Whether they be Chicago-style, chili-topped, half-smoked or vegan, it’s hard to say no to hot dogs.
Now Fodor’s, the producer of travel guides, has given the world a roadmap to eating them with its “22 Best Hot-Dog Stands in the United States.”
“Few foods scream summer more than a hot dog scored from a vintage, family-owned hot-dog stand where you dine outdoors, likely on picnic tables,” writes Kristine Hansen. “The best hot dog stands are American icons, having stuffed wieners into buns for several decades now and, over time, adopting a cult following.”
Many places should ring familiar: Gray’s Papaya and Papaya King in New York, for instance, or Ben’s Chili Bowl in Washington, D.C. Some seem like regional specialties, like the delightfully named Lucky Louie’s Beer & Wieners in Erie, Pennsylvania. There’s even a James Beard Award-winning shop in Tucson, Arizona, that makes Sonoran dogs with bacon, pinto beans and bolillo rolls imported from Mexico.
Sad news for the Bay Area, though. While SoCal is represented, no dog stands from NorCal made the list, the first 10 of which are detailed below.
Fodor’s best hot-dog stands in the U.S.
1 Pink’s Hot Dogs, Los Angeles
2 35th Street Red Hots, Chicago
3 Lafayette Coney Island, Detroit
4 El Guero Canelo, Tucson, Arizona
5 Papaya King, New York
6 Puka Dog, Kauai, Hawaii
7 Alamo Hot Dog Company, San Antonio
8 Gus’s Hot Dogs, Birmingham, Alabama
9 Dogma Grill, Miami
10 Lucky Louie’s Beer & Wieners, Erie, Pennsylvania
Source: Fodor’s