by Franklin on August 25, 2011
It took 80 years for Papaya King to come to the West Coast. Anyone who lives in New York knows what Papaya King is all about. This is their right of passage. The Hot Dog of NYC. It went through countless years of media, press, and New York culture, and here it is now. Just a few minutes drive to Hollywood, California, and there it was. Go all the way to New York for some authentic NY hot dogs? No thanks.
As a die hard Southern Californian, and a die hard Pink’s fan, I had to see what all the fuss was about. In a word, prejudiced. I don’t know if my California pride or my West Coast ways are clouding my judgment, but this wasn’t fantastic. Maybe I hyped it up too much in my head. In all honesty, the hot dog was tasty, but nothing really popped. The NY style onions were too sweet, though I liked the sauerkraut — The chili was a bit salty. I am just a guy who wants a nice all beef dog with some mustard. That is it.
I did enjoy the papaya drink. It was like nothing I have ever had in my life. It wasn’t too sweet, and the bits of papaya were really good inside. I felt like I was treating my body right. It was healthy and delicious.
Look, maybe all of the New York people will be mad at me for not liking Papaya King. Let me just ask you, do you have massive lines outside of your hot dog stand?
by Franklin on March 18, 2011
World famous you say? It’s not quite gourmet, nor is it really a classy place to go for a first date — Possibly not classy enough for the next 10 dates. Before I come off as sounding too snobby, I want to say that this quirky little restaurant is actually famous. Well it is popular among Angelinos. It was popular enough for Andrew Zimmern from the Travel Chanel to eat here – Though, he wasn’t too fond of the Oki-Dog. As for me? I do think the Oki Dog is tasty and a good snack, but I wouldn’t eat it as a complete meal.
So what is inside the Oki Dog? It’s basically chili, cheese, 2 hot dogs, and pastrami, all wrapped inside a flour tortilla. The chili was really good — It was creamy and smooth. The hot dog was actually really good. It had that snap that I really like, and had a nice beef flavor. The pastrami was good, but it was quite salty. This burrito dog is rich. I would probably not want to know how much sodium and fat is in this burrito, which is probably why I only ate half of one. Either way, this is a guilty pleasure I wouldn’t mind treating myself cautiously.
The inside of the Oki-Dog restaurant is pretty amazingly horrid — I don’t know if I’m saying that this is good or bad. I’m not talking about the tamed version on Pico either. You have sketchy furniture, Christmas lights, old school arcade games, and a menu that could possibly have been written by a first grader. Serves them right to only accept cash. The truth of the matter is, this is what makes Oki-Dog what it is. It is as unrefined as it can be, yet the taste is like no other. This is the only American restaurant I know that serves up more burritos than anything else. Do they even have a standard carne asada burrito on the menu? Who cares? Just give me an Oki-Dog already and leave me alone. 🙂
