Little Spot

854 N. Broadway, White Plains, NY - (914) 761-1334

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Posted By Michael Stern on July 24, 2009 4:40 PM

The Little Spot presents a Roadfood reviewer with a little dilemma. What do you say about a place that is enormously charming, cheap, and true to local taste in food -- a place that regular customers adore -- and a place that has been part of the community for years -- when that place serves only mediocre food?

The hot dogs that made the Little Spot a landmark are cooked on the same sort of rolling metal dowels all movie theaters once had; and while the turnover at this drive-in is brisk enough that you run no risk of getting last week's weenies, neither does the roll-in-place style of frankfurter cookery do a lot to arouse my tastebuds.

For ten cents extra, the Little Spot will split and cook your weenie on the grill -- an excellent idea, because the otherwise flaccid franks develop snap to their skin. The grill itself, however, creates its own problem. Unlike nearby Walter's, which also grill-cooks its dogs, the Little Spot seems to have no Magic Wonder Oil they spread on the grill. So while Walter's dogs absorb a lush, buttery flavor from that establishment's secret oil, the ones at the Little Spot absorb only the character of a surface where other hot dogs, hamburgers, and onions have fried. That's not automatically a bad thing, but I did not jump for joy at a flavor that would best be described as "very old grill."

I am especially sorry not to love this place because it came with an enthusiastic rave from Roadfood correspondent Jeff. Jeff wrote that in his opinion, Little Spot hot dogs are better than Walter's. While it might be (temporarily) nice if everyone in the world shared my exact opinion about everything from hot dogs to politics, I must face the fact that different people actually have different tastes! I sincerely thank Jeff for the recommendation of the Little Spot -- it is a delightful piece of New York hot dog culture -- but when I'm in that part of Westchester County and crave a frank, I'm going to Mamaroneck to eat at Walter's.

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Posted By joe pace on November 16, 2005 10:37 PM

Little Spot was once a roadside attraction of merit. Sadly, time has not been kind to the Little Spot. It was a family favorite of ours since the late sixties. My father used to bring all of us kids there whenever we were in North White Plains, which was often. I've returned several times over the last ten years and was disappointed every time. Convenience foods and low quality ingredients have replaced the handmade, high quality fare of times gone by. The Little Spot is threadbare to say the least.

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