Burger King’s next conquest: Hot dog king

[Stephane Dumas]

Burger King will sale some hot dogs around the United States and Canada.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-business/us-business/burger-kings-next-conquest-hot-dog-king/article28698337/
http://www.wired.com/2016/02/the-most-detailed-analysis-of-burger-king-selling-hot-dogs-youll-ever-read/
http://www.forbes.com/sites/katiesola/2016/02/10/burger-king-hot-dog/#424538a751ae
http://www.chicagonow.com/chicago-eats/2016/02/burger-king-hot-dogs-versus-chicago-hot-dogs/

[Rothman]

Cats and dogs living together.  Mass hysteria!

[spooky]

I'm old enough to remember that Burger King sold hot dogs in the '70s.

[jeffandnicole]

I prefer mine from 7-11.

Actually, honestly, I prefer them from Sams Club.  Large (must be a half pound) Nathans hot dog with 32 oz soda...$1.60-$1.70 including tax.  Best deal anywhere...at least speaking in terms of money.  In terms of health, not so much! :-)

[Henry]

It really doesn't make sense that a chain that has the word "Burger" in its name is selling hot dogs! Apples and oranges, guys.

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

[briantroutman]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

Five Guys, Checkers/Rally's, Sonic, Steak 'n Shake, A&W, and the "hot eats"  side of Dairy Queen all do, as do some small-time chains like Maid-Rite and Mean Gene's Burgers.

I get the impression that hot dogs were nearly as common as burgers in the fast food landscape of the '50s and early '60s when fast food chains were typically drive-up stands and locally owned or regional operations. But when McDonald's emerged as the national leader of a growing market, Ray Kroc's edict that hot dogs didn't meet the standards of quality he expected of his own company meant that they didn't commonly appear on the menus of the burger chains vying for McDonald's market share in the '70s and '80s.

[roadman]

I ocassionally eat hot dogs.  However, I can't imagine myself purchasing one from Burger King.

[jeffandnicole]

It really doesn't make sense that a chain that has the word "Burger" in its name is selling hot dogs! Apples and oranges, guys.

Or chicken nuggets, or salads, or breakfast burritos, or breakfast anything...

Those apples may be the main item, but those oranges are bringing in the customers and driving up the revenue.

[english si]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side?

Wimpy's most famous sandwich is, despite being a burger joint (and the UK's answer to McDonalds - it was the height of cool in the 60s, but since then the butt of jokes), the Bender in a Bun.


OK, it's not quite a hot dog as the Frankfurter is cut and made into a circle that goes into a burger bun, but...

A decent hot dog needs decent condiments to go with the bland Frankfurter and bun, or it needs to have a sausage that has some flavour. Burger king isn't the kind of place to offer anything more than ketchup, mustard (of the worst kind of American-style that is so mild all you can taste is the vinegar) and onions.

[Brandon]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

Five Guys, Checkers/Rally's, Sonic, Steak 'n Shake, A&W, and the "hot eats"  side of Dairy Queen all do, as do some small-time chains like Maid-Rite and Mean Gene's Burgers.

I get the impression that hot dogs were nearly as common as burgers in the fast food landscape of the '50s and early '60s when fast food chains were typically drive-up stands and locally owned or regional operations. But when McDonald's emerged as the national leader of a growing market, Ray Kroc's edict that hot dogs didn't meet the standards of quality he expected of his own company meant that they didn't commonly appear on the menus of the burger chains vying for McDonald's market share in the '70s and '80s.

On the flip side, a lot of hot dog places often have burger as well.  Portillo's comes to mind.

[Pete from Boston]

The hot dogs I find worth eating (aside from home-cooked) are from places that take some care and pride in their preparation, usually small local places.  The prevalence of these varies regionally, as do their styles–Connecticut and New Jersey are full of destination hot dog places, for example, while Massachusetts is not.  These are where I go for hot dogs.  Burger King is not going to displace that.

[roadman]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky9SoJJSXeo

[JoePCool14]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky9SoJJSXeo

Burger King using the Krusty Krab as a business model... Yeah I think we're done here.

