So trivial, yet it really ticks you off.

[Hercule]

Cold coffee and pizza; also works double with Italian sausage and kielbasa, but pringles?

Yes, ... ... pringles. [hangs his head in shame] In my defense I was desperate, what with all this talk of hot dogs. We had Bipi-bop for lunch (korean rice/noodle bowl) and they got my order wrong so I only ate a quarter of it. I wasn't thinking straight. Yeah, that's it...

 

[tonyb]

I just got a phone call with an automated voice telling me my social security number had been suspended due to suspicious activity. That's a new one on me.

Speaking of phone scams, my mother in law (in Pennsylvania) got one a couple of weeks ago claiming that my son (15, in Ohio) was involved in an accident and because the driver of the car didn't have insurance he was in jail, and because he didn't want us, his parents to know, she needed to send $6000 for bail. They knew my son's name and the connection to her. She called us quite upset and didn't believe he was ok until my wife took the phone upstairs (he was in school/distance learning) and had him say hello to her. She did call the number they gave her for a the case number but didn't go so far as to initiate a money transfer. I would think that she would normally know better, I'm sure she would, but was just caught off guard early in the morning. I tell you these things can really catch you off guard (after all who expects such a thing?) and put a fright into you - I've gotten one from the IRS before. It's nice that for a while now my phone usually displays the number and a "scam likely message." Not sure why it didn't earlier.

I’ve gotten the sham Social Security calls myself.
As to the call to your MIL ...
We really gotta find a way to effectively prosecute people who do such things. The cruelty in it just can’t be tolerated.

 

[Harp]

Yes, ... ... pringles. [hangs his head in shame] In my defense I was desperate, what with all this talk of hot dogs... I wasn't thinking straight. Yeah, that's it...

A doggone shame, I understand. These things can happen.

 

[tonyb]

News reports of opinion polling that say such-and-such percentage of those polled “believe” or “think” such-and-such a thing.

We might with some confidence say that those polled *said* they believe or think such-and-such a thing or that they preferred such-and-such a candidate.But we are not mind readers. We can’t possibly know what people think or believe. Far better to report that those polled responded in such-and-such a way.

 

[ChiTownScion]

Our local hot dog stand gets rather arch if a customer asks for ketchup. They have it, but they'll shame you for asking for it. In the Northeast it just isn't done. The real accompaniment for a weenie is Gulden's mustard like God and Harry M. Stevens intended.

It isn't done in Chicago, either. Although kids four years old and younger usually get a pass. For an adult to put ketchup on a hot dog... well, it's like using the word, "pie" to describe a pizza.

 

[EngProf]

It isn't done in Chicago, either. Although kids four years old and younger usually get a pass. For an adult to put ketchup on a hot dog... well, it's like using the word, "pie" to describe a pizza.

Can someone explain why anyone would care what another person puts on their hot dog? Or worse, have the temerity to actually say anything negative about it to a ketchup-using hot dog eater...

Hot dogs are such a low-priority food item here in the South that it was a surprise to hear that there were "rules" concerning proper/allowable condiments. No one here cares at all... A chili-dog is just another menu item at the Sonic drive-in.

Maybe this is just a regional joke that I don't get, but it seems that some people are taking it seriously.

(I don't eat hot dogs very often, but the next time I do I plan to put ketchup on it.)

 

[tonyb]

^^^^
It’s a regional identity thing, I think. I put mayonnaise on hotdogs, the very thought of which nauseates some people.

 

[Hercule]

Hot dogs are such a low-priority food item here in the South that it was a surprise to hear that there were "rules" concerning proper/allowable condiments.

Ok, how about grits? With syrup or gravy? Dare it be asked what your preference for barbeque is?

While your observation was quite cosmopolitan, and is perfectly fine (perhaps even the way it should be), HAVE YOU NO SOUL MAN? Of course there are rules (don't get me started on Manhattan clam chowder!). Lines have been drawn, it's what defines us!

