12 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Coast Weekend’s local
restaurant review
Mudd Dogs’ Chicago-style
hot dogs ‘right on the money’
Story and photos by
THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA
MOUTH@COASTWEEKEND.COM
A
ccording to the The Na-
tional Hot Dog & Sausage
Council (yes, there is
such a thing), Americans
devour some 150 million hot dogs
every Fourth of July. What’s more,
between Memorial and Labor days
our dear country is said to consume
some 8 billion. With a ‘B.’
With numbers like these, I
suppose the existence of a National
Hot Dog & Sausage Council isn’t
so surprising. Perhaps the phrase
“American as apple pie” ought to
be amended to something a little
meatier.
Come to think of it, I’ve enjoyed
iconic dogs from sea to shining sea,
and at many points in between.
I’ve nibbled on Nathan’s Famous
on the boardwalk, beneath the
twinkling lights of the Coney Island
Ferris wheel.
I have filled up in New York
City on Gray’s Papaya’s “Recession
Special,” not to mention at countless
carts throughout Manhattan.
I’ve braved both the pointless
lines at Pink’s in Los Angeles and
the late-night verbal abuse at The
Wieners Circle at Chicago.
Oh, and who can forget the visit
to Ben’s Chili Bowl in Washington,
D.C., not long after then Presi-
dent-elect Obama paid homage. I
have scarfed Chicago dogs before
a Cubs game in the shadows of
Wrigley Field.
Of these prominent dogs and
many more, my favorite may well
be from the bygone Dog House,
a drive-thru hut in Portland that
offered rotating daily specials.
Sunday’s was a titanic cheese dog,
infused with molten drippy cheese
that would squirt out in all directions
A Mudd Dog
Jim Mudd
when the casing ruptured.
Despite American’s deep love of
the dog, its provenance is European
(think “Frankfurter”). Sausages go
back much further. Homer’s “Odys-
sey,” from around 850 B.C., alludes
to this budding love story: “As when
a man besides a great fire has filled a
sausage with fat and blood and turns
it this way and that and is very eager
to get it quickly roasted …”
While often considered a staple
of low culture, in 1939, Franklin
Delano Roosevelt prepared hot dogs
for the King and Queen of England.
Our affinity, it seems, has hardly
wavered. At the annual Fourth
of July hot dog-eating contest at
Nathan’s Famous this year, profes-
sional eater Joey Chestnut took his
chunk out of the 150 million to be
consumed that day, cramming a re-
cord-setting 72 dogs down his gullet
in just 12 short minutes.
On the North Coast today, you’ll
find a number of dog devotees.
Pronto Pup in Seaside makes corn
dogs to order, dipping them in fresh
batter before a dunk in the fryer.
(I have a chef friend who’s noto-
riously picky and hard to please,
yet he admits a weak spot for this
carnival-style fare.) There’s also
the new-ish Sasquatch Sausage in
Astoria, where, after grinding their
own meats, nuance is found with the
addition of herbs and spices, as well
as refined, thoughtful toppings. I’ve
also heard rumblings about some
kind of “Monday Bunday” weekly
hot dog special at the Warren House
in Cannon Beach, but have yet to
investigate.
Mudd Dogs
This week, though, I want to
focus on Mudd Dogs in Manzanita,
where Chicago-style dogs are done
by the book. Literally. Every detail
— from the poppy seed buns to the
absurd hue of the sweet relish — is
right on the money.
And money (or, rather, lack there-
of) helped birth the Windy City’s
signature dog. It was first known as
the ‘Depression Sandwich.’ Now, a
hot dog isn’t a sandwich, but that’s a
column for another day.
Anyway … Unlike, say, the
Juicy Lucy, the Chicago dog’s reci-
pe is clear. It starts with an all-beef
kosher frank, usually Vienna brand,
which is Chicago-based. So, of
course, Mudd Dogs uses Vienna.
A properly prepared Chicago
dog is either steamed or boiled,
and Mudd Dogs boils. (A grilled
frank with Chicago-style toppings
is known as a “char.”) Then comes
tomato slices, a dill pickle spear,
yellow mustard, pickled sport
peppers, the almost supernatural,
dyed-green sweet relish (a concoc-
tion that, too, is shipped in from
Chicago), diced white onions, and
a sprinkle of celery salt. Indeed,
Mudd Dog’s finished product
($6) is almost indecipherable
from those in the Vienna’s promo
materials, which are strewn around
the cart.
Bites play the multifaceted
briny acids against the thick, juicy,
supple frank. Atop the pillow-y,
MUDD DOGS
58 Laneda Ave.
Manzanita, Ore., 97130
Hours: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tues-
day through Sunday
Price: $$ – Cash and check
only (no cards)
Service: Having fun
Drinks: Bottled water, soda
un-toasted bun are brushstrokes
of spice (the mild sport peppers),
briny tang (pickles, tomato), sharp
mustard, crispness and oil of
onion, syrupy-sweet relish, and a
hint of earthy, seasoned salt. It is at
once familiar and brightly unfurl-
ing.
Sure, you can order one plain
at Mudd Dogs, or deface it with
ketchup. (Some vendors in the
Windy City who specialize in
Chicago-style refuse to even stock
ketchup.) But really, you can have a
hot dog anywhere; a Chicago-style
dog with this kind of t-crossing and
i-dotting reverence and with such
specific ingredients, not so much.
Besides bags of chips and
bottled water and soda, the dog is
Mudd Dog’s sole offering. Well,
there’s also the Big Mudder ($10).
When I asked what it was, propri-
etor Jim Mudd picked up a footlong
wiener.
“Ahh,” I said, “so it’s just a
bigger Chicago dog?”
“Just?” Mudd said, taking play-
ful umbrage. “You’re going to have
to fix your attitude up around here,
bud.” I laughed, then ordered two
regular dogs: one to eat in Mudd
Dogs’ outdoor patio, and one for
later. “Now we’re having fun,” he
said.
Mudd is absolutely having fun.
The summertime-only dog-cart is
but a reason to share spot-on Chi-
cago dogs and raise money for his
charity, the Mudd Nick Foundation,
which in 25-plus years has gath-
ered over $1 million for children’s
education.
And while the charity has mul-
tiple fundraising arms and events,
Mudd was wise to include hot dogs
in the mix, for America’s love for
them is nearly incalculable. CW