A frank discussion about Massachusetts' hot dog hotspots

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Do you remember the best hot dog you’ve ever had?

My colleague Lisa Creamer does.

“My favorite hot dogs in the world are Mel’s Hot Dogs down in Tampa, Florida,” Lisa told me. As a teen, she’d sometimes meet her dad, a now-retired Air Force reservist, at his military base in Destin, Florida. The two would then journey down to Tampa for all-beef mustard and onion hot dogs, stopping to visit family along the route.

Since moving to central Massachusetts, Lisa hasn’t been eating much of Mel’s. But she has been trying some of the region’s premier hot dog establishments while writing an unofficial “hot dog tour” as part of our statewide Massachusetts day trip guide.

In case you didn’t know, central Massachusetts is something of a hot dog hotspot, with four well-known stands within close proximity of one another: Lee’s in Baldwinville, Hot Dog Annie’s in Leicester, George’s Coney Island in Worcester and Murph’s Hot Dogs in Lancaster. I spoke with Lisa to hear more about these beloved hot dog spots, what makes a good dog and the memories locals shared with her along the way.

Here are some highlights from our conversation:

What inspired you to compile a “hot dog tour” of central Massachusetts?

“I was well aware of the much-discussed debate between Hot Dog Annie’s in Leicester and George’s Coney Island in Worcester. Both institutions have a lot of local fanfare. And I had heard about Lee’s Hot Dog Stand in Baldwinville.

With those three, and having known that [my WBUR colleague] Lisa Mullins just did this really cool feature story about Murph’s in Lancaster, I was like, ‘That’s enough to really fill your days, depending on where you’re going.’ Even if you’re just trying to get a quick bite somewhere, it’s good to know about these hot dog locations.”

Bun, dog or toppings: What elements matter most on a hot dog?

“I mean, it all kind of matters in conjunction with each other, frankly.

Quality meat. Coney Island in Worcester brags about its local Kayem dogs — Kayem is in Chelsea. They use those hot dogs, and are very proud of that, and I think it does make a huge difference.

Until last night, I probably would have said that the buns were of lesser importance, but as we have done stories about the difference of split-top buns, I have become more aware of the fact that the rest of the United States is using side split buns (for some bizarre reason). Buns are extra important, and they have to fulfill two specifics: It should be a split-top bun (because I really like onions). If you don’t want your onions to be just collapsing out of the bun, like you need to have a split top. And then second, I think that if your hot dog bun is not grilled or griddled or getting any kind of special warm treatment, then you are missing a massive opportunity to have a buttery melt in combination with a quality meat.

The third principle of a good hot dog though is toppings. You want toppings that make you feel like you’re having some sort of experience. Raw onions and mustard — I think that is the premier combination for a hot dog.”

On the memories that make each location special:

“George’s has these high-backed benches. A lot of patrons have carved their names over the years into the benches, and I feel like it just sort of exudes this customer-first ideology. Like you’re all queued up in a line, you get your hot dogs, it’s extremely efficient, and simultaneously, you are then sitting among all of the names of people who have done exactly that sort of queue and roundabout. And I think there’s just something very lovely about that.

“The owner of Lee’s, Jennifer Coppolino-Eady, has 12 kids, and her two oldest work there. And for the family, the patrons who come regularly are the driving force behind wanting to keep a long-held hot dog shop. She says that a lot of the patrons that come bring their grandkids, and then they start telling the owners about how they were brought there when they were kids. And I heard similar things from patrons at Annie’s. It’s like people not only like to talk about their favorite hot dog spot, but they like to talk about how long they’ve been coming there for, and now they get to share that with their family members. Part of the want to do an unofficial hot dog tour is to just remind people that these are the third spaces in our lives that really shape some of the more significant memories of summer, of family.”

Say I’m bringing a team of friends. Where should I take them?

“Oh, you should go to all of them. Lee’s is in Baldwinville [a 50-minute drive northwest of Worcester], but if you’re in Worcester, it’s very easy for you to hit Annie’s and George’s and then make it a little contest for yourselves to determine among your group of friends which one you think is the best.”

Subscribers to the Weekender newsletter saw this story first, and we asked them an important question: What are the best topping combinations for your frank? Here are a couple shoutouts we got so far:

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