 

[LizzieMaine]

Hot dogs in the form that we know them as "a hot dog" first became a phenomenon in the Northeast, as a ballpark/street food, and they're still deeply woven into the regional identity. If you think the topping discourse gets intense, pit a Bostonian and a New Yorker against each other on the question of the right kind of roll. And that doesn't even get into how they're viewed in the Midwest.

Interestingly, the real focus of hot dog culture remains those regions of the country where major league baseball was present between 1900 and 1950, and it's especially strong along the Boston-New York-Philadelphia axis that dominated baseball in the 1910s. You can take the hot dog out of the ball game, but you can't take the ball game out of the hot dog.

As for mayonnaise, I've never seen that on a hot dog. But then, mayonnaise on a hamburger seems like something from space to me.

 

[tonyb]

Several years ago I treated my friend Farzin, a fellow who had spent most of his life up to that point in Iran, to a Seattle Mariners game.

The game, as you might imagine, somewhat baffled him. But I figured some ballpark fare might make the experience at least a bit more interesting.

“So Farzin,” I said, “how ‘bout a hotdog?” He nodded his assent, so I bought a couple of ’em.

I had taken a couple of bites out of mine and noted that Farzin was staring at his but had yet to eat any of it.

“What’s the matter?,” I asked him. “Is there something wrong?”

To which he responded, “in my country, we do not eat that part of the dog.”

(No, this didn’t really happen.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

In fifty years of going to Fenway Park, I've never eaten any kind of food but a hot dog. You go there nowadays and it's like the food court at the mall, but the hot dog still seems like the least sketchy option.

When I used to go to Expos games up in Montreal (miss them terribly), the little styrofoam bowl of poutine was a genuine treat, but I never dared to try the hot dogs. Go figure.

 

[tonyb]

^^^^^
I’ve been to Fenway twice. On one occasion I ventured down to the bowling alley, which I hear is no longer.

I had never before or since seen duckpins or candlepins in their natural habitat, and doubt I ever will again.

And it saddens me a bit that the bowling alley is no longer there. I have no plans for visiting Boston, but I’m not planning against it, either. I’d have liked to have seen that old bowling alley again.

 

[Hercule]

(No, this didn’t really happen.)

Sounds like a Benny Hill sketch. Thank you for that. It's just what I needed on a gloomy December afternoon! I'm still laughing.

 

[Harp]

Can someone explain why anyone would care what another person puts on their hot dog? Or worse, have the temerity to actually say anything negative about it to a ketchup-using hot dog eater...
Maybe this is just a regional joke that I don't get, but it seems that some people are taking it seriously.

Most dog ketchup squeezers in Chicago are White Sox fans, a more degenerate crowd cannot be found.

 

[tonyb]

Sounds like a Benny Hill sketch. Thank you for that. It's just what I needed on a gloomy December afternoon! I'm still laughing.

Maybe I should quit while I’m ahead, but ...

Might this offer some insight into why so many are disgusted by mayonnaise on hotdogs?

 

[Zombie_61]

Most dog ketchup squeezers in Chicago are White Sox fans, a more degenerate crowd cannot be found.

Cubbies!!!

 

[ChiTownScion]

It's definitely a regional thing. One of the reasons for the no ketchup on a Chicago hot dog rule that I've heard articulated is that "the perfect dog" with all the standard condiments is a balancing act of sweet and spicy. The local preference for relish is a bright green, almost glow in the dark variation which is very sweet-- and that ketchup, also being sweet, would overdo it. Unlike the famed Fenway brown mustard previously mentioned, the Chicago preference is for French's yellow variety. Add some diced onions, a sliced dill spear, and of course, a dash of celery salt, and I'm good: I personally forgo the slices of tomato. And lettuce or cuke slices turn the thing into a salad bar fiasco, in my opinion.

There was a Nathan's franchise on the Near North Side for many years, so New York hot dogs were an option for a while in Chicago when I lived there as well. (I understand that there's a franchise in Hyde Park on the South Side now.) I'm not enough of a chauvinist to deliberately turn up my nose at a good thing no matter where it comes from, but I personally love my Nathan's Red Hots best after a ride on the Cyclone and the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island. I love sauerkraut on my Nathan dogs, with a schmeer of brown mustard.

