Arts & Culture
As bad as the beginning of the 20th century was for the hot dog, the beginning of the 21st stands to well eclipse all of that — at least if you believe this report, published in the Daily Mail in March of 2008. In it, reporter Fiona Macrae writes that “[e]ating 1.8oz (50g) of processed meat a day — the equivalent of one sausage or three rashers of bacon — raises the likelihood of the cancer by a fifth, research shows.” Which is to say that, as human preoccupation has shifted from the ills of industry to the ills of biology, the hot dog has remained the ultimate bugbear.
So the recent foodie embrace — as evidenced by the opening of Frank on a piece of prime real estate in downtown Austin — of the long-scapegoated sausage comes as a bit of surprise. Indeed, one could be forgiven for believing that the hot dog was right behind the cigarette and the gas-powered car in terms of things drawing palpable societal hate. But for those of us who are inclined to think of this most hated piece of meat as more than just a ballpark snack, its ascent to culinary heights is something of a long-delayed no-brainer. And though it may be riding in on the coattails of the elevation of junk food, the thing has finally arrived.
No matter what global feelings about processed meat might have been, Chicago has always provided hot dog lovers with refuge. According to the Vienna Beef company, “[t]he “Chicago Style” hot dog got its start from street cart hot dog vendors during the hard times of the Great Depression.
Money was scarce, but business was booming for these entrepreneurs who offered a delicious hot meal on a bun for only a nickel. The famous Chicago Style Hot Dog was born! They’d start with a Vienna Beef hot dog, nestle it in a steamed poppyseed bun and cover it with a wonderful combination of toppings: yellow mustard, bright green relish, fresh chopped onions, juicy red tomato wedges, a kosher-style pickle spear, a couple of spicy sport peppers and finally, a dash of celery salt.”
These days, folks looking for a like-dressed dog can won’t have trouble finding one nearly anywhere along the Illinois shoreline. And, in what seems to be an appropriately located advancement, more discerning palettes can now be satisfied by higher-end offerings from Hot Doug’s on North California Avenue. (Word is that when the duck sausage topped with Foie Gras is available, it’s a can’t miss.) What Doug — a graduate of the Chicago Culinary Arts School at Kendall College — and the purveyors of Frank have figured out is that hot dogs don’t necessarily have to feature meat culled from the worst parts of the slaughtering process. And that, even if they do, they don’t necessarily have to be topped with simple variations of ballpark standards.
It’s not exactly a leap. But it is a bit of genius: Rescue the hot dog from the picture painted over a century ago by Upton Sinclair, and, even if you have a few higher-end meats on your menu, you’re more than likely to turn a profit. I mean, have you seen how much a package of even Hebrew Nationals costs at the grocery store? Besides, those of us who love the things — let’s be honest: misplaced fingers and ass cancer notwithstanding, aren’t they straight up delicious? — will keep coming back for more.
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