Dogs in chicken buns! Dogs in pizza crust! Dogs with a side of…um, coffee?! Nibblers to Dunkin'
Dawgs to Hot Dog McNug'z, it's a shoutout to all the fast food hot dogs we loved to hate!
If McDonald's founder Ray Kroc had had his way, the fast food burger chain would have skipped its
flimsy hotdog chapter entirely. In fact, according to his autobiography "Grinding It Out: The Making
of McDonald's," Kroc was firmly against hot dogs ever being on the menu. As he clearly wrote,
"There's no telling what's inside a hot dog's skin,
and [the restaurant's] standard of quality just wouldn't permit that kind of item."
"Mmm. Let's eat."
But once the Mickey D's founder died in 1984,
it appeared that all bets were off. Nearly a decade later, in 1995,
the chain launched the McHotDog to the world — only to watch it immediately crash and burn.
It's hard to point to the precise reason why this seemingly-perfect companion to McDonald's burgers,
fries, and McNuggets landed with a thud. But it might have something to do with its very brief
life. If the McHotDog can ever make a triumphant return, only time — and taste — will tell.
If you've ever studied the Jack in the Box menu,
you've probably been awe-struck by the sheer number of available items. Especially if you
don't know what you want, and someone's waiting behind you in the drive-thru.
And while there are surely many items that have come and gone thru the years,
the chain appeared particularly jazzed to announce the release
of its Mini Corn Dogs in 2012. Which, of course, are nowhere to be found in 2023.
"But seriously, I said I was sorry."
Jack in the Box hoped customers would be just as hyped about the hot dog rollout.
Company director of menu marketing and promotions Tracy Dunn told Restaurant News,
"We're adding a fun and tasty twist on an American classic. […] A convenient,
easy-to-eat add-on to any meal or as a tasty snack to share with family and friends."
Well, unfortunately, it looks like it wasn't tasty enough, Tracy.
Of all the fast food hot dogs that came into our lives, fans held a particular fondness
for Burger King's Grilled Dogs. First introduced nationally in early 2016, the Grilled Dogs were
sold in several different varieties, including a classic version, a chili cheese variety,
and a Whopper Dog, which featured all the standard Whopper fixings — but, yeah, on a hot dog.
"Cafeteria food is gross. Microwave food is gross. Flame Grilled Dog is awesome. Awesome."
"Awesome."
Of course, when you consider the Grilled Dogs were discontinued by August 2017,
according to one Redditor, it's clear the dogs hardly set the world on fire.
We may have salivated over the charred flavor of this discontinued hot dog,
but there's no disputing the fact that Burger King's Grilled Dogs were a flop.
It's always sad when the good ones die young. But in this case,
they weren't here for a long time, they were here for a good time.
We can't say we've always been entirely on-board with Dunkin's shape-shifting over the years. In
fact, while it's crystal clear that the coffee and donut chain has been desperate
to expand beyond its identity, that doesn't mean we have to always like it. And some new
items have been a bridge too far, like the chain's very-short-lived 2006 Dunkin' Dawg.
Only a few select Dunkin' locations around the U.S. sold the Dunkin' Dawg,
so you may not have gotten to taste it for yourself. But users seemed to agree
on giving it the ax. As Randy Jackson famously said it on American Idol,
"It's definitely a no from me, dawg."
No restaurant chain embraced the idea of a fast food hot dog more
than Sonic. The drive-in-themed restaurant has offered numerous
dogs throughout the years — and lists four varieties on its menu as of March 2023.
"They get to go on those fun roller skate rides."
"We just get Glenda grabbin' us with tongs."
"Right?"
But unfortunately for customers, not all Sonic hot dogs are forever. And we knew
one day we would have to say goodbye to the loved and hated Chicago Dog.
But even though the dog was discontinued in 2017, it's not as though it didn't have some loyal fans.
Twitter featured a series of comments about the Chicago Dog's disappearance, with one fan writing:
"Im pissed. That was the only reason I went there. […] Just for that damn
Chicago dog. I'm tweeting the s— out of them until I get some answers."
Sadly, Twitterverse, only questions remain.
Does any food scream America more than hot dogs and pizza? It's no shocker that Pizza Hut once
sold a Hot Dogs Bites pizza with mini hot dogs taking the place of a standard crust. It's also
not surprising that it traveled directly off the menu just as soon as it got there.
"A new product that pushes the boundaries of traditional pizza and all that is holy,
by combining pizza with hot dogs."