And speaking of the Cubs: do they still serve those Oscar Meyer Smoky Links at Wrigley? They were amazing.

 

[EngProf]

It's definitely a regional thing. One of the reasons for the no ketchup on a Chicago hot dog rule that I've heard articulated is that "the perfect dog" with all the standard condiments is a balancing act of sweet and spicy. The local preference for relish is a bright green, almost glow in the dark variation which is very sweet-- and that ketchup, also being sweet, would overdo it. Unlike the famed Fenway brown mustard previously mentioned, the Chicago preference is for French's yellow variety. Add some diced onions, a sliced dill spear, and of course, a dash of celery salt, and I'm good: I personally forgo the slices of tomato. And lettuce or cuke slices turn the thing into a salad bar fiasco, in my opinion.

There was a Nathan's franchise on the Near North Side for many years, so New York hot dogs were an option for a while in Chicago when I lived there as well. (I understand that there's a franchise in Hyde Park on the South Side now.) I'm not enough of a chauvinist to deliberately turn up my nose at a good thing no matter where it comes from, but I personally love my Nathan's Red Hots best after a ride on the Cyclone and the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island. I love sauerkraut on my Nathan dogs, with a schmeer of brown mustard.

And speaking of the Cubs: do they still serve those Oscar Meyer Smoky Links at Wrigley? They were amazing.

I was 90-95% sure that the hot-dog/ketchup controversy was a regional thing, but it seemed so serious.
My own examples of regional food differences tend to run North-South instead of East-West (Chicago-New York- Boston in the case of ketchup on hot dogs).
For example - Properly-made tea: brew to a light shade of brown, pour into a tall glass, add lots of sugar, add lots of lemon, add lots of ice, then drink with fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and light fluffy biscuits. I understand that they do it differently in the North.

No negative/sarcastic thoughts meant here, but when I saw this earlier I admit to being a bit amused:
"Ok, how about grits? With syrup or gravy? Dare it be asked what your preference for barbeque is?"

I have always thought that "grits" were what Northerners thought that Southerners eat, but we don't. I have lived here all my life (so far) and have never had a single "grit". In fact, I have never figured out whether "grits" is singular or plural.
As for taste in barbecue, there is supposedly a Southern East-West rivalry in that food category - Texas, Memphis, Nashville, Carolina, but I can truthfully say it all tastes good to me.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Up here unsweetened tea is the rule -- I personally leave the bag in the cup for at least fifteen minutes, until it's a dark russet brown, and then drink it straight with no additives. I have British friends who think that's appalling, and think tea's got to have milk in it, and my grandmother used milk in her tea, but none of that for me.

Lemon? I've heard that called "a Russian habit," whatever that means.

Most fountain-type establishments around here sell only unsweetened iced tea -- and when someone asks for sweet, they're pointed to the sugar bowl. When McDonald's started to offer Southern-style sweet tea some years ago, it was a highly controversial move.

 

[tonyb]

My stepfather was a Georgian. His people drank iced tea by the gallon, sweetened to a cloyingly degree, as far as I was concerned.

My dear old ma tells me that when she first met him he adulterated his coffee such that she called it cream and sugar with a little coffee in it. She gradually weaned him off the additives. He took it straight black by the time I was in my teens.

I drink too much coffee. The lovely missus grew up in the era when most people knew it wasn’t spelled “expresso,” so Folgers or Maxwell House just won’t do. We are now on our second espresso machine, the old one having given up the ghost a year or so ago, after a dozen years of reliable service. Good machines don’t come cheap, but the units available these days are clearly superior to the machines made for household use 20-plus years ago. Ours gets used three or four or more times daily, so I figure the purchase is pretty well amortized in a matter of months. And the dewy-eyed bride wouldn’t do without one anyway, cost be damned.