History of The Hot Dog Cart

Concession Obsession

I have a real weakness for any food you can buy from a street vendor or concession stand, I can’t walk by one without buying a snack. You can imagine how I fare at the local county fair or amusement park – it’s a feeding frenzy!

I’ve decided to feature some of the tasty (and sometimes surprising) foods you can buy from concession trailers, carts, or counters. Is it just me, or does food taste WAY better when you buy it from one of these places? Perhaps it’s the fresh air because you are usually standing outside?

Hot Diggety Dog

I’m going to start off this regular feature with what I think is the most popular type: the hot dog cart.

History

The exact origin of the hot dog as we know it today is uncertain. The idea of serving a sausage in a bun can be traced back to Germany. The first hot dog street vendors pop up in the US in the late 1800′s: 1870′s in Coney Island, New York; 1880′s in St. Louis, Missouri; 1890′s in Chicago, Illinois (wikipedia).Today, there are hot dog stands all over the world. They might be on a corner of a downtown city street, or at a special event like a music festival or traveling carnival.They might be a small two-wheeled cart or a 24 foot long concession trailer.

Hot Dog News

If you are a big hot dog fan, you will want to check out the Frankfurter Chronicles. It bills itself as “the newsletter with relish” and will keep you up to date on all of the hot news about hot dogs. It is published by the Hot Dog Hall of Fame.

Get Them While They’re Hot

Let’s face it, if you were born in North America, hot dogs are probably part of your childhood memories. They are definitely part of American culture, with strong ties to baseball, amusement parks, and even drive in movies.

Hot Dogs at the Drive In

Hot Gifts

A sterling silver hot dog charm (cast from the original plastic version, pictured on the right). Available from perpetualkid.com.

Or, how about this hot dog pencil case from spiralandcircle.com?