Texas Wieners, South Philly

Last Thursday, Cathy and I played hooky from work for the specific purpose of going to Texas Wieners, near the intersection on Broad and Snyder in South Philly. The hours are terrible but the food is magical (hence the need for time off work). It doesn't look like much, but what it lacks in presentation it makes up for in taste and ambiance. These will most likely be the only hot dogs you will ever eat that are endorsed by the actor Mark Wahlberg. You see Texas Wieners has a signed "Invincible" poster, complete with inspirational quote "Hold Fast To Your Dreams." As always, Marky Mark is right, holding fast to our dreams is exactly what we're doing here at Don't Buy All The Hot Dogs, dreams of writing about hot dogs like it's our job.

On to the deliciousness, I had two hot dogs, The Texan (see Cathy's PS) and a Texas Tommy. Both were out of my mind good. The Texan was my favorite (hash brown patty!) but the Texas Tommy held it's own. They didn't scrimp on the bacon and it was dripping in delicious orange cheese. Adam was also along for the ride, bringing with him the shocking revelation that he used to eat at Texas Wieners several times a week when he lived in the neighborhood. Tempting yes, but it's seriously amazing he didn't develop a chronic health problem as a result. On a related note, there's a special deal for a box of 21 hot dogs, called a Blackjack. I'm glad that exists.

Everything was super cheap too, we got 6 loaded up hot dogs, two sodas and a strawberry milkshake for just over 20 bucks!

The inherent problem with hot dog photography... So as some of you may know, I have a degree in photography. Those of you that didn't know prior are, I'm sure, very surprised. Here's the deal (i.e. why my photos always suck), I get hungry. After researching, planning, coordinating schedules, time and travel, I am really looking forward to eating. There is not a single part of me that wants to fuss with angles, arrangement and lighting. I want to quickly snap the damn thing so I can eat it. Once I am full however, I'm filled with the immense regret of not artful styling our photos for the blog. So here are some crappy pictures, next time they'll be better really (well probably not really).

Please note: Adam's subconscious thumbs up.

Cathy’s P.S.
First, I love how hot dog recon requires me to take a day off of work. Second, I am regretting my shirt choice for this trip and will probably never wear that top again, but that is neither here nor there. As for hot dogs, I got The Works and The Texan. The true standout for me was The Texan (home fries, onions, and peppers). I was expecting the potatoes to be more like sliced fried potatoes, but it was a whole hash brown a la McDonald’s breakfast or a giant, flat tater tot (and you know how I feel about tater tots). I almost wish I had gotten two Texans. Every bite was comforting, like it should have stirred up a fond memory of my childhood, but my childhood was devoid of Texans so instead it just made my brain confused with joy. The Works was ok (mustard, onions, and sauce), but I don’t know how I feel about Greek sauce yet. It did nothing for me.