Cheese Please!

This weekend, I'll embark on a new adventure in the hot dog business. I'm going to offer cheddar dogs and cheddar Polish. I've purchased the same brand of Wisconsin cheddar cheese that's used at two popular Chicago hot dog stands listed in the "Restaurants" section of Roadfood. Both are known for their excellent cheese dogs and cheese fries. I'll report back on Monday. How many of you like cheese on your hot dog? What kind?

CSD

I like it on a chili dog -- shredded, but not on a plain one.

A slice of american for me!

Some Chicago and suburban hot dog stands serve hot dogs and fries with real Wisconsin cheddar cheese. The product is a cold pack spread. It can be served cold, at room temperature, or gently heated to softness. It's not a liquid type cheese unless steamed or micro waved, at which point it starts to separate.

CSD

I have had it "out" with a slice of american. I make it at home with provolone or munster. Chedder would be good, but it usually gets oily when melted, and IMO may not make a good presentation. (Update-CSD made the above post at the same time that I was writing mine)

Thanks, Tmiles. No oily, greasy cheese here! Presentation and quality is very important in this business and can capture or lose customers.

Sorry, but never any cheese on a hotdog for me. I only have cheese on hamburgers, Philly steak sandwiches (provalone), and cold subs (also provalone).

I like Sharp Cheddar (shredded) on my chili dogs...

When in Paris once and famished for a hot dog, just outside of Notre Dame Cathedral there was a sandwich shop that served a thing I've since always referred to as a French Hot Dog. It came with or without cheese. They called it Saucisse Jambon...which, translated, is Sausage Ham, as best I can figure. I had it with the cheese...mais certainment.

Well, I really liked it, in no small part because the baguette it was on was truly world class. And this was just a little sandwich shop.

A few months later, back in the old neighborhood, the block party approached. I was inspired. I will make French Hot Dogs. My choice for the dog was indubitably a Best Provisions all-beef, 8 to a lb. frank, primarily because, pound for pound it just may be the single best hot dog in the world. The baguette I chose was actually a French bread from Calandra's Bakery, Newark, N.J.

But the cheese...what cheese to use? So I walked up to a rather knowledgeable deli man at the King's supermarket (Garwood, N.J.) and described what I was going to simulate...just what I was trying to construct, describing the beige-like cheese that adorned the one I had in Paris. He said try this...it might help replicate it. Well, he recommended Munchee...plain. The man knew his cheese. It was awfully close.


I get everything ready in the kitchen at about 2 p.m. We're supposed to bring our entrees out at about 3 or so. I was going to make about 20. I put the breads in the broiler, ready to toast. I put the dogs in a big pot of boiling water on the stove. After the breads get a bit brown, I put the cooked dogs in each of them, letting the dogs get a bit brown while the bread reaches a good tone. And then, plopped a couple slices of cheese on each to quickly melt.


My piece resistance ready, I proudly deliver them to one of the picnic tables. And then, not unlike the mother in "Stella Dallas," I situate myself at a safe distance to see how my babies do. The first customers arrive. It's two little boys, both hardly able to see over the table. They look here; they look there. And then one spots them. "Oooh, cheese dogs!" he says, taking one and handing one to his freckled pal. Yep, cheese dogs

It was a busy weekend at the cart, especially since I worked alone. On Saturday, the menu board read "Cheese .50." I sold 10 dogs with cheese. On Sunday, the menu board read "Cheesedog $2.50" and Jumbo Cheese Polish $3.50. I sold 50 dogs/Polish with cheese. The cheese dogs increased my sales and have earned a spot on the menu board. Marketing does make a difference.

Screenbear, my favorite resuatrant in Paris is Le Souffl'e. The finest(cheese) souffles in the world. I'm going to buy a couple of baugettes with some Munchee and try your recipe using some Vienna Beef Polish.

Thanks

CSD

In DC, I can get 2 Nathan's dogs with choice of toppings (chili, cheese, relish, cooked onion, ketchup. mustard) with a 1 oz bag of chips and a 12oz can of soda for $3.-$4. depending on location.
$2.50 for ONE hotdog off a cart?
I guess there is ONE thing that is cheaper in DC.

quote:

Originally posted by Scorereader

In DC, I can get 2 Nathan's dogs with choice of toppings (chili, cheese, relish, cooked onion, ketchup. mustard) with a 1 oz bag of chips and a 12oz can of soda for $3.-$4. depending on location.
$2.50 for ONE hotdog off a cart?
I guess there is ONE thing that is cheaper in DC.

