Cheryl Rigdon Spatty Inventor from Shark Tank Answers The Question

I spoke to Cheryl Rigdon, the young South Carolina gal who invented the Spatty, a mini spatula for getting the last bit of product out of bottles and jars (it works great for mustard). Cheryl was on Shark Tank a few weeks ago and I gave her a call today to interview her for the Shark Tank Blog.

We talked about the usual Shark Tank stuff and I got a nice little update on what she's been up to since she taped in July. She told me she has some food allergies, so she can ONLY eat all beef hot dogs (betcha she'd like Pearl Franks).

I also asked her The Question:

"Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

Her answer: "Mustard and relish. I am allergic to tomatoes."

Never before has there been such a righteous answer!

Shark Tank Entrepreneur Mona Weiss answers the Question

Mona Weiss, the sassy, brassy, New York lassy who appeared with her fiance' Scott Shields on Shark Tank to pitch their EcoNuts Organic Soap, made quite an impression in the Shark Tank.

The self professed social media ninja spoke with me the other day for the Shark Tank Blog.

I asked her my standard: "Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

She answered like a true New Yorker: "I don't know why ANYONE would put ketchup on a hot dog. I'm a mustard and kraut gal."

She has trouble finding sauerkraut in southern California, maybe I'll send her some for a wedding present!

Scrub Daddy Aaron Krause from Shark Tank answers the Question

I interviewed Aaron Krause, inventor of Scrub Daddy, who will appears on Shark Tank on Friday, October 26 (tomorrow) for the Shark Tank Blog. Aaron, pictured here with Philadelphia Flyers announcer Lou Nolan and his young camera shy son, is a Philly area native- currently living in southern New Jersey and RABID Flyers fan.

He'll be answering lots of questions from the Sharks tomorrow night, but I had one very important question for him: "Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

His answer: "No. I'm from Philly. I put Cheese Whiz on my hot dogs; or, as we'd say in Philly, 'I'll have cheese whiz WIT my hot dog!'"

All apologies to Mrs. HDM aside, cheese whiz is a helluva lot better than Ketchup!

Good Luck tomorrow Aaron!

Shark Tank's Daymond John answers THE QUESTION

As you may know, I author The Shark Tank Blog. The other day, I had the privilege of being invited over to Babson College where ZBoard won Consulting Services From Shark Tank's Daymond John, Babson College & Startup America.

They had the requisite press conference, which I attended, followed by a nice lunch.

I got to meet the entrepreneurs who created ZBoard, the Start-Up America principles, and of course, Daymond John himself. We chatted about entrepreneurship, his philanthropic endeavors, and the Shark Tank.

I would have been remiss had I not asked him "THE QUESTION."

For the video answer, head on over to Hot Dog Stories!

Zach Crain of Freaker USA from Shark Tank answers The Question

I have been doing a lot of interviews for the Shark Tank Blog lately, since hot dog season is winding down. I just spoke to Zach Crain, inventor of The Freaker who appeared in Shark Tank episode 407.

Zach's pitch was very silly, and he was unable to get funding from the sharks, but his silly sense of humor and pretty cool product endeared him to many fans.

Once we were nearing the end of our chat, I asked Zach The Question:

"Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

His answer:

"I put a lot of thing on my hot dogs, ketchup has been one of them. I prefer wild combos like pineapple, bacon, and Sriracha sauce. Out of my last 100 hot dogs, maybe 3 had ketchup on them."

Well Zach, a 97% success rate in anything is a good thing, but in this case, I recommend striving for perfection! 

Shark Tank Entrepreneur Brandon Marz answers the Question

Brandon Marz and his father Keith were on Shark Tank recently. They were pitching their vitamin oral spray company, Marz Sprays, to the Sharks.

I interviewed Brandon for the Shark Tank Blog.

He told me about the vitamin oral spray industry and Marz Sprays' global expansion plans. We also shared a few stories about the trials and tribulations of parenthood- he has a 20 month old son who he claims "helps with collections" for the business!

I asked Brandon the question: "Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

He answered, without hesitation, just as his dog barked in the background: "MUSTARD!"

Brandon's a man of few words when it comes to condiments. I wonder if Marz Sprays is working on a sprayable mustard?

