Between my two Royal Tavern visits and feeling totally amped about my new hot dog project, I took the tasting on the road. I’ve called it “East Philly” before, most Philadelphians simply say, “down the shore”, but really for me Atlantic City is my second home. I’m there basically every weekend in the summer and this was the first summer weekend of my experiment – date July 27th.

On Friday mornings between Memorial Day and Labor Day, there is a Farmer’s Market that happens in Ventnor which is one shore point over from me in AC. In the past couple of years, I’ve added it to my beach weekend routine. It’s nice on a day where I usually work remotely anyway, to scoot down there and pick up a few treats for the rest of the weekend. My rule is, when my bag is full it’s time to go. I’m very liberal with this rule as you will regularly see me juggling a full bag plus something under each arm back to my car.

This year, I saw a food truck that I hadn’t noticed in years’ past: Di’s Dogs and Burgers. Well, perfect. I make it my aim to be patron to every stand at the market at least once over the course of the summer and this day was my time to try Di’s. The truck is very eye-catching, with a cartoon version of whom I can only imagine is Di themself on the front. I must say, one of my favorite things about this truck is that “dogs” were given top billing! I feel like my whole life I’ve always heard “burgers and dogs.” Maybe alphabetical rules applied? Anyway, I was glad to see the switch up against the bright blue checkered pattern of the truck.

No line, I stepped up to the front and ordered - that’s right – a hot dog. But being the fat face that I am, I also scanned the menu for anything else I could try. Chicken and waffles? Ok! Tots? That’s an easy one. The chicken and waffles takes a little bit of time since they are tenders which are freshly battered dipped then you know, waffled. While I waited, I perused my condiment options which were laid out on a picnic table in front of the truck. Spoiler alert: while I am historically a spicy brown kinda gal, the shore dogs I will write about here both called for yellow mustard. I maybe only waited 5 minutes when everything came out to me piping hot! The chicken and waffles come in an order of 2, served with maple syrup drizzle, powdered sugar AND on a stick which is cute and kept stickiness mess to a minimum. Now my little doggy, she was SPLIT GRILLED! I’m biting my bottom lip just remembering. For some reason I cannot explain – that is one of my favorite ways to be served a wiener - split grilled from the flat top, baby. As my sister-in-tubed-meat Jocelyn (we’ll hear from her again soon) responded when I posted my photo of it to Instagram, it was “perfection.” The bun had clearly spent some time on the grill as well, something I will learn throughout my studies is ~crucial~ to overall dog enjoyment. Yellow musty got squirted up the center and that jawn was gone in two bites. I wish I had more details to share about how it actually tasted, but I was SO excited and ate it so quickly that I just, don’t. The tots were also great – crispy, not super greasy, right amount of salt. My imagination is fired now by the idea of Di’s burger, which I will have to save for maybe next summer? But I would never be able to visit that truck again without getting another hot dog.

So, that was Friday – on Saturday, July 28th I started my day with another staple of my shore weekend ritual. I strapped on my ankle weights, and took to the boardwalk for my hot girl walk. I usually walk south, back in the direction of Ventnor City because, frankly (lol) it’s more scenic and everyone seems to be out doing their own version of hot girl walk. This day – and I didn’t even know it yet – was going to be a hot girl hot DOG walk.

As I started my walk, I got a message from Steve, “you should be at the beach today dawg” with a screenshot of a text from one of his buddies who was in Wildwood. In the text was a picture of a sign on the beach that said, “HOT DOG DAY.” Shit, it’s today? Why didn’t I know earlier? Now I feel bad that I’m missing hot dog day. Do I go get in my car and speed down to Wildwood? Is it worth it? What trials and tribulations would I face to get down there and back on a mid-summer, sunny Saturday?

While I continue to run the logistics in my head, I’m approaching the Ventnor City fishing pier. People stop up here to look up and down the coastline, taking a respite from their morning exercise to sit in repose and watch the surfers. People also come here to fish. On the pier is a snack bar. I’ve gotten things here before – a dirty monkey cold brew (YUM), a full sugar blue Gatorade or so on those days when I feel like the sun’s rays are blistering through to my organs, but today I noticed something else. There, blowing in the wind was a sign about 6 ft. tall. Does – does that say? Yes! “HOT DOGS” Hot damn!

Be it confirmation bias or divine intervention I don’t care, I told myself I was going to get one of those dogs on my way back and so I did. Admittedly, I was a little embarrassed when I stepped up to the window. I timidly approached a Gen Z cashier with my visor, fanny pack and stupid ankle weights to order under my breath – I don’t want anyone else to know I’m getting a hot dog right now – is it even 11am? “Uh, do you guys have hot dogs back there?” “Sure!” Ok, they were nice about it. Possibly I’m not the only degenerate on the shoreline. I can’t be – they’re having a whole goddamn hot dog DAY down in the wild of woods.

I was handed back a foil-wrapped cylinder. I greedily grabbed some packets of yellow mustard off the counter in front of me and shimmied up the pier to take a seat and dog down. This dog, in contrast to Di’s, was definitely a boiler. I say that with no shade and also no proof! But I could just tell. Something about the way the bun stuck to it perhaps. Instantly, I was transported to my childhood. Looking at that sweaty glizzy reminded me of the many, many sweatier foil-wrapped boys me and sister would eat at Phantoms games when we were little. I didn’t even use condiments back then, but I’m grown now. I balanced the hot dog between my thighs and giddily tore open my mustard pack upon it. Before eating (inhaling? This was another 2-biter easy) I held my pier dog against the backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean to snap a pic with pride.

*Find the food truck on IG as @disdogsandburgers!