When one thinks of hot dog carts and street food, three cities come to mind. New York, Chicago, and Toronto. Granted there are the secondary venues like Miami, LA, and Charlotte, as well as the third tier towns which include rural localities such as Union, MO (my current home). Before anyone starts taking offense, I’m not saying you can’t make good money selling hot dogs in Des Moines. You can. I’m just saying that no one thinks of Paducah, KY as hot dog central.
I just read a blog this morning which compared the hot dog culture of Chicago to that of Toronto. Apparently Canadians are more subdued about their love of the tubesteak than those in the Windy City, even though Toronto may have more hot dog carts per capita. I guess it’s just a function of the personalities of their inhabitants. Being from Chicago, I can tell you that we aren’t very subdued about anything. Especially the ketchup thing…
In case you haven’t heard, no one in Chicago is allowed to put ketchup on a hot dog unless they are under 12 years old. This is actually an enforceable ordinance passed in 1975 by “Hizzoner, Da Mare” Richard J. Daley, who once said, “The policeman isn’t there to create disorder; the policeman is there to preserve disorder.” (I pause to wipe a homesick tear from my eye.)
Apparently it’s OK to put ketchup on a hot dog in Toronto…
Liberals.
– Steve
P.S. Allright…I have an occasional ketchup dog every now and then. So what?!!! I don’t have a problem – I could stop whenever I want. Really.
My brother not only puts ketchup on his dogs, he puts MAYO!!!!!! Can I legally disown him for that? Blasphemy…..
John
Mobile, Al
Thanks for the link…. I guess I never really did explain my own personal toppings, so to horrify those defenders of the Chicago Wiener Faith…
Hot Dog meets toasted bun. Even better if there is an entire onion burning on the charcoal.
Green relish first – it’s tough to spread, expecially when other condiments come to play.
Cove the entire thing with raw onions – relish is the glue that binds.
A line or two of mustard. A line or two of BBQ sauce. Somethign dark and heacy is the best – mesquite, chipotle will do.
Hot sauce is next. The thick stuff.
Lay on the saurkraut now. It’s the lid for all the sauce. Top it up high, push it down with a finger once a safe distance from stand.
Eat while seated, legs far apart, lean forward – extra sauce will drop down.
Bacon bits are optional – though they go right before the kraut. The sauces glue them down. Skip the Kraut in the winter – it’s often frozen.
I don’t speak for all Torontonians – most of my friends would be horrified.
This is particularilly great at 3 or 4am after a night in the bar.
I am hoping I won’t be banned from Chicago as it’s truly magical.
In Toronto, there are no lousy rules about hotdogs toppings, and that’s the way it should be. You choose whichever toppings you want. Ketchup works well on a grilled Polish sausage, which is a standard food cart option. I wish we had mayo in the carts, though.