Wicked Cool Tee Shirts

I have owned the domain Wicked Cool Tee Shirts dot Com for a number of years, but I never really did anything with it.

Until now.

I recently started up a Tee Shirt Shop on CafePress called, appropriately, Wicked Cool Tee Shirts. It's a brand spanking new shop, so right now I am focused on getting designs loaded up. In the coming weeks, the Wicked Cool Tee Shirts dot com website will be created and the shop's design will be tweaked to look more, well, wicked cool!

In the mean time, there are designs loaded with more coming on a regular basis.

There will be unique, humorous Wicked Cool Tee Shirts, Shark Tank Tee Shirts, and of course, Hot Dog Tee Shirts.

Here's the first Hot Dog Tee Shirt!

100 Different Hot Dog Joints

For the past few years, I have been traveling around to different hot dog joints and doing Hot Dog Stories. My travels have taken me to 8 states and Canada. A milestone was looming on the horizon: my 100th different hot dog joint!

When the Roadfood.com Massachusetts group decided to have a meetup in my hometown, I couldn't resist. I had been meaning to get to this place for a while.

I'm talking about Spalla's Chicago Dogs in Natick, MA!

I went there and met the Roadfood.com crowd and the owners.

Chicago hot dogs were on the agenda!

For the whole story, head on over to Hot Dog Stories.

BagBowl's Brian Fleming from Shark Tank Answers the Question

I spoke with Brian Fleming (that's Brian on the left) who appeared with his brother, Kevin, on The Shark Tank  last Friday. They were pitching their new product, BagBowl, to the Sharks. Lori Greiner invested $40,000 for 33% of the  business.

I asked the Kansas City native the Question:

"Do you put ketchup on your hots dogs?"

He answered: "Yes I do, but my wife is a purist. We fight about it all the time."

It's good to know that Brian "married up." Stay strong Mrs. Fleming, stay strong.

100th Different Hot Dog Joint: Spalla's

Hot Dog Stories is my website where I post photos and videos of my trips to hot dog joints all over the place. The tag line for the site is "eating hot dogs wherever I am."

I have had hot dogs in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Montreal, New Jersey, New York, Florida, and Nevada. In the coming year, I plan on expanding my geographic reach.

Today marks a milestone for Hot Dog Stories; I will be visiting my 100th different hot dog establishment! I thought long and hard about where I wanted to go. 

I have been meaning to go to a local deli called Spalla's in Natick for a while now. They recently added Chicago Hot dogs to their menu and a full line of Vienna Beef products (including Italian Roast Beef). It was definitely on my "short list" of places in consideration for visit number 100.

When the RoadFood.com crowd announced their monthly Boston meet-up was going to be held at Spalla's, that sealed the deal! I enjoy meeting up with other foodies and hot dog aficionados. Chicago Hot Dogs are also one of my favorite topping styles.

At approximately 6 PM tonight, I will down a Chicago Hot Dog at Spalla's, completing my first 100 different hot dog joint visit close to home.

After this visit, I only have one more planned for 2012 (of course plans sometimes change). In 2013, I'd like to get closer to 200- maybe even get there! There are several "tours" in the works, but nothing is etched in stone.

Until then, happy 100th!

Shark Tank Entrepreneur David Mealey Answers The Question

I interviewed David Mealey from Back 9 Dips for the Shark Tank Blog today. He appeared on Shark Tank last Friday and got a $150K investment for 25% of his company, which makes Bubba's Chicken Dip, from Lori Greiner and Robert Herjavec. Bubba's Chicken Dip can best be described as "a Buffalo Wing on a chip." 

Sounds delish.

As I do with every Shark Tank entrepreneur I interview, I asked David the Question: "Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

His answer: "I put Bubba's Chicken Dip on my hot dogs!"

That sounds good to me!

David went on to tell me he used to serve a deep fried hot dog when he was doing barbecue catering. He's a real hot dog aficionado. Originally from Cleveland, David told me his favorite hot dog joint is Steve's Hot Lunch, at 5004 Lorain Avenue. I will definitely check it out.

Thanks for the tip, and don't forget to send some dip!

