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There seems to be a fascination these days with taking simple and inexpensive food and making it gourmet. It could be a pizza with grilled pear and a balsamic reduction, or a hot pretzel stuffed with feta and spinach, or a burger made with Bison meat and bleu cheese, but all of our favorite American classics are being taken up a notch. It’s no surprise another favorite summer treat is being revamped- what else but the hot dog.
Like Liz Lemon, I can never turn down a good hot dog. So when I heard about the Haute Dog Carte on Falls Road, I had to check it out. I expected another great new food truck, but as I drove up, I realized that by Carte, they really meant it. Located in a small purple garage on Falls Road were owner Daniel and his stainless steel hot dog cart. Daniel greeted me with a smile and a “Hi Love!” while he winked goodbye to a regular.
Just how does Daniel make his hot dogs haute couture? The answer is with sophisticated simplicity. He starts with fresh French bread, toasted with a hole in the middle, adds a high quality sausage (not your mystery-meat ball park frank) and throws on top some sauce that makes ketchup and mustard look like some poor man’s condiments.
I opted for the Maharlika: a sweet and savory Filipino dog with Ginger Miso sauce, which Daniel used to serve as a special, but made it part of the four top-dogs offered daily due to demand. I understand why. The Filipino dog was sweet and flavorful without being too spicy, and the ginger miso sauce, which soaked perfectly into the fresh baguette, gave it the perfect amount of tangy saltiness. The dog was fresh, simple and delicious.
Food trucks are a recent craze around Baltimore. These restaurants on wheels provide different areas of B’more with a little something special for a springtime lunch. From the SouperFreak truck, to ChowHound Burger, to The Gypsy Queen Café (recently reviewed by Radar writer Rosalia Cefalu), these trucks offer a fun alternative to a boring sandwich or salad you are left to choose from on a regular basis. They are all over town — near John Hopkins and Union Memorial, by MICA, by the Hopkins Hospital and in Mt. Vernon.The trucks make use of Facebook and twitter to let fans know about their daily specials and where they’ll be parked that day.
The concept is great and loved by Baltimoreans. Well, most. This week, the IcedGems cupcake truck parked in Mt. Vernon was told it was in violation of the law and was not allowed to sell in that location. Soon after, Souper Freak was shut down in the same area, and a twitter battle began between the food trucks and the City of Baltimore. Food trucks and their fans tweeted at the Mayor to save their beloved lunchtime treats. Mayor Rawlings-Blake has since made clear that she has nothing against the trucks, in fact, she likes them and other street vendors, but that it is an issue of regulation and ensuring that the food trucks don’t unfairly compete with other established businesses.
As for Daniel, he doesn’t have any immediate plan to move his business on wheels. With the current drama, he’s not willing to lose a full day of business over unclear legislature. His current overhead is low, and for a small business, you can’t ask for much more.
Haute Dog Carte
6070 Falls Road, Baltimore, MD 21209
410.608.3500
Check out Daniel’s daily specials on the Haute Dog Carte Twitter!
Update on Baltimore City Food Truck policy:
Tags: baltimore city, food, food trucks, hot dog, Liz Lemon, Rachel Sax
Filed Under: Feature Sights
[...] By Rachel Sax | RadarRedux.com [...]
June 2, 2011 10:10 am