The Skinny: great juicy dogs for $2.99 - the Chicago dog comes complete with the neon green relish, make sure to try the schnitzel minus the bun, skip on the fries (3.5) Service: it's counter service and let's face it, the decor is a little tired (3) Value: the food is pretty good while the prices are reasonable, it's not a bad place to try out(4).
Hankering for a good hot dog, we stumbled upon the reviews for Hot Dog Haus. A branch off of Cafe Heidelberg, it's hidden behind a Marie Callender's and can be a little hard to find.
We ordered the Chicago dog, the Polish dog and a Euro-schnitzel (veal schnitzel in a kaiser bun) with a side of fries.
Hot dog wise, they use the real deal here - Vienna Sausage. The casing's got a nice snap and keeps all the lovely juices inside as you bite in.
The Chicago Dog is legit - sporting a poppy seed bun, neon green relish, mustard, fresh tomatoes, onion, pickle and peppers. Absolutely no ketchup as it ought to be. It was pretty delish.
The Polish Dog was loaded with saukeraut and mustard, had a nice flavour to the sausage that was distinctly different from the Vienna Sausage. Saukeraut was the word of the day because it was a little sweeter than your usual variety.
French fries were okay while they were hot but got soggy quickly as they cooled down. I probably wouldn't order this again.
Curious, we also ordered the standard Euro-schnitzel - a kaiser bun with schnitzel inside ($5.99; $1 extra for the upgrade with mayo, tomato, and lettuce).
The schnitzel was absolutely lovely. Crisp, light on the outside, the schnitzel was tender and moist on the inside. The lemon it was served with added just the right amount of acidity.
Unfortunately, the Kaiser bun was a different story. Overly dry, its size seemed to overwhelm that wonderful tasty morsel inside. The lack of condiments accentuated the subpar bread. It may be better almost to serve the schnitzel on its own.
Given the food, the ambience and the service, I'd probably give this place a good 3.5 stars overall for their great hot dogs and schnitzel. It loses 1.5 stars for the french fries and the bun that schnitzel was served with.