PrintThe New Breed of NYC Hot Dogs: Are They Really Better?
DBGB Dog at Daniel Boulud's DBGB.
Bacon has owned the "food of the moment" title for a while. The latest recessionary sales slogan should go something like: Make Money At Home While Still In Your Pajamas, Start a Bacon Blog! Cupcakes have also been glorified. And naturally, bacon cupcakes have developed a fanatical following.
Now hot dogs, or should I say haut dogs, are threatening to take away the glory. Fancypants chefs, French and otherwise, in pursuit of their own American hot dog dreams can't leave well enough alone. By nature, fancypants chefs are obsessive, compulsive tinkerers and lily-gilders. So now they're going about the business of reinventing the hot dog.
Hot dogs from Gray's Papaya. Photograph by Robyn Lee
My exhaustive New York hot dog research turned up compelling evidence that most great hot dogs in New York City are in fact made by the same company: Sabrett. Further, my research found that though Sabrett's makes many kinds of hot dogs, all the hot dogs we know and love in Gotham are virtually the same dog.
So how can fancypants chefs improve on what many observers say is tubesteak perfection? Dress it up, or start from scratch. Meet the New York haut dogs.
The David Chang Dog at PDT.
The semi-secret, hipper-than-thou cocktail lounge PDT (Please Don't Tell) on St. Mark's Place kicked off the haut dog derby. They asked half a dozen top toques to design hot dogs in their own image using a natural casing beef and pork Thurman's hot dog—the mainstay of PDT's neighbor Crif Dogs. The David Chang Dog is bacon-wrapped and covered with very dark, very salty kimchi, which is such a powerful flavor it even obscures the bacon.
The Wylie Dog at PDT.
The Wylie Dog, named after its creator WD-50's Wylie Dufresne is actually a brilliant, fully realized Rube Goldberg-like invention: a deep-fried Crif dog paired with the greatest hot dog condiment ever—a deep-fried mayo baton that's been breaded with hot-dog-bun crumbs. It also comes with tomato molasses (fancypants chef ketchup), freeze-dried onions, and shredded romaine. It totally works on every level, from haut to hot and back.
The corn dog at PDT.
They'll also serve you a corn dog at PDT (don't tell anyone, it's not on the menu), but it turns out to be pretty ordinary.
If you want to get something fried here, opt for the tater tots, the real Ore-Ida kind, served with jalapeno peppers and cheese sauce. They make any hot dog or cocktail taste better.
Corn dog at the Upper West Side Shake Shack.
At the newish Upper West Side Shake Shack location, manager Mark Rosati has come up with a killer corn dog—a natural casing Vienna Beef dog straight outta Chicago that's been dipped in a light corn flour and fried to a beautiful dark-tinged golden brown. The fried-coating-to-hot-dog-ratio is perfect, as is the relish made from local pickle maker Rick's Picks. Unfortunately, it's only available on select summer holiday weekends (I tried it over Memorial Day, and am looking forward to its July 4 reappearance).
Meat on meat: a normal dog topped with bulgogi marinated in sweet sauce.
At New York Hot Dog & Coffee, which has over 200 locations in Korea, owner Mi-kyung Choi introduces Seoul soul to the hot dog. She takes a steamed or boiled all-beef hot dog and tops it with the Korean beef dish staple bulgogi and some kimchi. Yes, it's beef on beef, but it totally works, especially with the addition of the just-spicy-enough kimchi.
At Daniel Boulud's new, already jammin' DBGB, jean-clad hipsters get to choose from 13 house-made sausages, including, yes, a haute dog (appropriately called the DBGB Dog) served on a terrific house-made bun and served with amazing french fries. It's an honest and earnest attempt to replicate a German frankfurter, and it tastes good, but it's missing the juicy snap the best natural casing Sabrett hot dogs have. You want just a little resistance when you bite into a hot dog, not pillowy tenderness.
That same snap is missing from Zak Pelaccio's Malaysian-inspired Fatty Dog at the Upper West Side branch of Fatty Crab. The dog itself is made from pork shoulder, fatback, Thai chilies, pickled ginger and garlic, and belacan, or fermented shrimp paste. This is not my father's hot dog. The toppings: aioli, pickled Thai chilies and radishes, cilantro leaves, and in a nod to Chicago hot dogs, cucumber. Pelaccio's hot dog—thanks to all the Thai chilies—is hot, hot, hot.
So what can serious eaters conclude from our little haut dog exploration? Well, if you can pass the hipness-hotness test at PDT, have the Wylie Dog and an order of tater tots. And if you want to go Asian for your hot dog-eating pleasure, try the bulgogi kimchi dog at New York Hot Dog and Coffee. If nostalgia for your childhood gets the best of you, and you feel the need for a corn dog—and can wait until a summer holiday weekend—head up to the Upper West Side Shake Shack.
But really, if all you want is a truly first-rate all-beef hot dog with plenty of snap, head to your nearest Papaya King or Gray's Papaya King. (Don't go to any of the other hot dog wannabe spots with Papaya in the title. These are almost all hot dog pretenders, trying to game hot dog-loving New Yorkers. We are smarter than that.) At Papaya King I order a combination slaw and sauerkraut dog with pickles and mustard. It's sweet, salty, spicy, and meaty at the same time. What could be better?
