Review: Bacon Cheese Dog from Five Guys

Posted August 9th, 2011 | 6:47pm by Chefprotoss

I love funky borderline inedible food. Pickled eggs, questionable seafood, super stinky cheeses etc… but quick serve hot dogs don’t really do it for me. Whether it’s from a gas station or chain fast food restaurant, hot dogs tend to be forgotten about, over cooked, unwanted meat filled tubes of mediocrity. The buns are stale. The toppings come from a warehouse storing food for Armageddon, and at best you get a cheap snack that doesn’t make your stomach hurt. Everyone and their grandmother know’s that Five Guys Burgers and Fries (some reviews here and here) is fantastic, but most people completely ignore the fact that they also serve hot dogs. Curiosity got the better of me and I decided to see how they stack up. Are they as good as the rest of the menu or do they sink to the depths of gas station semi-food?

Note: I like hot dogs. I just feel they might be the most neglected quick serve food you can get… everywhere on the planet. I also am not from New York City, so please take this review in that context. Just like the burgers, there are thousands of ways to customize your dog. I decided to go with the Bacon Cheese Dog. While I could have played chef and driven down the wacky road with the toppings (steak sauce, lettuce etc..), I went with what seemed best for a review; grilled onions and bell peppers, jalepenos and mustard all on a fully split, extra-large hot dog bun.

This was fantastic. The dog is split down the middle and then grilled. It’s 100% beef, but that matters little to me considering my love for foods that can barely sustain life. What’s important is that it was delicious. Even with all the toppings, it was very apparent that I was eating a high quality, well cooked dog. What knocked it out of the park was the bun and afore-mentioned toppings.

The bun was super soft, but still stood up well to the toppings. Top notch bacon, tangy mustard, sweet grilled veggies, crunchy fresh jalepenos and melted American cheese all played very well together and really took this dog to the next level without over powering it. It was also pretty big. About the size of my hand. After eating it I realized what I had been missing all these years, and to tell the truth if Five Guys stopped serving burgers I think business would be just as good. The price was about five dollars. I would know the exact total, but there was a screaming baby in the store, so I had my friend order while I waited in my car and listened to talk radio. Yes, I am a dick.