Reinventing the Hot Dog on the Square

Our family loves to try new and exciting dining places, especially those with a unique feel to make them stand out. So we recently heard of a little 50’s style hot dog restaurant down in Medina, Ohio called Dan’s Dogs, and set up a night this week to take a trip down and try them out.

The restaurant is located in the town of Medina, Ohio, in the historic square district with some buildings dating back to the early 1800’s.

Once inside the restaurant, you are instantly transported back in time to the 1950’s, when Medina first was chartered as a city.

Dan’s Dogs serves up classic 1950’s diner style foods the way they used to be made. In addition, the prices were fantastic, making you want to try and sample as many of the foods as possible.

First up, our family decided to go with a round of handmade milkshakes, made the old fashioned soda shop way…milk and ice cream blended together. You will not find any of that fast food garbage they pass off as a milkshake here. This was the real deal, and you could taste the difference.

I went with a blended concoction of strawberry and banana, and it was great! My wife went with a house made root beer shake and said it was very good. A large shake was only $2.85, which was an amazing deal and oh so tasty!

We also ordered our one ice cream loving son the orange creamsicle kids milkshake, which he really enjoyed.

As we waited for our food, our kids were able to wonder the entire restaurant and play in the area adjacent to the bar, where tons of kids book and toys were set up for them to enjoy. They loved the atmosphere and all of the things they could explore. Dan’s Dogs proves to be a very family friendly and fun atmosphere for kids!

Next up was a round of hot dogs and sides. We started off our meal with a basket of fries covered in chili and cheese. They were so good, but maybe because I am a sucker for chili on foods! My only complaint about the fries was I really would have liked to see a housemade fry, rather than the processed kind. This makes a big difference in the quality of a fry, and people love that old-fashioned, real taste. I would rather pay a little more for a real fry than have the fast food style you can get anywhere.

I elected to try three of their regular sized hot dogs; you can upgrade to the jumbo dogs for typically $1 more. First I went with their signature Clevelander.

The buttered, split topped bun was filled with their hot dog, then layered with fries, BBQ sauce, and homemade cole slaw ($2.30).

Oh man, was it delicious! One of my biggest pet peeves of restaurants is when they do not make their own cole slaw and use the cheap, mass produced junk. You can always taste the difference, and Dan’s Dogs does it right! In addition, the buttered bun really helped tie and make the sandwich great.

Next, I went with their Mac Attack ($2.25), which was the classic hot dog covered in homemade mac & cheese. These guys were on fire with unique creations that were mighty tasty. My only complaint about this one was my bun was slightly burnt, taking away from the nice buttery bun that was on the other dogs.

Last, I went with a classic Slaw Dog ($2.30), topped with my two favorites, chili and cole slaw. By this point in the meal, after downing a complete milkshake and two hot dogs, my body was beginning to push back from the onslaught of tasty treats I was feeding it. Still, a mighty tasty hot dog!

Others in our party enjoyed dogs such as the Hammy Slammy (hot dog wrapped in grilled ham, honey mustard, and melted Swiss cheese- $2.35) and the kids enjoyed classics like the Puppy Red Baron (plain hot dog)- $2.50, Puppy Corn Dog- $3.25, and Puppy Size Cheeseburger $3.05.

There were so many awesome and unique hot dog choices on the menu, that I want to return again in the future and try some of the others. I was especially impressed with Dan’s Dogs, which is uniquely impressive from the standpoint that I am not even a big hot dog fan.

Do note, the restaurant is cash only, which is one way they help keep their food at very affordable rates.

If you would like to visit Dan’s Dogs, a Hotdog Eatery, find them about an hour south of Cleveland at 111 West Liberty Street, Medina, OH 44256.

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Source: InACents