The brat-sized frank from Omaha Steaks makes a delish cheesy wienie, a rare treat we reserve for Hot Dog Month in July

Our family is below average, and  likely to stay that way—at least in the area of hot dog consumption. We come no where near eating the average American’s 70 hot dogs each year.

Many Julys ago, I tried to start a tradition of serving cheesy weenies (bacon wrapped, cheese stuffed hot dogs) in honor of the annual National Hot Dog Month. The family was cool to the idea and it never took off.

This year, though, I revived the effort when I received a gift of a sample box Omaha Steaks meats that included jumbo, “brat-sized” franks. Okay, so Nebraska is far from the Great Lakes basin, but I couldn’t resist sharing how good these dogs are stuffed with cheddar cheese, wrapped in bacon and baked to cheesy-wienie perfection.

Of course, Michigan is home to its share of delish dogs, including my favorites: Koegel’s Viennas and Vollwerth’s natural casing wieners. And Detroit is where the Ball Park Frank was born in the late 1950s.

The cheesy weenie never became a tradition in our house

July, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, is smack in the middle of prime hot dog season. Americans will eat 7 billion between Memorial Day and Labor Day—that’s 818 dogs per second. The Fourth of July alone is responsible for the disappearance of 150 million red hots.

Fittingly, the biggest hot dog day of the year is also Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest at New York’s Coney Island.

On July 4, 2022, reigning champ Joey Chestnut held onto his title by downing 63 tube steaks—with buns—in 10 minutes. It is the 39-year-old’s 15th win out of 16 competitions; he set his personal best of 76 dogs in 2021. Miko Sudo won her 8th women’s title by consuming 40 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Compare those numbers to the first competition on July 4, 1916, when the winner ate “just” 13 dogs.

The 1952 Oscar Meyer Weinermobile is a hot photo op at The Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn

Michigan is known for its special treatment of hot dogs, called Coney Islands, but even within the state there are different interpretations of the dish: a dog on bun topped with with a chili sauce, raw onions and mustard.

In 1914 George Todoroff introduced his secret-sauced coney dog at his Jackson joint, followed in 1917 by Greek immigrant Constantine “Gust” Keros, who opened his American Coney Island in Detroit. It stands, expanded and jazzed up, at the same location today. Gust’s brother William started the city’s nearly century-old coney war by opening rival Lafayette Coney Island next door.

Hot dogs are served up at diners and drive-ins across the state; a handful of fun spots:

• Yesterdog radiates its 1976 vibe and keeps things simple with a choice of five tube steaks with different toppings (the Yesterdog has chili, onion, mustard, pickle, ketchup) or a veggiedog. Chips, pickles and pop round out the offerings. Cash only.
• The Hot Dog Hall of Fame at the Corner Bar in Rockford commemorates those who, in a 4-hour stretch, eat more than 12 dogs loaded with chili sauce. The honor wall contains well over 5,000 names.
• The Hot Dog Stand, a third-generation operation that started in 1964 as an A&W drive-in is “The Home of the Original Red Sauce,” a homemade ketchup concocted by Grandma Moore. Wash it down with draft root beer in a chilled mug.
• Wienerlicious in Mackinaw City may be best known for the 18-wheeler-sized-loaded-frank-in-bun sculpture that sits on the roof of the hot dog joint.

The Wienerlicious food truck? Nah, just the supersized hot dog that sits on the roof of the joint behind the semi.

FUN FACTS:

The first words spoken by Mickey Mouse when he broke into talkies on the silver screen in 1929 were “hot dog.” Click here for the bit.

Actress Betty White (1922-2021), a Great Laker born in Oak Park, Illinois, loved hot dogs. Check out the story here.

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All stories and photos copyright Kath Usitalo unless otherwise noted