Davis CA has a tiny place called the Hotdogger that serves many different hot dogs and sausages in many different ways, all excellent. So I was surprised when I bought a dog from a little cart between gates at O’hare Airport. It was a Chicago dog and it was excellent. When I told my friend, who had lived several places in the midwest, she said, “Of course, they take hot dogs seriously in Chicago.”
One of my sons spent a high school year in New York state. He developed a fondness for Zweigle’s hot dogs, especially the white ones. They’re availabe online, but the shipping cost is steep.
Heh, that’s actually what we cooked up on the grill yesterday. Three Zweigle’s white hots and three red hots, picked up from our road trip out east last month. Very nice hot dogs those are. The kids liked the white hots; mom liked the red hots; I really couldn’t choose one myself, they’re such different beasts. I’ll vote white hots since they’re more unusual.
The first time my parents took me to the Hot Dog Shoppe in East Liverpool, Ohio. Delicious dogs, melted cheese sauce with just the right texture, and handmade french fries that I could eat by the pound. I still go back there now and then - yum!
Rutt’s Hut in Clifton, NJ., established in 1928. It’s a landmark in northern New Jersey. They deep fry their dogs in hot oil so it’s a little bit crunchy on the outside and so delicious! My parents went there when they were dating, I remember them taking my sister and me there when we were little. I still go there every so often.
Fresh Mexican chorizo is totally fine in the casing. It’s usually in open ended sections about 20 inches long. They’re great grilled over lump charcoal.
I was just reminded of Tony Packo’s in Toledo, made famous by MAS*H’s Corporal Klinger.
Their hot dogs are difficult to describe. They’re sort of more like Polish sausages, but sort of not. Kind of in between a typical dog and a brat, texture-wise, but with a unique spice profile. They’re enormous, served split in half lengthwise and topped with a chili-like sauce.
I wouldn’t normally advocate eating a hot dog with a knife and fork, but these almost require it.
The way I feel about it is, the cheaper and more Oscar-Mayer/Ballpark like the hot dog, the more I enjoy chili being put on it. I know you’re not a fan of Cincinnati chili, but, man, when you take that bland little Skyline dog (which I believe is Kahn’s) and put the chili on it, the sum is far greater than its parts.
That said, I have a chili dog maybe once a year … maybe. And I probably have hot dogs averaging about once a week.
Oh, no! See my previous post about having a Schaller & Weber bauenwurst topped with chili! FABULOUSO.
Boar’s Head does an all-beef smoked sausage loaded with crushed red pepper which in the perfect base (split) with chili. You barely need to add hot sauce.
The better the base sausage, the better the chili dog.
That makes logical sense, but I just don’t like chili dogs unless they’re saving a worthless sausage. Otherwise, I just prefer a bowl of chili or a good hot dog without chili.
A long time ago, in a mall some distance away, there was a small chain restaurant known as “Flamers”. I strongly suggest you don’t goggle that. They had a huge grill, and made the best cheese dogs–huge frankfurters, great buns and enough cheese to make the bun into a cheese sandwich after you ate the dog.
Alas, they are gone, with the whole company passing beyond the rim…
I was a kid at the beach with my Mom, another sibling or two and when it’d be time to pack up and go home we would secretly hope and pray that she’d stop first at the Oceans 11 lounge, a beach bar on the ground floor of a Howard Johnson’s iirc.
Sunburnt and sandy with stiff salty hair we’d get to sit at the bar. It was dark and chilled by AC, we froze in there. Mom would order us foot long hotdogs on a grilled bun and a soda. She’d get a rum and coke smoke a couple cigarettes. The bar had a big window into the deep end of the swimming pool outside. We’d sit watch the people go swimming by, eat our foot longs.
I can’t point to one exact moment, but I’m guessing by best experience eating a hot dog is on a golf course at the turn, after not eating breakfast and possibly being hungover.