FOOD: On the grill in the backyard or over the bridge at Barrio Dogg, Hot Dogs have evolved

The Dog Days of

Barrio Dogg serves up delicious hot dogs at 2234 Logan Avenue in Barrio Logan, San Diego.

In the Good Ol’ U. S. of A.

Story and photos by Clyde Van Arsdall

It doesn't get any more American than July in Coronado. Activities include the Fourth of July parade, high school reunions,

Sunday concerts in Spreckels

Park and cookouts. When fi ring up the grill, few things are more iconic than a hot dog.

The wiener, despite its foreign origin, seems at fi rst glance to be all American. But, for those of us who grew up in San Diego in the ’80s, our hot dog memories seem to be about Mexico. So what gives?

The journey of the hot dog is, and continues to be, a story of immigration. Germans arriving on our shores gave us the

Frankfurter, but it didn't take long for us to make it our own.

This German sausage entered the melting pot and what came out was quite remarkable.

This simple sausage and bun have been adapted with various cooking styles and toppings to refl ect nearly every region and ethnicity we throw at it. When it comes to food, borders blur and tra c goes both ways.

Just as the taco came north, the hot dog jumped the border to Mexico and settled in the state of Sonora. Vendors called

“dogueros” added bacon, beans and a variety of regional toppings.

Delicious food doesn't sit still for long. The Sonoran Dog soon began to migrate north until it reached Tijuana (TJ), Baja California (Baja) in Mexico.

Baja, for many of us who grew up in Southern California, was the playground of our youth. Travel to Mexico was a rite of passage, with day trips to Lobster Camp or undercover night ops to dance in the clubs of TJ.

These trips were fueled by street food which came in many forms. Tacos were popular, but for the brave of heart, it was all about the Tijuana street dog.

This version of the Sonoran Dog traded the traditional bolillo roll for an Americanstyle bun and dropped the beans. Cheap and delicious at 50 cents apiece, this dog had a pinkish hue that most survivors agree they haven’t seen since — pink mystery meat wrapped in bacon, secured with a toothpick and cooked on a flat top. Once the dog had been snuggled into a steamed bun there were a variety of toppings to choose from. If you went all-in, the vendor would add chopped tomatoes, onions, ketchup, mustard, mayo and some sort of hot sauce or salsa.

Pushcarts would arrive late in the evening and post up outside the bars that populated Avenida Revolución. The smell of the bacon frying was like a siren calling you out of the club. You knew it would soon be time to slip

Lobster Camp, Playas de Rosarito, circa 1987.

back across the border before curfew, but not before inhaling a few of these iconic treats.

Despite their popularity, there was an element of hesitation before consuming one of these hot dogs. Were they safe to eat? Never mind the occasional toothpick the vendor forgot to remove, there was always something glaringly sketchy about those food carts back then.

You don’t have to go to TJ to enjoy these hot dogs — you can easily make them at home. Simply wrap a good hot dog in bacon and you are halfway there. I will give you a few tips and suggest some toppings that will give your next cookout some regional fl are. If you don’t want to cook but you want to try one of these dogs, there is a delicious solution close by.

Barrio Dog pays tribute to the hot dog in all its forms and it’s a short hop across the bridge at 2234 Logan Avenue in Barrio Logan.

There is no need for hesitation when it comes to these dogs. They are 100% black Angus beef, non-GMO and certifi ed organic. They even make their Sonoran-style buns in-house. A few of the thirteen di erent hot dogs on the menu

Long Bar, Avenida Revolución, Tijuana, Mexico, circa 1986.

Flyers for Viva Zapata, Tijuana circa 1985.

pay tribute to regional favorites. El Xolito is a gourmet Mexican street dog. El Capone is their version of the Chicago dog. El Aleman has a German fl air and features house-made, red cabbage sauerkraut. The rest of the lineup consists of concoctions all their own.

What Barrio Dog has done is quite remarkable and so American. Pablo and Ernesto are the owners, and Cisco manages the front of the house. These guys grew up in Barrio Logan; they take a lot of pride in their business and the neighborhood. With a simple hot dog, they have blended cultures, blurred borders and elevated their neighborhood.

Barrio Dog features a lineup of local beers and several di erent micheladas. These beer cocktails are as generous in size as they are refreshing. They just might be the best in town. Barrio Dog can also cater your next event out of a hot dog cart made from the rear quarter panel of a '64 Impala I hope this article brought back some memories or has inspired you to try something new. Fire up the grill, head for the border or visit Barrio Logan. May these dog days of summer be fi lled with friends, family and good eats.

• Clyde Van Arsdall IV is a third-generation Coronado local, chef and storyteller. For more stories and follow-ups to his articles go to oliveavenuesupperclub.com.

Hot dogs and bacon ready for action. Hot dogs wrapped in bacon ready for the griddle. Place wrapped hot dogs so the loose ends of bacon cook fi rst.

Mexican Style Hot Dogs

Tips and Toppings

• A Mexican hot dog is simply a hot dog wrapped in bacon. • Use a good hot dog. Dietz and Watson make a great all-beef frank in an all-natural casing which gives it a good snap. • Don’t use thick-cut bacon; it tends to come unwrapped. If the bacon is thin enough, you won't even need a toothpick to secure it. • Bacon-wrapped hot dogs should be griddled on a fl at surface, such as an iron skillet, to best crisp the bacon.

When cooked over an open fl ame, the grease from the bacon cooking can cause unwanted fl are-ups. • The iron skillet can be placed right on the grill. • Grease generated from the cooking process helps fry the bacon, making it extra crisp. • The grease in the pan can be used to fry onions, peppers and chilis, taking the fl avor of these to a whole other level.

An iron skillet works best when cooking these dogs.

Once you have the hot dog and the bacon cooked to perfection, it's all about the toppings. You can keep it simple TJ style or you can try one of these variations.

LA Danger Dog: The TJ dog jumped the border and landed in LA. A baconwrapped hot dog, traditional hot dog bun, onions and peppers that have been sauteed in the bacon grease, garlic mayo, ketchup, mustard and pico de gallo. Served with a jalapeno pepper that has been grilled whole.

Sonoran Dog: A baconwrapped hot dog. Mexican style bolillo roll, pinto beans, raw and grilled onions, chopped tomatoes, mustard, mayo and jalapeno salsa. The bolillo style roll helps hold the beans; if you can’t fi nd a bolillo roll, use an Italian style roll like the ones you use for bratwurst.

A perfectly cooked bacon-wrapped hot dog.

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