National Hot Dog Month Tour 2012 Day 2

Day 2 of the National Hot Dog Month 2012 Tour brought me to an old favorite with a NEW OWNER, Zippity Do Dog in Framingham, MA.

Zippity Do Dog serves 1/4 pound Pearl Franks and other brands as well. I opted for a Pearl with Coney sauce, onions, Onion Crunch, and mustard. You know what comes next.....

The crew was rocking out the hot dogs on a busy day!

Get the rest of the story on Hot Dog Stories! 

A Coney Island at Zipity Do Dogs with Onion Crunch

Last week, I got this email from a guy named Nick Loeb:

"I would love to send you a samples to Blog about Onion Crunch, we are in 100’s of hot dog carts and restaurants around the country, all the Sabrett Hot Dog Carts and Angels Stadium as a Hot Dog topping

Let me know where I can send it"

Since Onion Crunch is a hot, new hot dog condiment, Nick wanted the expert opinion of the Hotdogman. Those who know me well know "if it's free, it's for me," so I sent Nick my address and in a few days I got this honkin 12 ounce container in the mail.

Nick grew up in Scandinavia- his dad was the US Ambassador to Denmark under President Reagan. While he lived there, he got addicted to a roasted onion topping the Danes put on their hot dogs. While visiting Denmark as an adult, he brought some home and his friends loved them. 

Long story short, Nick figured out a way to make his Onion Crunch in the USA and a new company and hot dog topping were born.

I did a bit of research on Nick. The lucky dog is the longtime boyfriend of Sofia Vergara from the ABC TV show Modern Family.

He is also a former candidate for Florida's state senate (I won't hold that against him) and is a Managing Partner at Carbon Solutions America. Not exactly the resume for a hot dog condiment tycoon, but what the heck.

I decided to take my container of Onion Crunch down the road to Zipity Do Dog in Framingham. I thought Onion Crunch would taste good on a Coney Island dog and Mike down at Zipity's has the best Coney Island Sauce in the area.

I turns out Mike had some Onion Crunch too! He loaded up a Coney Island Dog for me, replacing the standard chopped onions with Onion Crunch. He was thinking of creating a specialty dog highlighting Onion Crunch as the central ingredient, but for now he's just using it as an additional condiment.

I CHOWED DOWN!

Onion Crunch tastes just like you'd expect. It has a nice onion flavor, but it's crispy and crunchy. I called it "Crunyumchy." It is similar to the canned fried onions you may be familiar with, but it is a bit crunchier and not at all greasy like other brands I have encountered. According to Nick, Onion Crunch is catching on as a hot dog condiment nationwide. I can see why- it has a nice, almost smoky onion taste and the crunch adds nice texture to your hot dog; anyone who has ever put potato chips in a sandwich will love that. It's not bad as a little snack either.

Onion Crunch is available in Massachusetts at Price Chopper, Big Y and Costco. I imagine it will be available at other stores soon too. You can also buy Onion Crunch online in the 12 and 6 ounce size or by the case. It's only $5.79 for the 12 ounce size- about the same for a big old jug-o-mustard- and it really is great on a hot dog! 

Even Sofia Vergara likes to

CHOW DOWN

on a dog with Onion Crunch on it. What a woman!

Just in time for the Spring doggin' season in the Northeast, Onion Crunch will come in some additional flavors: chipotle, Parmesan, bacon-flavored and barbecue. 

Bring it on, Nick. Onion Crunch is Crunyumchy!

Check out the video of my visit to Zipity Do Dog with my container of Onion Crunch.

Withdrawal Symptoms: Zippity Do Dog's Coney Island Hot Dog

Today is August third, three short days after the completion of my National Hot Dog Month celebration where I ate a hot dog a day at a different venue. I ran into Zippity Do Dog owner Mike Gerrol while we were both grabbing an iced coffee at Cumby's last night. He remarked on my visits to George's Coney Island in Worcester and Nick's Original Coney Island Weiners in Fall River and told me I had to try his Coney Island dog. So, today I stopped by around noon.

