, in certain moods. But in general I am happy with a dirty water dog or ballpark beef frank. I’m not going to say I cried when Loblaws stopped selling the ethereal J.W. Kwinter dogs they used to sell at the Forum and were far better than the Angus replacements. I don’t think they still have their store in Toronna. Sone Asian versions barely resemble street meat. It was as good as anything in Chicago and they didn’t need to make up dubious toppings like “sport peppers”… 😉 Where can you buy a dog for a dollar? Mexico? ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/31 "2023-07-19T19:47:38Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > If you’re charging $29 for a hotdog, you’re doing something wrong. If people are willingly paying you $29 for a hotdog, you’re doing something very very right. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/32 "2023-07-19T19:51:01Z")
Restaurants are about margins and this is great business. It is not expensive to make homemade ketchups and relishes and mustards. Are they better than bottled? Yes, but often sorta similar. And not usually ten dollars worth better. Is chili crisp so expensive? I’ll bet it works great with pimiento cheese. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/33 "2023-07-19T20:05:42Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Is chili crisp so expensive? I’ll bet it works great with pimiento cheese. I recently bought a big ol’ bottle of Lao Gan Ma chili crisp for 48 cents an ounce. It seems to go well with everything, though I haven’t yet tried it on raisin bran cereal. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/34 "2023-07-19T20:14:35Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > I like good street food, and I try to have a hotdog in every country I visit. If you visit Porto, ya gotta try a _cachorrinho._ Or better yet, try several. > **[The nine best cachorrinhos you have to try in Porto](https://www.timeout.com/porto/restaurants/best-cachorrinhos-in-porto)** > > Don't just keep to the francesinhas - although be sure to try plenty - and go for some cachorros as well. Perfect for either a snack or a proper meal, these nine cachorrinhos are a must try. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/35 "2023-07-19T20:17:58Z")
Mexican hotdogs are often fried (not the delicious cheapies from Oxxo). This is a good way of cooking them. When I was six, I made a recipe for Coney Island dogs which also fried them. I have never been there so cannot vouch for authenticity. But at Casa Paprika, air frying is quicker and better. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2023, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/36 "2023-07-19T20:23:54Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Ditto a sausage; that and a hot dog are two very different things. Nah, they aren’t. Not to me. A hot dog is just a type of sausage. The main difference is that I expect hot dogs to be emulsified sausages, lightly smoked, usually in sheep casing (though often skinless–boo!). But sausages they are. “Sausages” aren’t any classier than “hot dogs.” Once again, to me. Blood sausage is one of my favorites, and that is made from far less appetizing stuff than a Chicago Vienna beef hot dog (which is just made from whole muscle meat. This lips and assholes thing does not apply to all hot dogs, nor does it only apply to hot dogs and not sausages. Sausages were a way to use up scrap, too.) So, yeah, I think you’re making too much of a distinction there. A classy hot dog is just as interesting as a classy sausage. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/37 "2023-07-20T00:38:13Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Where can you buy a dog for a dollar? At the MLB Twins game we went to July 4th. They have “dollar dog day” every Tuesday. True, it wasn’t a gourmet Chicago style hotdog, but it was good enough. I asked the counter person how many can I get at that price. His answer was, “As many as you want to eat.” ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/38 "2023-07-20T01:05:19Z")
It basically covers the cost and keeps people happy. Plus you need something to wash down the salt. You can’t get a dollar dog in Canada even at the lowliest convenience stores. It often costs more than that in the supermarket. However, typing this I forgot about the Costco exception, which says they won’t raise their low prices (on dogs or rotisserie) since these loss leaders keep the customers satisfied. Interestingly, Costcos differ significantly in many countries and sometimes have much better food. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/39 "2023-07-20T11:43:23Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Nah, they aren’t. Not to me. A hot dog is just a type of sausage. Whatever. To me the distinction is pretty substantial. Even in cheap sausage, there’s a lot going on flavor-wise; condiments are hardly needed. Maybe there’s some high-end hot dogs I’ve never eaten that that could be said about, but every hot dog I’ve ever had really _needed_ some ketchup 😃 or mustard or other condiments, unless you were hungry enough to eat damn near _anything_. ETA: Sure, maybe from a taxonomy POV, a hot dog is a kind of sausage, but then I’m told that from that POV, a bird is a kind of dinosaur. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236/40 "2023-07-20T13:38:12Z")
Nope - I wouldn’t eat it. For one thing it probably wouldn’t even taste like a hot dog. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pay-thirty-bucks-for-a-great-wiener/987236.md?page=3)