Hot Dogs, Haute Dogs, Pink's Dogs
From Chicago to Los Angeles Hot Dogs Take Center Stage
Memorial Day weekend - what better time to fire up the grill. Worried that hot dogs can't be gourmet? Here's a sampling of what's going on in the world of hot dogs.
Never thought youd hear "gourmet" and "hot dog" in the same sentence? Think again. How about a foie dog? How about a $15.00 hot dog? How about a hot dog from Hollywood's fabled Pink's?
I read about Doug Sohn, owner of Hot Doug's, a gourmet sausage and hot dog spot in Chicago. He had a fine levied against him by the city for flouting the local foie gras ban. About the same time, I also heard of a $15.00 hot dog being served in downtown Los Angeles. Fire up the wiener-mobile, we're off in search of dogs.
Boston and New York
In Boston or New York – or online – we have lots of options. Local butchers often carry house-made dogs and brats. Lobel’s is a great source for high-end hot dogs online. There are street vendors and the fabled Papaya King in NYC. Here in Boston even chic neighborhoods are offering more sausage and hot dogs on upscale menus. Our favorite butcher here is Savenor's. They always have a terrific selection of house-made as well as other dogs and sausages. Tomorrow we'll kick off our weekend with chicken-jalepeno sausages.
Chicago
Why would a foie gras and Sauternes dog costs less than a $15.00 hot dog? Turns out Doug Sohn was trying to make a point. The city of Chicago embarrassed itself by passing a foie gras ban. It has been roundly ridiculed in the food world. The Mayor almost immediately came out on the side of reason, noting that the city has a few other priorities the council might want to address. Proving they are too silly to trust with such decisions, the council is repealing their ban to the ire of the Health committee chair who said his “manhood was at stake” over the process. I’m not making this up.
This interview in Zagat's new Buzz newsletter is brief and to the point. And guess what the inspector said of the confiscated foie gras sausages? Why waste good food - let someone take them home. Now that's some tax dollars at work. If you want to see some great photos of Doug's wonderful wieners, check out Fancy Toast a new (to me) blog that has a nice post with mouth-watering pics.
Los Angeles
“Haute dog”? Better stop at the ATM before heading to the Trifecta Restaurant and Sports Lounge in the newly revitalized downtown Los Angeles. Who knew the urban renaissance came with such a price tag? The LA Times’ Steve Lopez invited venerated Pink’s hot dog family members to join him in the tasting of the new “Bold Venture – The Big Footer.” This is essentially a foot-long hot dog on a buttered, toasted bun. It comes with sauerkraut and New York style red onions, brown mustard, ketchup - and a $15.00 price tag.
Their waitress gave it a ringing endorsement, comparing it to "the ones you get at CostCo." The tasting crew decided it was no match for a steamed dog and didn’t justify it’s price tag. Even the chef of the Trifecta praised the Pink’s hot dogs. Ironically, the Trifecta’s haute dogs come from Chicago!
Pink’s Hot Dogs – Hollywood's Grande Dame of Dogs
The Pink family has been serving stars and regular Joes since 1939 at the same spot on La Brea Ave. It's proximity to the movie studios brings loads of celebrities in and their photos adorn the walls. The current shop is not fancy, but always busy. There is no dog on the menu approaching the Trifecta's pricey dog, but for half the price you can get Pink's Three Dog Night. It’s actually three dogs with 3 slices of cheese, 3 slices of bacon, chili and onions, wrapped in a giant tortilla.
As promised, there was a line extending around the building when we arrived. We grabbed a menu and began the arduous process of picking our dogs. With some strategic fake whining I managed to convince the family of six ahead of us that their wait would be too long. It was acting worthy of the locale and it shortened our wait by at least 15 minutes.
From the famous chili cheese dog to the spicy Polish dogs, to celebrity-named dogs Pink’s menu offers familiar and frightening choices . The Martha Stewart Dog is a 10” Stretch Dog with relish, onions, bacon, chopped tomatoes, sauerkraut and sour cream. We ordered two apiece so we could sample four basic dogs (spicy polish, chili/cheese, New York and a spicy Polish with chili, mustard and onions) as well as onion rings.
The total Pink’s experience includes the wait (wasn't too bad), the people watching (excellent), and the super-efficient staff who put your order together (amazing). It’s like watching a perfectly oiled machine, a ballet, a chorus line – but better because at the end you take your red plastic tray and feast on terrific steamed dogs with natural casings for that satisfying snap.
As Richard Pink said in the Trifecta Lounge, “A hot dog should be habit-forming.” At $15.00 a pop, that’s a pretty expensive habit. At Pink’s you can eat like three stars for the same price.
If you want to see Pink's in action check out Bobby Flay's "Throwdown" segment. Pink's website also has fun photos of it's history and celebrity guests. (How many dogs can a Snoop Dogg dog...?)