Hot Dog Joint #99 at The Framingham Food Truck Festival

In my never ending quest to eat hot dogs wherever I am, Little Miss and I went to the 2nd Annual Framingham Food Truck Festival last Saturday.

The day marked my 99th different hot dog eaten at a different hot dog joint for my website Hot Dog Stories. Number 100 will be this Thursday (stay tuned for an announcement).

We explored the festival, sampled some food, and got a hot dog at Kismet Catering from Natick, MA.

It was an excellent day.

Get the full story on the Framingham Food Truck Festival on Hot Dog Stories.

Framingham Food Truck Festival Today

Little Miss and I are off to the Framingham Food Truck Festival today where I will be eating at my 99th different hot dog joint. I'll have that story up on Hot Dog Stories in a day or two.

In the mean time, here's last year's video of the Festival.

Enjoy.

Framingham Food Truck Festival Tomorrow

The Second Annual Framingham Food Truck Festival is happening on Saturday, October 6 at Shopper's World in Framingham. The event was such a success last year, they're doing it again.

This year, a mobile food trailer known as Trolley Dogs from my hometown is making an appearance!

I will be cruising the grounds with my trusty camera and I'll be visiting my 99th different hot dog joint (the aforementioned Trolley Dogs- no relation to Zippity Do Dogs which used to be called Trolley Dogs) for Hot Dog Stories!

Hot Dog Stories' 100th venue will be featured next week! Details will follow, but it is going to be a special, communal type of event.

Stay up to date with Hot Dog Stories on the Hot Dog Stories Facebook Page- head on over and give it a "like."

New Blooper Video

There's a new Blooper Video on Hot Dog Stories that highlights some of the more amusing moments from the 2012 "season."

Over the course of the next week, I will be visiting my 99th and 100th DIFFERENT Hot Dog Joints for Hot Dog Stories!

Stay up to date with Hot Dog Stories on the Hot Dog Stories Facebook Page- head on over and give it a "like."

As always, stay tuned!

Shark Tank Entrepreneur Tereson Dupuy answers the Question

Fans of The Hotdogman know I am a HUGE Shark Tank fan. I write about the show over at the Shark Tank Blog.

 I chatted with Tereson Dupuy who appeared on the show last Friday. She was pitching her cloth diaper business called FuzziBunz to the Sharks. They ultimately didn't bite, but she made a big splash in the Shark Tank nonetheless.

As I do with every Shark Tank entrepreneur I speak with, I asked Tereson the Question:

"Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

She replied, while giggling, "YES! I put ketchup, mustard, relish, and chili."

I told her that was the wrong answer and the New Orleans native confessed the only time she eats hot dogs is "at 4AM after a French Quarter run."

I guess I'll cut her some slack and let her plead out on the 21st Amendment!

A Funny Email from Dad

My dad likes sending jokes to me in my email box. I think he secretly wants me to post them here. Most of them aren't so good that I'd rush out and publish them, but this one made me laugh out loud for real:


TWENTY DOLLARS

On their wedding night, the young bride approached her new husband and asked for $20.00 for their first lovemaking encounter. In his highly aroused state, her husband readily agreed.

This scenario was repeated each time they made love, for more than 40 years, with him thinking that it was a cute way for her to afford new clothes and other incidentals that she needed.

Arriving home around noon one day, she was surprised to find her husband in a very drunken state.
During the next few minutes, he explained that his employer was going through a process of corporate downsizing, and he had been let go. It was unlikely that, at the age of 59, he'd be able to find another position that paid anywhere near what he'd been earning, and therefore, they were financially ruined.

Calmly, his wife handed him a bank book which showed more than forty years of steady deposits and interest totaling nearly $1 million. Then she showed him certificates of deposits issued by the bank which were worth over $2 million, and informed him that they were one of the largest depositors in the bank.

She explained that for four decades she had 'charged' him for sex; these holdings had multiplied and these were the  results of her savings and investments.

Faced with evidence of cash and investments worth over $3 million, her husband was so astounded he could barely speak, but finally he found his voice and blurted out, "If I'd had any idea what you were doing all these years, I would have given you all my business!"

That's when she shot him.