Scott Cheatham’s Weblog

I have a 14 year old son and once or twice each week, it’s “guy” time. We go grab a snack at places we can never take our girls (my wife and two daughters). One of those places is a local hot dog restaurant a little ways south of our home. There we can buy a truly authentic Chicago style hot dog. Can a hot dog be spiritual? Take a look:

At left is the authentic dog. There are imitations but a real Chicago dog has mustard, relish, sport peppers, pickle spear, tomatoes, onions, and a dash of celery salt. Of course, the hot dog has to be all-beef and housed in a poppyseed bun.

A few years back, we had a local family open a Chicago dog shack close to our home but they had to close down when the city chose to remodel the center they were located in. My son and I traveled to several places before finding a little spot on Colfax avenue in Denver that makes the real deal. Sometimes, when we head to the Rockies baseball games, we will make a quick stop there and grab a few of these since the ball park doesn’t offer them. We stuff them in our carry on bag and enjoy them a few innings into the game. What a treat.

In the early days of the depression, these dogs became famous as a meal on a bun for a nickel. Nobody then knew the masterpiece they were creating that would be carried on for generations. When I purchased my son’s very first Chicago dog when he was a boy he asked why the salad was on top!

Hot dogs have a bad reputation these days because of all the filler that goes in the cheaper stuff. A real all-beef dog is actually quite a treat if you can find a vendor that knows how to cook and prepare one.

It’s early morning as I finish this post. But I do know where I think I’ll be going for lunch later today! All this writing has made me hungry.

Be blessed and have a great week!