As for why Pizza Hut fans stopped ordering Hot Dogs Bites pizza after its 2015 introduction,
the answer might lie with those mini dogs. It turns out that customers
didn't exactly love the taste. While the pizza was originally
developed and tested in Asian markets, the end result was a global disaster.
While Wendy's all-beef hot dog debut in 1985 made us wish we could enjoy one with a Jr.
Bacon Cheeseburger and a Frosty, it's been an impossible dream since the tail end of the '80s.
Even the addition of a Chicago-style dog four years later, in 1989, couldn't save the dogs at
Wendy's. And it seems that the fast food burger chain has no plans to bring back the pork. In a
response to one Twitter user asking whether a hot dog is a sandwich in 2017, Wendy's curtly replied:
"We don't sell hotdogs."
White Castle has offered a variety of fan-favorite Nibblers sides through the years. In fact,
as of March 2023, the slider-slinging chain is serving up shrimp and fish Nibblers. But
that list doesn't include Corn Dog Nibblers, the fast food hot dog snack it introduced in 2015.
The Corn Dog Nibbler taste profile featured a honey-flavored corn breading, and by all accounts,
they were a deep-fried, bite-size delight. Thankfully, White Castle seems fully aware of
the Corn Dog Nibbler craze, considering they were reintroduced several times, up to 2019.
We may not be able to snag Corn Dog Nibblers at this very moment, but real fans never give up.
As demonstrated by the March 2023 return of KFC's famed Double Down chicken sandwich,
it's clear the one-of-a-kind fast food icon continues to fly off the shelves.
But even the most devoted fans may never have heard of KFC's one-time offered Double
Down Dog — a hot dog that featured a piece of fried chicken in place of the standard bun.
For the record, U.S. customers have never actually had the chance to taste one. In fact,
according to a Facebook announcement about the one-day promotion in 2015,
the Double Down Dog was only available in the Philippines.
Since KFC made it clear it had no plans of importing the dog to U.S. soil,
hoping this item returns may be a waste of energy.
"Now what do I do?"
At least we still have the classic Double Down. Just…add your own hot dog.
As fans know well, a corn dog can be a phenomenally sweet and salty
indulgence. And on occasion, it definitely checks a lot of boxes.
"Two corn dogs comin' up."
"You know, I don't think that they have enough meats on sticks."
But it appears Burger King got the message about the casual consumer and corn dogs,
when their Corn Dogs completely disappeared
from the menu before they even had a nationwide release in the mid-2010s.
The dogs were briefly sold at select Burger King outposts in Maryland and Michigan in 2015,
alongside the Grilled Dogs. But while the Grilled Dogs obviously earned a brief
call-up to the big show in 2016, their corny little friends were left behind.
When Pizza Hut got the inspiration to combine pizza and hot dogs,
it zigged rather than zagged by going the crust-replacement route. Domino's,
meanwhile, took the decidedly more standard approach with a hot dog pizza concept that
they introduced in 2019. In fact, some might say Domino's decision to feature
hot dogs as a simple topping — along with mustard and onions — may be sort of boring.
After a limited release and cancellation in France and the UK in 2019 — along with
a rebrand in 2021 — it seems the Hot Dog Pizza was actually liked,
at least by several UK-based commenters on a 2020 Reddit thread. But we have to ask:
Why put hot dogs and mustard on a pizza? Well, as the company stated:
"We stole the nation’s hearts with our Cheeseburger [pizza] and we knew we
couldn't stop there. We've smashed it out of the park with the New York Hotdog by taking
inspiration from the famous NYC hot dog stalls and vendors to create an all new flavour experience."
To be frank, we'd rather just do hot dogs as hot dogs, and pizza as pizza. And for the record,
probably cheeseburgers as cheeseburgers. The logic behind McDonald's adding 'Mc'
to basically every item on the menu is that it creates a very clear mental picture. And if you're
McLovin' it, you're almost drooling already. But that very expectation regarding McNuggets flavor
and appearance may have contributed to the failure of the chain's Hot Dog McNuggets, back in 1991.
"Chicken McNuggets! Yum!"
Now, it's no secret chicken McNuggets are insanely popular. They're a menu favorite
that have been finding their way into Happy Meals and Supersized adult orders,
for literal decades. But the item's very high regard may have unintentionally caused
an inflated idea of what customers should expect from the hot dog variety. And for
anyone expecting corn dog vibes, this little puppy was battered and fried like the nuggets.
While there may be a few of us still going to bed at night dreaming of Hot Dog McNug'z,
considering they're nowhere in sight as of March 2023 — it looks like it's gonna stay that way.