Ben's Chili Bowl

1213 U Street NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 667-0909
Website

Sometimes there is a landmark (or two) that you feel the need to eat at because it's (they're) famous. Ahem. Other times the place is a landmark AND it's just that damn good. We are dealing with the latter in this case. Ben's Chili Bowl serves up the finest half-smokes you have ever seen. Not fancy, not expensive, not for those on blood pressure or high cholesterol medication. It can be both a bit stressful, and a bit greasy. I love it.

This is a tight space to wait, and you need to find the line and get in it. The bar is the best place to sit, as usual, and you can check out all of the action. While you stand in line, you get a glimpse of the food to come. It will definitely make you re-adjust your order.

Look at these BEAUTIFUL half-smokes on the flat top. Having to watch these brown is no mistake on their part. I doubled my original estimates.

This encased meat maestro was working this grill like he was born in the kitchen.

The menu is small and sausage/chili focused. ALTHOUGH you could order a veggie burger if you wanted. Although they may laugh you out of the store. And I wouldn't blame them.

The bag is a throwback to simpler times, much like the food.

A tidy meal, this is not. Below is an order of chili cheese fries, and a chili cheese half smoke (one of two I ate). The fries left a bit to be desired, but they stayed surprisingly crispy throughout the seconds that made up their short lives.

The star, by far, was the half smoke with chili. Good lord. Half beef, half pork, coarsely ground and smoked. This is comfort food at its finest. Charred on the grill, smothered and covered, this beats about any hot dog around.

The snap on this sausage casing adds a perfect texture to offset the soft chili and bun. The combination of salty, smokey, fatty, and crispy makes for a sensual overload. This is not fancy, but your taste buds will be wearing an overcoat made of grease. This may be the best and/or only thing worth going to DC for . . .

...well, partial take back: Rumor's (an Eagles bar) will be another repeat on my list for next time.

Front Street Fountain

1 W Front Street
Media, PA 19063
(610) 565-4130
Website

Everybody's Hometown has a lot of great little Mom and Pop shops. Front Street Fountain is the perfect place to stop in for a hot dog or burger and some ice cream.

If you have kids, this is the place to go. It is always packed with young ones who are equally excited for a grilled dog as they are for a milkshake. Myself, I was most excited for chili cheese fries.

The fries were perfectly crispy, the cheese perfectly processed, and the chili was salty and chock full of meat. I was a happy camper.

They also layered the toppings quite nicely, making sure they were distributed throughout.

I wanted to give the burgers a try. The bleu onion boasted BBQ sauce, bleu cheese, and an onion ring. When I ordered, I had thought there might be a little more to it than that. I was wrong. I was wishing for some lettuce, tomato, onion, or something. I guess I should have known that the was quite literal. Anyway, from the below picture, I believe you can assess the situation as dry.

This was not a $7.25 burger. Especially when I could go to Freddy's and get a meal for that amount. The patty itself was under-seasoned and overcooked. The bread was overwhelming. The onion ring was nicely fried, but that was certainly not going to save this one. It was reminiscent of something that would be at a church cookout.

I had better luck with the crispy chicken club. The roll was fresh and spongy. The vegetables were crispy, as were the chicken and bacon. It ate more like a meal than the burger, and was a much better value.

The chicken breading was deliciously crunchy, and well fried. I needed extra mayo, but that usually is the case anyway. It wasn't mind blowing, but it was solid enough. Next time, I would recommend sticking to the chicken, dogs, and ice cream.

Clearly it's a family place and the kids all seemed more than happy with their plates so if you find yourself babysitting or on a road trip through Media with your niños, stop on in.

Underdogs

1205 S. 9th Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 551.8080
Website

So, you have been drinking, it's late, and your friends from out of town want to hit the two most overrated cheesesteak shops. You can make a bad decision or a good one. Though I am no stranger to bad decisions, I would recommend walking a bit further north up 9th street and hitting Underdogs. (Also applicable if you are in Center City, if you are near their 17th street location.)

I went with the Chicago dog, chili cheese dog, and some fries.

One thing I really like is that they don't use a giant hoagie roll that completely dwarfs the encased meat, but rather a hybrid hoagie/hotdog roll that allows the fillings to really shine.

The Chicago Style was not quite authentic, but it was more of an interpretation. No neon green relish, no poppy seed bun, no Chicago dog. Nevertheless, it was a delicious substution. The thick dog with its snappy casing did wonders for this offering.

The Michigan style dog came with beef chili, cheddar, chopped onions, and spicy mustard. Again, this was a nice frankfurter, with tried and true toppings.

The fries were the surprise hit of the meal. These fresh cut, crispy fried spuds had just the right amount of salt and grease. A wide variety of dipping sauces were available, the fry sauce being my personal favorite.

If you don't feel like supporting the pretension for a cheesesteak around the corner, some fries and a dog is a safe bet at Underdogs. And they are open till 3am on the weekend. Perfect.

Ballpark Hot Dog: Harry the K's

Citizen's Bank Park
Left Field
Website

Citizen's Bank Park is an amazing place to watch a ball game. The food is also decent, and the beer is expensive. About what you would expect. Now, don't come to the game thinking that the Schmitter that you eat there is anything like the real one. You would be better off making them at home. That being said, it is plenty good after a few cold domestics, and will help keep you from getting a bit too buzzed. But when I saw Hawk Krall's post on the Texas Tommy being served at Harry the K's, I knew it was worth a shot.

From where I was sitting in right field, Harry the K's was beckoning, and I made my move as soon as the game got depressing. You know, in the second inning or so. Well, actually I went during the stretch because it was 5-0 and I was about out of beer.

None of the other dogs seemed to excite me as much as the potential for one wrapped in bacon, topped with chili and American cheese sauce. Oh, and an order of cheese fries.

There will likely be a couple-of-minutes' wait between ordering and receiving. You can use this time to take in the view.

They also have a full bar, in case you are watching any of the 2012 season games.

Nothing says baseball like a 24oz Miller Lite, some fries and a hot dog.

I think that Aramark and myself differ on the term "bacon wrapped", but luckily there was still bacon in some fashion.

The Texas Tommy is served with a split dog, on half a hoagie roll, with a strip of bacon down the middle, pretty damn tasty (and salty) white American cheese sauce, and chili. If they put 1% of effort into this, it would be a solid dog. However, they slap it together, as can be expected (but shouldn't be) of Aramark employees. Using a fry to even things out helped - literally spreading the ingredients. And as a bonus you can dip the fries in the greasy chili run off after you eat it. It's not bad, actually for $6.50 at the park it's one of the better options. But just remember, this ain't Hot Diggity.

The fries were probably quite tasty when they were pulled out of the fryer an hour before I received them. They had potential (and $2 cheese sauce), but these shits were stale. $8? You must be joking.

I will definitely be back, and I will definitely be mixing bourbon and hot dogs when I do. But I would skip the fries, as they have likely been sitting longer than the opposing pitcher at the top of the inning.