At Gray's the "recession special," two hot dogs and a medium Papaya juice for $4.45, is still the greatest hot dog deal in town. Ask for your hot dogs well-done. The friendly counter people at Gray's will usually ignore you, but if by some chance they do listen, you will have yourself the perfect hot dog.
Any other new haute dogs that we left out?
PDT
113 St. Marks Place
New York, NY 10009
212-614-0386
Shake Shack
366 Columbus Avenue
New York, NY 10024
646-747-8770
New York Hot Dog & Coffee
245 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10014
917-388-2608
DBGB
299 Bowery
New York NY 10003
212-460-5777
Fatty Crab
2170 Broadway
New York, NY 10024
212-496-2722
Related: America's Regional Hot Dog Styles
Read more of Ed's reviews.
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23 Comments:
The hot dog:
Vienna Beef dog.
Poppy seed or potato roll.
Good mustard.
Maybe sauerkraut.
Some pickles, if you want.
A dash of celery salt.
That is all.
NotAmerican at 9:50AM on 06/23/09
i've been to new york hot dog and coffee, tried a standard beef dog with kraut, mustard, and ketchup. kind of flavorless... guess you'd go for the toppings.. but then, why not just eat a bulgogi sandwich?
soopi25 at 9:55AM on 06/23/09
"Fancypants chefs, French and otherwise, in pursuit of their own American hot dog dreams can't leave well enough alone."
Funny, of all the examples you have listed, only ONE of them is French. So why single out French chefs?
simon at 11:01AM on 06/23/09
The best place to survey some serious hot (or haut) dog creativity is at the 4th annual Great Hot Dog Cookoff in Brooklyn (http://thegreathotdogcookoff.com). I went last year, along with many intrigued foodies like Serious Eats, and was amazed by the delicious diversity of dogs (the bahn mi dog, the thanksgiving dog, oaxacan dog, etc.) and the fun atmosphere of celebration with a competitive edge. I'll be there again on July 18th!
bkfoodie at 11:03AM on 06/23/09
The hot dog at Elettaria should definitely be added to this list! It has great flavor, decent snap and comes with a sinus cleansing Asian mustard.
JungMan at 11:10AM on 06/23/09
The best hot dog I ever had is at the original Nathan's. The satellite/chain locations are crap. Second best is in Vancouver at JapaDog.
jayevee at 12:08PM on 06/23/09
ask your cabbie to drive up to Rochester for a Zweigles hot dog. THEN you'll know what a hot dog is. And the 6-7 hour cab fare is totally worth it ;)
nothing like those nasty, skinny, boiled things new yorkers call hot dogs. blech!
mentioned in this link as posted above: Related: America's Regional Hot Dog Styles
mikebeebe at 1:53PM on 06/23/09
"boiled things new yorkers call hot dogs"??
Clearly, you've never been to Gray's Papaya, where the dogs come right off the grill, so perhaps you should try before you dis.
I've been known to stop by Gray's for a Recession Special after eating an actual dinner, they're that good.
But I do love me the bulgogi dog at New York Hot Dog--that is something special.
klg19 at 2:03PM on 06/23/09
Zweigles is a totally different type of dog than what is served on New York street corners from carts. Zweigle's are famous for their white hots, which are really almost a bratwurst or bockwurst. Called a white hot for marketing reasons as kids are more likely to eat a "white hot" than something called a bratwurst. They also make what they call a red hot, which is a standard beef and pork German style hot dog.
Both are very good but it's not fair to compare them to what you call "nasty, skinny, boiled things". These are just one type of New York City hot dog. It's hard to keep dogs like these fresh because they are in water, and if not sold quickly tend to lose flavor and snap. The better places cook them to order and don't boil them, but simmer in hot water for a few minutes only. The better New York city dogs are those that are grilled like Papaya King, Gray's, and Nathan's.
As Ed mentioned, these are first rate. I know people in the industry and can tell you with 100% certainty that these places get the same recipe Sabrett beef dogs (with the exception of Nathan's), though they come in different sizes and some are skinless. Katz's uses the same recipe dog as Papaya King and Gray's, but it's slightly bigger. They make a great dog as well. Last time I was in New York I went to either Papaya Dog or Mike's Papaya, I forget which one. Not only was the dog smaller, but it was skinless. I would stay away from these places as they are second rate knockoffs.
Vienna beef franks are only available at Danny Meyer's Shake Shack as far as I know. In my opinion it is a decnt dog, but milder and not as good as Nathan's or Sabrett. It's not served hot enough at the Shake Shack.
There is a place in Chinatown that serves a dog from Best Provisions in Newark, N.J. that is a very high quality beef dog. Here it's only a buck for a big quarter pounder. A great value, but it's skinless and prepared on a roller grill. Not as good as the longer, thinner natural casing Best's dog that was served at the famous Syd's before they closed and currently available at a few Jersey Hot Dog eateries.
