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A good friend of mine was born and raised in Hanover and since I met her four years ago, she's raved about the delights a few times. My childhood was filled with hot dogs, but now that I am older I don't love their calorie content. But I treat myself every now and again.
I could no longer live in York County and say, "I've never had a famous weiner."
On a recent weekday, I made the trek to Hanover and parked on Broadway. The meter only cost me 10 cents to park for an hour.
Famous Hot Weiner is on the corner of York Street and Broadway; very easy to find. A fellow cheap eater and I picked a booth and browsed the menu. It was past 2 p.m. and all but one of the dozen or so tables and counter seats were taken.
I decided on a famous weiner ($2.09), plain fries ($1.54) and a famous
"Do you have any vegetables?" I asked.
"No, well, just vegetable soup," she said.
I settled on just the hot dog and fries with a glass of water. I doubled up on veggies for dinner.
I watched as other diners devoured fries doused in chili, gravy or cheese and dogs covered in mounds of onions. Then my eyes started to sting and burn. I think that they were cutting onions. They must go through mounds.
The food around me looked and smelled amazing. When our food came out a short time later, it was spilling off small saucer plates. The dog was split down the center, filled with chili, squirted with mustard and piled - not sprinkled or topped - with diced onions. I was afraid to pick it up for fear of it spewing all down my sweater. I nibbled on the fries. When I finally got the courage to dig in, I drowned in hot dog happiness.
The crispness of the onions and well-done dog and the smooth texture of the mustard, onions and roll combined for a well-rounded treat. Who knew you could experience that from a $2 hot dog?
My bill came to a whopping $3.85. Add the 50 percent tip of $2, and I still only spent $5.85. I eyed up the less than $3 slice of red velvet cake, but figured I had my calorie fill for one day.
The menu was made up mostly of hot dogs, hamburgers in a hot dog buns (the famous way), sandwiches, salads, soups and breakfast. The prices are cheap enough that you can try a bit of everything. They serve a breakfast menu that includes pancakes until 11 a.m., but you can order breakfast sandwiches all day.
If you're feeling ambitious, try the Famous Hot Weiner special, which is two weiners or two hamburgers or one of each, served with fries for a little more than $5.
Cheap Eats is a biweekly column on local restaurants' meals under $10. Suggestions are welcome. Reach Nicki Lefever at 771-2101 or nlefever@ydr.com.
If you go
FAMOUS HOT WEINER LOCATIONS: 101 Broadway in Hanover and 160 Dart Drive in Hanover
CUISINE: American
NICKI'S PICK: Famous Weiner ($2.09), famous fries ($1.54) and water
PARKING: Metered parking available on the street. It is 10 cents for one hour or 25 cents for two-and-a-half hours on Broadway, and there is a parking lot at the Dart Drive store
HOURS: 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday on Broadway and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday on Dart Drive. Both locations are closed Sundays
PRICE RANGE: $1.54 for cheese sandwich to $5.25 for chicken fingers and fries
ALCOHOL: Beer is available at the Broadway location
SMOKING: Smoking only on Broadway, and smoking and nonsmoking sections on Dart Drive
ACCEPTS: Cash and major credit card
TAKEOUT: Available
DETAILS: 637-1282 for Broadway location and 632-2424 at Dart Drive or http://www.famoushotweiner.com
