A recent Travelocity survey ranked “eating holiday themed food, such as hot dogs or apple pie” as the second most popular thing to do on July Fourth – just behind experiencing a fireworks show. While the apple pie has few variations from region to region, the hot dog has been reinvented many times over to reflect unique culinary traditions nationwide.
Indeed, the humble hot dog has become a source of local pride for many cities around the U.S., pitting region against region as to who has the best local variation on the “tube steak”. While there are countless variations across the country, three of the best known that may be worth checking out this July Fourth weekend include:
Chicago – The Chicago-style hot dog is easy to recognize. Starting with a standard Kosher beef hot dog on a poppy seed bun, the Chicago-style hot dog is topped with yellow mustard and then “dragged through the garden” with chopped onions, sliced tomatoes, a dill pickle spear and covered in unnaturally bright green relish. And a tip for first-timers – never, ever ask for ketchup – a condiment considered verboten for a real Chicago-style hot dog.
A Chicago-style hot dog that has been “dragged through the garden”.
Travelocity Director of E-Commerce Justin White, a Chicago native recommends Portillo’s for an authentic Chicago-style hot dog experience. “Portillo’s is a Chicago institution. It’s hard to get a bad Chicago-style hot dog, but Portillo’s is always a dependable choice and they are all over the city, so you can get one quickly whenever the craving strikes.”
Cincinnati – For an authentic Cincinnati-style cheese coney, the hot dog itself is not the star of the show. Rather, the main feature of this dish is a healthy slathering of Cincinnati chili – which to those uninitiated in this midwestern delicacy is not chili in the southwestern sense. Rather, it is a Mediterranean-inspired meat sauce which features a unique blend of spices, including cinnamon. Finished with mustard and onions, then buried in an epic heap of grated cheese, the Cincinnati-style cheese coney is truly an American original.
A traditional Cincinnati-style Cheese Coney. Photograph by Cara Owsley
Former Cincinnati resident John Orahood doesn’t hesitate when he says that for the quintessential Cincinnati-style cheese coney that it’s “Skyline Chili all the way.” While this 60-plus year old Cincinnati institution takes top spot in John’s rankings, he also concedes that Blue Ash Chili is a “close second”.
Phoenix – Recently named the third-best destination for a summer vacation in Travelocity’s Summer Vacation Index, Phoenix can also lay claim to one of the country’s most unique hot dog variations – the Sonoran hot dog. An authentic Sonoran is a hot dog wrapped in bacon and cooked on a grill – and rather than dropped on a traditional hot dog bun, is nestled into a bolillo roll – a crusty Mexican baguette. Topped with pinto beans, onions, tomatoes, mayonnaise, mustard and salsa, the Sonoran hot dog is a taste of the southwest on a roll.
The Sonoran-style hot dog can be found in Phoenix and across southern Arizona
A number of current and former Phoenix residents weighed in on the best Sonoran hot dog, and while the list of suggestions was lengthy, one spot consistently came up over and over – Nogales Hot Dogs. Despite its unique location – a food truck parked north of Downtown Phoenix in a parking lot tucked between a convenience store and a swimming pool supply shop – Nogales Hot Dogs version of the Sonoran hot dog was best summed up by one fan who simply called it “a damn fine dog”.
Travelocity Editors
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