Crif Dogs serves a Thumann's beef and pork dog, but it is their special dog made for deep frying. Not as flavorful as the Thumann's griller, which in my opinion is the best beef and pork dog in the country. At least among the many that I've sampled. Crif's is a knock off of Rutt's Hut in Jersey. And they come close. The owners even admit to this.
While New York City is known for beef dogs, the Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse area has fantastic German style beef and pork dogs. Hofmann's (Syracuse), Zweigles (Rochester), and Sahlen's (Buffalo) are all good dogs. One I like even better is Hartmann's. Up until a few months ago they were made in Rochester but have since moved to a bigger plant in Canandaigua. For a German style dog it is in the same class as Thumann's.
I had the Bulgogi dog at the Hot Dog Hootenany. While I enjoyed it (it was on a hot sausage, not a hot dog) I would have preferred the meat on the side. I agree with Ed about chefs tinkering with the hot dog. For me the best way to enjoy a quality hot dog is with mustard only on a quality natural casing dog (either all beef or beef/pork) that has been prepared well and served hot. Although I like dogs in water or fried, most of the time I like em grilled. Ninety per cent of the time I have mine with mustard only. Once in awhile with some chili. Although these topping trends come and go, no chef can improve on a basic old scholl hot dog like Papaya King or Nathan's. Which is why these places will endure the test of time while others will come and go.
hotdoglover at 2:29PM on 06/23/09
I didn't like the Fatty Crab dog at all. As Ed states, it had no snap whatsoever and the flavor profile was so scattered it didn't really come together to provide any real deliciousness.
NYC Food Guy at 5:49PM on 06/23/09
The best hot dog I have ever had in my life is the Mealie at Charlie's Pool Room: http://www.hollyeats.com/CharliesPoolRoom.htm
The guys who run the place are odd birds. Very religious, and might scare some because they are odd, though I love their oddness. And their dogs! Closed on Sundays.
growler at 6:17PM on 06/23/09
Are there any Texas Weiner hot dogs in the city? I wasn't impressed with dogs on the list or in the city.
b2sexy4u35 at 10:24AM on 06/24/09
Omy, I love Wylie Dufresne so much.
literatured at 12:01PM on 06/25/09
Ed, you ought to try Dogmatic at 26 East 17th St. (just north of Union Square). French baguettes are prepared by grilling from the inside out on hot spikes. Then a grilled gourmet sausage (or asparagus for vegetarians) is slipped into the roll with any one of six sauces, including truffle gruyere. Lamb sausage with gruyere was completely excellent. Also house-made sodas.
annien at 1:28PM on 06/25/09
the dog at Katz's is pretty damn tasty
eseft at 9:34AM on 06/26/09
My favorite hot dog is still Nathan's. Snap, spice, and some of the best fries on the planet.
tomfodw at 11:03AM on 06/26/09
is there any type of blog like this for so cal restraunts?
foodie11 at 2:18PM on 06/26/09
Try Freddie's Italian hot dogs, a Morgantown legend for 50 years;
Ingredients: 5 cans of Hormel Chili (no beans); I stick of Hormel pepperoni, sliced; 1 t red pepper flakes; 1 T black pepper; 4 cloves garlic sliced; 4 T Parmiggiano Reggiano; 1 sweet onion diced; 1.5 lb ground chuck
Process: saute onion, garlic & beef in 4 T good olive oil. Simmer gently with everything else for 2 hours; remove pepperoni & garlic; serve over Hebrew National dogs with KFC slaw....try that NY !
Tooie at 9:34PM on 06/26/09
I'd like to try and reproduce Chef Dufresne's baton.
Any suggestions?
A mayo binder or???
beano at 2:27PM on 06/28/09
If you have some good dog recipes.......we're waiting!
Tooie at 7:22PM on 06/28/09
kosher deli dog with potato salad on top
hicoffice at 1:47PM on 07/09/09
A New York City secret--sidewalk hot dog vendor onions. I was literally starving to death one rainy February day on West 34th Street. Seated next to his Sabrett stand on that cold, windy street was a wrinkled old man. I felt sorry for him and took the risk and ordered two franks with mustard and extra onions. My friends tell me to stay away from them. I think they’re crazy. Franks are reliable, legit New York food. I like 'em.
This time the onions were different, tasty. I said I am a chef, and complimented Juan, the ancient Spaniard, on his onions. He proudly informs he makes his own. They really tasted better. No one does that anymore. His sense of pride makes him eschew the commercial junk. He even buys the top grade of franks, though most people can’t tell the difference. Would he share? He very graciously did. Here, as he gave it to me:
“2 lbs yellow onions, sliced thin. Use a Japanese slicer. Cover with water and bring to a boil for just a minute, then drain. Add half a can of tomato paste, a few heaping teaspoons of Spanish paprika, olive oil, S&P, a hefty pinch of sugar. Cook and adjust seasoning until you like the way it tastes. You can add some more paprika if you like.” Keeps in the fridge for a week, longer if you add a few TB of vinegar. Best,
Michael
mymymichl at 12:09PM on 07/10/09
What about Dogmatic?!! Off of union square - great dogs in french bread buns. All different kinds of sausages etc with great sauces!
ceochs at 8:11PM on 07/22/09