I don't care what others sell their products for, they know what it's worth.

CSD

As long as I can freely pile on onions and relish $2.50 isn't TO bad for a good dog maybe a little pricey but worth the convenience and speed of roadside service. An unadvertised free soda (generic brands ok) with 2 dogs would keep me returning...

Chicago,
Have you ever eaten a Best Provisions (Newark, NJ) hot dog? Not a Best's Kosher, which is a different company altogether.

Dreamzpainter, for $2.00, you can dress your Vienna Beef hot dog at my cart with all the onions, neon green relish, kosher dills, tomatoes, sport peppers, and celery salt, your heart desires. The real Wisconsin sharp cheddar chesse is .50 extra. When someone's selling 2 hot dogs, chips, and a drink for $3.00, it's usually a 10/1 or 10 to a pound dog. I sell 8/1's, which are 20% larger and cost me more. If I sold a 10/1 or a 12/1 Vienna Beef, it would be the same deal you find at your local cart.

ScreenBear, I've never experienced a Best Provisions hot dog. According to John Fox, it's one of the finest dogs on the planet. Here in the midwest, we have Best Kosher(Bessen aka Sara Lee). I don't eat them. However, I do enjoy the Boar's Head natural casing. In fact, I wolfed two of them down for lunch this afternoon on some steamed poppy seeded buns with cheddar. They were excellent. Another fine dog available at most food stores is the Usinger's all beef natural casing. Although I sell Vienna Beef products, I do have a deep appreciation for other fine encased meats.

CSD

Hey, CSD, sell your dogs for $2.50! If you keep getting great sales, there's no reason to stop.

Part of it is location. Some places are cheap, like near my work. Other places are way more expensive, like near the National Mall where the tourists are.

DC's a weird place for dogs. You can get a piece of crap hot dog with chicken in it, sitting next to a stand with Nathan's dogs and the two places are selling a meal for the same price or only a $.25 difference. I think it has to do with location permits.

Scorereader, I've been vending Vienna Beef hot dogs at the Prime Outlets Mall(Pleasant Prairie, WI) for the past three years. The competition is McDonald's, Culver's, and Quizno's. Our 8/1 dog sells for $2.00 & the 4/1 Polish sells for $3.00. Most Chicago Vienna Beef hot dog stands, with the exception of Portillo's, sell 8/1's for $2.49-$2.59+tax & Polish for $3.69-$3.89+ tax. Fifty percent of our customers are from Chicago and the suburbs. They find our prices a genuine bargain. The other 50% are from southeastern Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and it's suburbs. Our prices are right in line for Wisconsin. This weekend, we decided to do something different, by offering cheddar cheese for an additional 50 cents and a combo meal(chips and a drink) for an extra dollar. It was a hugh success.

CSD

For the record CSD, I don't think $3.50 ($2 dog + .50 cheese + $1 combo) is outragous for a meal at a Mall.

Congratulations on your successful weeekend.

Chicago,
My uncle Joe (RIP) was one of the founders of Best Provisions. Hence, I was raised on 'em. However, I really do think they're great.

I only had the Vienna Beef twice. Once in Chicago, I had two, with the works. When in Rome, y'know. And once in Colorado Springs at Mustard's Last Stand. I really haven't had 'em enough to have an educated opinion.


In any case, I like Best along with Sabrett, Hebrew National, and Nathan's. I used to like Shofar, too. But I haven't seen them in quite a while. Perhaps someone reading this might know what happened to them.


Do you get many customers that want sauerkraut? Would you be able to give me a breakdown on Wisconsin preferences? i.e. 60% like their franks Chicago style; 20% like just relish, etc. I tried to get something goin' on another thread...a survey of different dog preferences in different geographies, but it didn't take off...yet. Thanks.

