Are the hot dogs from the hot dog vendors in New York really as bad as I hear?

29 comments

1. Who has been talking shit about the glizzy? They good

2. Bad as in they taste bad? Not really, they taste like a hot dog. I’ve had better but I’ve certainly had worse.

   Bad *for* you? Absolutely they are.

   Full disclosure, it’s been a very long time since I’ve had one.

3. Depends what you mean by “bad”.

   Like most hotdog type dishes, they’re delicious. They’re cheap. They’re fast. You grab one and go. They also do all of this while using relatively inexpensive and low-quality meats (with many exceptions).

   Nobody would call a boiled hot dog and fixings fancy or serve it as part of a nice dinner party. You would serve some high-end sausage in other dishes though.

4. No one goes online to post “i got a perfectly normal hot dog today. It was alright, not the best I’ve ever had, but perfectly fine”.

   You’ve got to watch out for confirmation bias: people typically only post when they’ve had an excellent or terrible experience.

   For me at least, every experience I’ve ever had with a hot dog vendor in NYC was “eh totally fine, tastes okay, not ‘wet your pants’ good, but pretty alright.” What else do you honestly expect from a $3 meal from a street cart?

5. Dirty water dogs are the pinnacle of being in New York.

   They are not bad.

   They are God’s own hot dog. The only hot dog superior is a Chicago dog.

   Chicago, NYC and a New York System Weiner from Rhode Island are the Trinity of hot dogs.

   LA dogs are basically Satan but still delicious.

6. People say they are bad? Street hot dogs in NYC are some of the best I’ve ever had. I miss getting them daily, good times.

7. Do you mean unhygienic? Probably, but it’s the same for everywhere. NYC has improved things a bit with some new regulations.

   I worked a food truck and it was fucking disgusting. I spent all my free time scraping rotten food from the fridges and cleaning what ever I could because the owner didn’t, etc.

8. Honestly I’ve never eaten the hot dogs, but New York has tons of great street food. Nothing hits like a knish on a cold winter day.

9. Come to Seattle and get a Seattle dog. Grilled hot dog on a toasted bun with grilled onions, cream cheese, and jalapeño (optional)

   Best food you can get as you hit the bars.

10. You can buy them in the store. The brand is sabbrett.

    Just try it.

    They definitely do have their own aroma. They aren’t bad at all. They are fantastic. I am willing to bet that I can pick them out of a line up between Nathan’s, Hebrew national, Katz delicatessen, and probably many more brands.

11. Glizzzy’s aye yo!

12. Describe what you heard

13. I didn’t like them. I grew up eating Sonora-style hot dogs so, yeah.

14. New York hot dogs aren’t bad at all, it’s one of the classic New York experience that tourists want to check off their list. Eat a hot dog from a street vendor, get a slice of NY pizza, see the Statue of Liberty, etc.

15. I personally like the hot dogs in NYC. It’s the falafel carts that I’ve had bad experiences with.

16. Nothing is more quintessential New York than getting a dirty water dog from a cart. And idk who told you they are bad but they aren’t. Yes in today’s world where EVERYTHING IS GOURMET, will this be something that is a life changing gastronomic experience, no. Will it be an excellent little snack, especially if you get it with everything (ketchup, mustard, relish, onions, sauerkraut), ABSOLUTELY!!

17. No hot dog- only Khlav Kalash!

18. They’re not bad. At least they weren’t when I was a kid. They’re usually steaming on those rollers and enough people are buying them that they’re fresh.

19. unhealthy yes! but the taste in like any other cheap hotdog

20. NYC hot dogs have definitely gone to shit in recent times. A lot of carts have raised prices while switching to off brand dogs (they’ll have the sabrette umbrella, but are selling you some substitute).

    If you want a good hit dog in NYC, look for a papaya dog. Otherwise, stick to the halal carts or taco trucks for cheap street food.

21. I personally love them. Not because they are fancy or high quality, but they are quick, convenient, and super delicious. People just like to shit talk to be shit talking. Idk anyone expecting some high quality fancy food when buying a hot dog from a cart on a street corner, like wtf

22. Guess you need to start with what you’ve heard? How the hell are we supposed to know what “you’ve heard”? Load a question much? Can’t answer an incomplete question guy.

23. How bad do you hear?

24. Hot dogs used to be way more ubiquitous back in the day. Halal trucks and the like became popular and supplanted a lot of the market share. Stick with ones that sell Sabrett brand dogs and ask for onion sauce if you want a topping that’s unique to the region.

25. Rhode Island’s New York System wieners are the best.

26. Parts are parts.

27. I hate hot dogs, so I can’t comment on that, but New York gyros are amazing. Have it with some white sauce and a little bit sauce, amazjng

28. Chicago dogs are better.

29. I mean, I’m not a big fan of them. Are they bad in an objective sense, not really.

    NYC has food safety regulations that are pretty decently enforced, if that is the question.

    “Dirty water dogs” – do not literally refer to the water being unclean in a food safety sense, but the look of the water – the water has salt and seasonings added to it for flavor, and the hot dogs are cooked in that. The hot dogs will have fat/meat juices that will also mix into it, which also add flavor (see: how many soups/stews/crock pot stuff is made). However, that will look like “dirty” water – cloudy, a film on the top, etc.