W.Va. Hot Dog Joint Review

Stewart's Original Hot Dogs

Huntington

If you ask someone in Huntington where "the hot dog place" is, nine times out of ten you will be directed to one of the several locations of Stewart's Original Hot Dogs. When you mention Stewarts to someone from Huntington they smile a knowing smile as if they are guarding the secret of the universe. The whole city of Huntington and everyone who has ever lived there seem to be in love with Stewarts.

But for the life of me, I can't understand why.

Don't get me wrong, I think that eating a hot dog at Stewart's 4th Avenue stand is an essential experience for hot dog lovers in the region. The colorful orange stand and the car hops make it a great place to eat. The rootbeer is good and the service has always been friendly, if a little slow at times. I have eaten probably a dozen or so Stewart's hot dogs over the years and my experiences have been consistent. Good hot dogs, but not great.

Starting with the basics, let's face it: Huntington has a corner on the tastiest and freshest buns. Every HDJ I have tried in the area has had great buns. I have been told that this is thanks to the close proximity of Heiner's bakery, but whatever the reason is, I am envious. I really wish we could get buns this fresh and soft in Charleston.

The weenie is also pretty good. Another hallmark of Huntington dogs, also possibly because of the local meat company, Cavalier Meats.

But that's about where the excellence ends for me. The chili has a nice texture but not much else. The slaw (of course in Huntington you have to specify slaw) is barely there and basically plastic tub off the shelf at Kroger quality. There might be a tablespoon of slaw on the "Slaw Dog". They put the weenie on top of the chili and slaw (Hello? They are "Toppings", not "Bottomings"), and then they wrap the whole dog in a paper napkin. The napkin has a tendency to get pretty soggy, but unfortunately the hot dog doesn't.

Stewart's hot dogs are good. But they are not, to my tastebuds, great. They also are not what I would call a West Virginia Hot Dog, which is due mainly to the fact that, with the singular exception of Hillbilly Hot Dogs (who has a hot dog on their menu called specifically a "West Virginia Hot Dog"), Huntingon hot dog culture is different from the majority of our state. So I will leave it up to those who grew up on Huntington hot dogs to pass judgement on who has the best. And from everything I've heard, that would be Stewart's Original Hot Dogs.