This Wisconsonite prefers ketchup to mustard but I rarely order it on a Chicago dog; otherwise its the works with plenty of sport peppers. A great bratwurst(s) on a crunchy roll needs no saurkraut. Most church festivals, carnivals and the like will find me putting saurkraut on a brat, otherwise its served at our house only with roasted pork in any form or alongside steamed ring bologna.

MilwFoodlovers is absolutely correct. Wisconsinites use ketchup over mustard by 2/1. Gen X and Y are also big ketchup lovers. Chicago baby boomers exclusively use mustard. We were trained to only use ketchup on fries and burgers. My average Wisconsin hot dog consumer uses mustard, onions, relish, pickles, and ketchup. Very few use sport peppers, tomato, or celery salt. Tomatoes are seasonal and expensive, so I only offer them when the price is right and the product is absolutely perfect. Every so often, I have a request for kraut. Same with cheese. As a kid, all I ate on hot dogs was mustard. Today, I still use mustard. I started eating cheese on my dogs when Poochie's of Skokie began selling cheddar dogs in the mid/late 60's. Besides cheese, my all time favorite condiment is sweet, well done, grilled onions. If I ever attached a grill to the cart, I would serve grilled onions. To grill onions, add a teaspoon of sugar to each whole sliced onion. Then a one pat of butter to give the onions a golden brown color. A small amount of Coke Cola could be used as a sugar substitute to give the onions a sweet taste(an old Chicago grilled onion secret).

2 dogs dressed all the way, chips and a coke for 6 bucks.... sounds like a lunch deal to me!

Hello All,
I love a hot dog with fries. My dog is usually plain, maybe some kraut.
Here in the Shenandoah Valley of Va., onions, mustard, ketchup, chili, and lately relish
go on a dog.
The first time I saw cheese on a dog was when last year at work we were given a vending
machine with a creature called chili cheese dog. I got one, and scrapped off the
cheese before heating it in the micro-wave. I have not gotten another.
Cheese on a hot dog is like popcorn in jello...it doesn't make sense to me. But my tastes
are not yours.
Sometimes I think the food world is so eager to introduce something new and different that
the old standards are cast aside and neglected, like the way we treat the elderly.
I am not anti-cheese on a dog...just not my cup of tea.
Take Care,
Fieldthistle

not sure how "new" the cheese dog is.

cheezewhiz (which I cant find around here) has always been in my familys hotdog condiment lineup and that spray cheese stuff in a can.. baconNcheddar mmmMmmmm .. or mustard the bun,slap on a slice of american cheese add your dog relish and chopped onion. Now THATS a classic! A windy city transplant friend runs his "through the garden" but complains he can't find neon green relish. My brother likes his dogs with hellmans and a dill pickle wedge but he's always been abit odd.................

quote:

Originally posted by dreamzpainter

cheezewhiz (which I cant find around here) has always been in my familys hotdog condiment lineup and that spray cheese stuff in a can.. baconNcheddar mmmMmmmm .. or mustard the bun,slap on a slice of american cheese add your dog relish and chopped onion. Now THATS a classic! A windy city transplant friend runs his "through the garden" but complains he can't find neon green relish. My brother likes his dogs with hellmans and a dill pickle wedge but he's always been abit odd.................

We still have Cheezewhiz comming out of our ears up here... But if I was to use a soft chez. on a dog, it would be Old ElPaso's Spicy Nacho Cheese.. Gooppy, oily crap that tastes really good!

quote:

Originally posted by chicagostyledog

quote:

Originally posted by Scorereader

In DC, I can get 2 Nathan's dogs with choice of toppings (chili, cheese, relish, cooked onion, ketchup. mustard) with a 1 oz bag of chips and a 12oz can of soda for $3.-$4. depending on location.
$2.50 for ONE hotdog off a cart?
I guess there is ONE thing that is cheaper in DC.

I don't care what others sell their products for, they know what it's worth.

CSD

In a 25 miles radius of my home is six different large lakes, each of these lakes have a huge amount of owners who are summer residents with their full time residents in Chicago. It is common knowlege around here if you want someone to pay 3 times, what you are selling is worth, sell it to a person from Chicago, they'll pay any price!

Don't like cheese on my dogs. Liked Chicago style dogs though.