Saturday, January 31, 2009

Chicago Vienna





Just as we have our pizza, we have our hot dogs. At one time, there'd be as many Dave Berg signs hanging under the logo of a hot dog joint as there were ZIMNE PIWO signs beneath Old Style logos. I enjoy Gold Coast myself, because I can then eat the dogs as I'm walking up the steps to the el. Odds are, I'll finish my second dog just before I slap my fare card to the turnstile. You get a crapload of fries with each dog, so if I buy four dogs, I'll have a hefty bag of fries. I found a Google diagram of the perfect hot dog, Vienna-style. I miss the Dave Berg signs, though.

10 comments:

James Robert Smith said...

I love hot dogs. I know they're bad for you, but man they taste good.

Capcom said...

YUM! I'm hungry now. But that relish looks like it's got uranium in it! :o)

Ya know, there really are few things so sweet in retro advertising as images of juicy hotdogs. And cars. And milk shakes. And neon.

Charles Gramlich said...

I ate a lot of hot dogs as a kid and I've never completely recovered.

Anonymous said...

As someone born & raised in Chicago, I prefer cucumber slices to the pickles, several extra peppers, and a dab or two of Ketchup. Man, I can almost taste it now. The psuedo-ones around the country can't even hold a candle to 'em. They are sad and sorry immitators. ::sigh::

Lana Gramlich said...

I grew up on the gold coast, actually. (Although I suspect the hot dogs aren't related.)
My father lives on in my preference of hot dog toppings; sauerkraut & ketchup. Nothing else will do.

Anonymous said...

Good point. What happened to David Berg? Did he/they go under during one of the economic storms of the last century? Or did he throw in the hot dog business to concentrate on his career as an artist for MAD magazine?

-- Rich
(also wondering what happened to all the "Sinai 48" signs that went with Kosher dogs up here on the north side?)

Anonymous said...

On 39th Street, that's Pershing Road to all of us from the south side....east of Racine but before Halsted, there is still a Best/David Berg Kosher Store where you can buy the dogs yourself for as little as 13.50 a five pound box. You can also get bagle dogs, and pastrami there as well. If you go at lunch time you can buy the dogs and coldcuts hot on a bun. Its at this point anyone of the old ladies behindthe counter can tell you neon relish is for tpurists, its the fresh kraut that makes the dog perfect. I'm a fan of neither but yu can't get a maxwell polish with mustard and grilled onions anymore. sure they call them Maxwell but without the 100 years of grease on the griddle they just don't taste the same.

--Mike

Clark said...

You don't have to live in the Windy City to find a good Chicago dog. We've got a place in Orlando called Hot Dog Heaven, where the line is often out the door.

Steve Malley said...

One of my few gripes about life in the Antipodes: hot dogs just don't taste the same.

Mmm, hot dogs...

Anonymous said...

Hey homie! Boy have we had a hard time around here! Never seen anything like it. As far as ice goes. It ws the perfect storm. What a mess. I still do not have power--