[Jardine]

It gets worse;

[nexus73]

With so many posts on the subject, how about one from someone who has actually EATEN one to let us know how good or bad the BK dog is?

Rick

[Pete from Boston]

It gets worse;

Oh, that's old news around here.  Never known anyone to eat one (why would you?).

With so many posts on the subject, how about one from someone who has actually EATEN one to let us know how good or bad the BK dog is?

Rick

Are they even out yet?

And if you have good local dogs, why would one bother with Burger King?  If I'm going to get one here, for example, I'll want it to be a local Pearl or Kayem (reputable local outfits with proven records) all-beef, natural casing.  Burger King is likely to random frozen centrally distributed product.

[KEVIN_224]

Their Berlin, CT store had the "Coming 2-23-16" sign, with the "1" in "16" as a vertical hot dog. Actually, they could've sold me it on Saturday, either al a carte or as a value meal. I politely declined it.

[triplemultiplex]

I discovered their recipe:

[Pete from Boston]

I discovered their recipe:

This picture displays under the topic heading on the main page of Tapatalk and it has been cracking me up for days.  They could do no wrong in those early years.

[jeffandnicole]

BK Hot Dogs weren't a big hit of the posters on this board, but their customers thought otherwise.  In the first week of their debut, one franchisee noted he was selling approximately 80 - 120 hot dogs per day.  In that first week - BK didn't even advertise the hot dogs on TV yet; they simply issued press releases and used social media to get the word out.  Even better for the company, many hot dogs sold were add-ons to what people were already ordering, increasing their overall bill.

http://nrn.com/blog/burger-king-apparently-selling-lot-hot-dogs

[Duke87]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

Most notably, Five Guys.

Several regional chains in Quebec (Lafleur, for example) also sell hot dogs.

[webfil]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

Most notably, Five Guys.

Several regional chains in Quebec (Lafleur, for example) also sell hot dogs.

Indeed. Valentine, Lafleur, Ashton, La Belle Province, Harvey's, even A&W serve the good ol' smokie in a rolley. Their secret? The two basic ingredients are cooked and preserved with steam.

They come in multiple variety, depending on the chain

• "Michigan" hot dog : covered with spaghetti sauce
  
• "du Lac" hot dog : euro-style hot-dog, with sauerkraut, mayo and fries (much alike to Cleveland's Polish Boy)
  
• "Expo" hot dog : with cheese, roasted bell pepper and onions with fresh tomato
  
• "Supreme" or "Whistle" dog : with bacon and cheese

[Pete from Boston]

And has any other burger chain sold hot dogs on the side? I can think of Hardees/Carl Jr's, but that's just about it.

Most notably, Five Guys.

Several regional chains in Quebec (Lafleur, for example) also sell hot dogs.

Indeed. Valentine, Lafleur, Ashton, La Belle Province, Harvey's, even A&W serve the good ol' smokie with a weenie. Their secret? The two basic ingredients are cooked and preserved with steam.

They come in multiple variety, depending on the chain

• "Michigan" hot dog : covered with spaghetti sauce
  
• "du Lac" hot dog : euro-style hot-dog, with sauerkraut, mayo and fries
  
• "Expo" hot dog : with cheese, roasted bell pepper and onions with fresh tomato
  
• "Supreme" or "Whistle" dog : with bacon and cheese

That rrrrwwrrrrwwwrt! sound just happened, the record stopped playing, and everyone in the room just turned and glared.

Those are worse than *gulp* ketchup. 

[english si]

Those are worse than *gulp* ketchup.

So just 'mustard'* for you right?

I'll reiterate what I said above that a hot dog is bland and rather textureless (only the skin of the wiener has some resistance) and needs some decent toppings with a range of flavours complementing each other, or a different sausage, to make it respectable as some gastronomic marvel where putting ketchup on it is criminal.

See also hamburgers having pickles (and sometimes lettuce too), ketchup, etc. Only the problem is worse for a hot dog.

*air quotes as American mustard's main flavour is vinegar rather than mustard.

[The Nature Boy]

I actually hate lettuce and tomato on a burger and put ketchup and mustard on hot dogs.

I'll go sit in the corner.