Sunday Brunch: Hot Dog, Hot Dog, Hot Diggity Dog

July is International Hot Dog month! Hot dogs have been (an unhealthy) staple to my diet since childhood, and every time I have one, it's a taste of times gone by. I've had them with the bun, without the bun, on a stick, in a pretzel, cut up in rice, and cut up in Macaroni and Cheese. Some of my friends think I'm crazy about the last one, but to my knowledge, it is a common method of hot dog consumption in America, at least in the North East. Needless to say Walt Disney World, home of the quintessential American food fare, has hot dogs in many shapes and forms as well! So a few times this month, Sunday Brunch will be taking a bite of Walt Disney World's hot dogs!

Image from http://emilyslovee.blogspot.com/2010/10/hot-diggity-dog.html

Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggity dog'over at Disney's Hollywood Studios, you could probably find two locations where this song is sung. One would be from fans of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, where Mickey and friends sing and dance along in the Disney Junior - Live on Stage. Another place would be at the end of Sunset Boulevard in the Sunset Ranch Market, where fans of hot dogs could enjoy three different types of gourmet hot dogs at Fairfax Fare!

We'll start with the Barbecued Pork and coleslaw hot dog, as it is the most basic and familiar. This hot dog is pork overload! Well, I'm pretty sure Disney serves all beef hot dogs, but regardless, there's a lot of meat on this hot dog, which I found to be a bit much. The coleslaw helps to offset the sweet and smoky barbecued pork, but still a hot dog and pulled pork is a lot for one bite. One can think of it though as a whole picnic meal in one hot dog! My one friend did enjoy it, saying 'the ground beef is like a manwich. [It] is very fine, probably not Grade A, but Grade Y'for yummy!' (I found this quote in my notebook with no name, if you are this friend please tell me so I can credit you!)

Simply called the Burrito, this hot dog is essentially a burrito with a hot dog instead of beef or chicken. With lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, jalapeno, and sour cream, this hot dog is Tex-Mex meets America. As previously stated, I've had hot dogs with a variety of different carbohydrates (bread, rice, pretzels, macaroni, no bread), so it was interesting to try it with a thin tortilla. The thin tortilla was a bit underwhelming as I'm accustomed to having my hot dog surrounded by something of more volume and substance. I do love tortillas, but with a hot dog it was'odd. Rather basic as fusion cuisine goes, this hot dog is still unique and worth a shot if you're a fan of either burritos or hot dogs.

Finally we come to the Walt Disney World hot dog that could possibly change the world of hot dogs. I was a bit surprised when I encountered this hot dog with some friends, as the concept of the combination of the two was a bit surprising to them. Some have had hot dogs and Mac and cheese at the same time, but not together in one bite. From the south eastern coast, Middle America, and the Washington, D.C. area, this concept of hot dogs and mac and cheese was foreign, so it was exciting to see how my friends reacted to this hot dog.

Listed first on the menu, it is the dog most guests are excited about! Macaroni and Cheese with Truffle oil and bacon bits not only has the taste of nostalgia, but an air of class with truffle oil. My first encounter with this hot dog was with my old roommate John. He stated 'the bacon is awesome with the truffle oil, very good flavor, but the hot dog part is a little dry.' Overall, he felt it was 'very scrumptious.' While I didn't have one that night, I was excited to try my first bite.

John smiles with approval!

When I finally got a chance to try it with Hidden Mickey Monday Alex, we were a little disappointed, though I think this can be credited to the unfortunate inconsistency in the making of this hot dog. Our first time trying it, the bread was completely stale and I could not find the truffle oil at all. Everyone and everything deserves a second chance, even food, so I tried it again and loved it just like John did. Cheesy macaroni piled high on a hot dog, It was my childhood meal on a bun instead of a bowl. A splash of truffle oil and crunchy bacon bits helped to make it feel a little more grown up and add more dimension to the flavors.

With all these ingredients on a hot dog, another issue worth mentioning is the size of this hot dog. Later, my friend Aaron had tried it, and he definitely liked it overall, but found it a bit messy. If you're not careful, this hot dog can easily fall apart. We ended up needing forks to polish off the dog! Still a minor fault, for the most part I did enjoy the Mac and Cheese dog and I look forward to giving it a third try!

The gourmet hot dogs of Fairfax Fare vary in the range of qualifying to being gourmet, but they are still rather unique food items at Walt Disney World worth venturing over for. Hopefully the next time you make it down to the happiest place on earth, you'll find time to get yourself a unique hot dog, hot dog, hot diggity dog.