Metrowest doesn't have a true Coney Island hot dog joint. The closet you get is Archie's on a Roll in Marlborough, but he serves Michigan Sauce on his dogs. I won't go into the differences between the two sauce styles, but suffice to say there isn't a Coney Island hot dog stand between Boston and Worcester.

Coney Island sauce is essentially a meat only kind of chili. The main ingredients are ground beef and chili powder, but each hot dog joint has their own spin on their sauce. Some are spicier up front, some are sweet, and some are very savory. Every good Coney Island hot dog joint guards their sauce recipe like a state secret. Whatever way any given Coney Island sauce is seasoned, if the sauce is fresh made, it's sure to be a good experience.

I stepped up to the counter and asked Mike for a Coney. It really should be called a Coney Island style dog, since it's served on Zippity Do Dog's signature grilled, split top New England bun (a bun methodology wholeheartedly endorsed by yours truly). An "authentic" Coney Island hot dog would be served on a steamed hot dog roll. I am not going to get nit picky about authenticity- I like grilled buns. I also gave Mike a pointer on the presentation; he served it up with the onions and mustard on top of the sauce. Fred Beaudry, the owner of Nick's, said the proper way to serve a Coney dog is to put the mustard directly on the hot dog, cover that with the sauce, then put freshly diced onions on top. Mike assured me he would correct the presentation (his niece Jenny had been telling him to serve them that way for quite some time and she felt vindicated by my "correction").

The most important ingredient of a Coney Island hot dog, after a piping hot (Kayem in Zippity's case) hot dog, is the sauce. Mike's Coney sauce did not disappoint. It was not overly spicy and it had a hearty flavor that said "hey, this here's a mighty fine meat sauce." Mike said he'd stack his Coney sauce up against any others out there. It was good, but I really don't like getting into the whole "who has the best sauce" argument. Like I said, each place is different. On this day, Zippity Do Dog had the best Coney Island hot dog in the parking lot!

A Hot Dog a Day Number Six: Zippity Do Dog in Framingham, MA

For my July 6 hot dog- marking the 6th day of National Hot Dog Month- I stopped at an old favorite of mine:  Zippity Do Dog, located at 160 Speen Street in Framingham, MA.

Zippity Do Dog was formerly known as The Trolley Stop. Owner Mike Gerrol, pictured below with his helper and niece, Jen, has owned the charming, retro looking trailer for two years. He renamed the hot dog business at the start of this season to create his own business brand.

This isn't some cute little trailer with no guts in it; there's a full on commercial kitchen inside.

There is even air conditioning. You can't have hot dogs without cool cooks!

Mike's very concerned with quality- he feels the quality of his food is the single most important component to the success of Zippity Do Dog. He even went so far as to post this Quality Guarantee:

At Zippity Do Dog, we take pride in serving a quality product at a good value. At times it may take several minutes to prepare our customers' orders and you may also experience having to wait in line to be served. We apologize for any inconvenience and we will work as quickly as possible to minimize your wait- but we will NOT compromise on our quality guarantee:

A FRESH TASTING, QUALITY MEAL AT A GOOD PRICE!

We are NOT a "fast food" hot dog stand.

Thanks for your understanding.

The menu shows this dedication to quality, whether it's "the other stuff" or...

the hot dog menu.

The quality extends to the "dining room." Only Zippity Do Dog could make a parking lot look like a bistro (or maybe a charcuterie?)

Zippity Do Dog serves up Kayem franks- they also offer an all beef Pearl frank.

I ordered up a "Hawaiian Dog," a grilled Kayem Old Tyme frank on a grilled, split top bun with Mike's own "Hula Sauce" (a special blended barbecue sauce), pineapple, bacon, and melted cheese. This is one of my very favorite "non-conforming" hot dogs. Believe me, it tastes even better than it looks!

After mingling with Mike and his very friendly customers, I finally got to 

CHOW DOWN!

Zippity Do Dog is right near exit 13 off the Mass Pike, so if you're down that way, stop in for a hot dog and tell Mike "the Hotdogman sent me." And wish him a Happy National Hot Dog Month!

For the rest of the story, check out the video of my visit to Zippity Do Dog.