The Rest of the Best: Houston's Top 10 Hot Dogs

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Photo by Jeff Vogt
You can even get sauerkraut on your $1.50 Costco dog!
For the next 20 weeks, we'll be rounding up the runners-up to our 2011 Best of HoustonĀ® winners. In many categories, picking each year's winner is no easy task. We'll be spotlighting 20 of those categories, in which the winner had hefty competition from other Houston bars and restaurants.

Listen, you guys. Listen. Listen. Listen. Listen.

I don't give a shit what anyone says. The best hot dogs in the city, for my money, are at Costco. I don't have a Gold Star Membership that I split with my hetero-life-mate for the bulk socks or vats of hummus. I have it so I can get cheap eyeglasses and $1.50 Kosher, all-beef, foot-long hot dogs. For your $1.50, you also get a super-size cup of soda (with free refills!), but I'm just here for the hot dogs.

The original $1.50 price of the combo hasn't changed at all since its inception in 1985. Now, I realize that IKEA, down the road on the Katy Freeway, offers a hot dog combo of its own for $2 that's pretty damn good: two hot dogs, a bag of chips and another soda with free refills. But the Costco dog is better.

Granted, they're no longer using the Hebrew National all-beef dogs anymore, but Costco has developed its own in-house brand (Kirkland's, like you didn't know) that tastes identical. And that's all I care about. That and a drizzle of mustard on top.

But since the Houston Press doesn't have restaurant listings for home furnishings stores, this week's Top 10 list will have to focus on restaurant hot dogs only. And here they are.

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Photo by John Suh
10. Happy Fatz

This adorable Heights eatery is located in an old house, which only adds to the homespun charm of the place. Happy Fatz specializes in two things: baked goods and hot dogs, meaning that no meal here is complete without a mini cupcake to go. The all-beef dogs, served in Slow Dough buns, come covered with plenty of fresh and inventive toppings such as the breakfast-for-lunch-style Clucker topped with hashbrowns and a fried egg.


Location Info

Venue

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Happy Fatz

3510 White Oak, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

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Sammy's Wild Game Grill

3715 Washington Ave., Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

Friends Pizzeria

7952 Westheimer, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

Max's Wine Dive

4720 Washington, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

Revival Market

550 Heights, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

The Burger Guys

12225 Westheimer Road, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

James Coney Island

5745 Westheimer, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

The Hot Dog Shop Restaurant & Sports Bar

6405 Brittmoore Road, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

Good Dog Hot Dogs

Mobile, Houston, TX

Category: Restaurant

BB's Beef and Hot Dogs

11611 W. Airport Blvd., Stafford, TX

Category: Restaurant

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13 comments
Jennifer Groves
Jennifer Groves

The Ol Zapata from Good Dog = best dog ever. Trust me.

Solid90062
Solid90062

Good dog is pretty good but I cant recommends them because $5+ is stupid over priced for a hot dog.

Jessica
Jessica

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Corey
Corey

I'll bang the drum for good dog, love them, good peeps too.

Ali
Ali

All good recommendations. Some I haven't tried but I'll have to. Good Dog's Sloppy Slaw Dog is always my favorite, though. AppleĀ sauerkrautĀ slaw on a dog? What? I'd have never thought of that but it's awesome. Especially when you get it to go and they put the slaw on the side. It's always too much for the dog so I have some extra on the side by itself. YUM.

Tim
Tim

I just had the Costco dog for the first time a few days ago.Ā  It was pretty good, but not spectacular.Ā  Somehow, I missed the offering of sauerkraut and instead went with the mustard, ketchup (heresy!) and onions.

For a buck sixty-two, in cash and including tax, it was a very quick, bargain lunch that didn't taste too cheap and tided me over while I was slogging away during my Christmas shopping.

Yankyoakum
Yankyoakum

Sam's has the great dog same size with the sour krautĀ but you have to know where or ask for the kraut.Ā 

spicylemonade
spicylemonade

It's way the hell out, but Chicago Hot Dog Shack at 1960 near Ella is amazing.Ā  Made this Chicago transplant almost teary with homesickness, it tasted that much like home. Get the Sears Tower -- it's a traditional Chicago hot dog, but a foot long!

Corey
Corey

Don't know if that's still open or not, alas..Ā 

Jajaja
Jajaja

No moontower love? I know it's closed for the time being, but still...

H_e_x
H_e_x

I don't think it would be fair to include them considering they aren't open right now. If they did include them, I bet people would be here complaining about how they were misled because it's closed for renovations.

april5k
april5k

They do have the Moon Tower Meet Wagon! Either way, I'm stoked on the list. I try to rep Happy Fatz to all my friends, and Sammy's pheasant dogs always make my day with lettuce and feta. Yum. But I'm super stoked that the dog from Revival is on the list. They sell the pretzel rolls so I always grab some for cook outs and we borrow tricks from several of the dogs on this list at home. We need to check out Central Market to source some game dogs, though.Ā 

Matthew
Matthew

i agree, the costco dog is an excellent value. plus, it doesn't hurt to throw in the monster slice of pizza with it, either.

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