A Hot Dog Is a Sandwich - We FINALLY Decide If A Hot Dog Is A Sandwich: LIVE From Smorgasburg LA (Part 5)

Episode Date: August 10, 2022

LIVE from Smorgasburg LA, Josh and Nicole are asking THE PEOPLE the age-old question: Is A Hot Dog A Sandwich? Shop sike.la, drop in “AHDIASMADEYOULOOK” at checkout, and enjoy 10% off your whole purchase! Get your tickets now for Good Mythical Evening 2022, exclusively on Moment House! Click here to find out more: https://mythic.al/AHDIASGME Leave us a voicemail at (833) DOG-POD1 To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This, this, this, this is Mythical. Man, drinking beer in the sunshine, hot dog in one hand, ice cream in the other. Hey, what are all these people doing here? They're here to debate us. About what? Oh. Where have you been? This is a hot dog is a sandwich. Or is it?

Ketchup is a smoothie. Yeah, I put ice in my cereal, so what? That makes no sense. A hot dog is a sandwich. A hot dog is a smoothie. Yeah, I put ice in my cereal, so what? That makes no sense. A hot dog is a sandwich. A hot dog is a sandwich. What? Welcome to our podcast, A Hot Dog is a Sandwich, the show where we break down the world's biggest food debates.

I'm your host, Josh Scher. And I'm your host, Nicole Inaidi. And today we're coming to you not live from Smorgasburg. Not anymore. We're in the studio right now. We are. But last week we spoke to business owner Morgan Walsh about whether or not a hot dog is a sandwich.

And we said that we were going to bring the debate to the streets to try and get as many perspectives as possible, Nicole. Yeah, we got a lot of perspectives. We had so many differing opinions. People came with notepads. People came with pieces of paper just ready to fire off information. And I was pleasantly surprised. I was really surprised too, save for the several people who were like,

I don't know if you've ever heard this one, but a hot dog is a taco. And like, listen to the old episodes of the podcast. We already talked about that. The cube rule does not exist. But no, we've been locked in our own little echo chamber with all these supposed experts. So we wanted to get as many rapid fire opinions.

What do you mean, quote unquote? Do you doubt, do you think Dr. Normor forged his doctorate, Nicole? No, no. I just like to use quote, unquote, when I can. Doesn't need to be right. I just like to use it. Sowing the seeds of discord and doubt. No, but we wanted to get as many rapid fire opinions. And I had my mind changed. Well, I've changed my mind several times. You changed your shirt three times, I believe. I changed my shirt last week with Morgan because I was so wrapped up in the emotions of all of it.

And Nicole, you were very convincing talking about the iconic status of a hot dog and how we need to protect it. We need to protect its sanctity as not a sandwich because it's such an American institution. It needs to be like Yosemite. We need to protect it. If somebody throws a natty light

can in the river in Yosemite, Nicole, you know what we do to them? We fine them $75. It's probably more than that. Okay. It should be a substantial fine. I got fined when I was like 18 for hiking off trail in a Laguna Beach. Anyways. Naughty, naughty.

It is. You need. I'm a criminal. You need to have some sort of protections for the things in cultures that you hold very dear. However. However. I got wrapped up in the emotions and I lost sight of the fact that there is universal truth in this world. Because I was thinking a lot about Dr. Calvin Normor.

This is going back to that, thinking about the sandwich spectrum. Sure. Okay. And you need to draw a line in the sand as to where a sandwich exists based on different properties. And if you go from, say, a ham sandwich on rye to an Oreo cookie, to me, a hot dog meat with leavened bread is so far towards the left. It's so far towards the archetype of what we agree that a sandwich is here in America, because again, we have to analyze it through that. Yes, it's only fair.

That I believe that a hot dog is a sandwich. So that is the point that I came into Smorgasburg starting with. But then, like you said, I changed my shirt several times. So who knows? But you ready to get into it? I was born ready. Jump in, jump in, jump in. Okay, so tell us your name. Hi. Hi, I'm Shali. Hi, Shali. So so tell us how you feel do you think a hot dog is a sandwich or not um i tried to think of it and my mind goes blank whenever i do but if i had to explain it to an alien i think i would start off by using a sandwich really so you're using the alien method to to describe a sandwich that is actually like a very good way to think about it and something that i never thought about either so if you were to describe a hot dog to an alien, you would describe it as a sandwich, right? Wow. Is that compelling to you,

Nicole? Yeah, because I freaking love aliens, man. I never even thought about it that way. But does that change your mind? Oh my gosh. Does that change your mind that a hot dog is or is not a sandwich? It doesn't change it, but if I was an alien, I might. I think because aliens don't have any societal norms, they're just here. So maybe society's wrong. Maybe I'm wrong. Well, we don't view food inside of a vacuum, right? That's the thing.

No, no. Food is not alien. Food is culture. It's connection. It's things that have been around for hundreds of years. That's what I'm saying. You know? But that said, conventions of language exist for a reason. And the fact that you would explain that to an alien as a sandwich, that to me is compelling.

That a hot dog is a sandwich. Nicole, you are dead wrong. I don't think I'm dead wrong. I think I might be swayed a little bit towards the sandwich side. Because, I mean, you made it very compelling. The alien argument is a very compelling argument. The alien argument is a compelling argument Yeah, but I'm not swaying one way or the other I'm staying no all right next up who we got Wow We got a palm heel strike shirt ladies and germs Nice to meet you. What's your name? I'm Joe Joe. Thank you for coming here Joe Joe. I'm Josh

I'm sorry. I'm eating a hot dog right now. It's fine. If I got here sooner, I would be too. Yeah, yeah. Well, tell us how you feel. Do you think a hot dog is a sandwich or not? So, 100%, a hot dog is a sandwich. A man of reason. Why? 100%.

Why? Because, like y'all have covered in your podcast, the National Sandwich Council states that meat on bread. Sandwich. Okay, meat log. But what about veggie sandwiches? What about sandwiches of sprouts and carrots and caramelized eggs? I'm almost, I'm almost! Those are accoutrements to the sandwich. You're saying that sandwiches without meat do not exist That's a tough one. Is that what you're trying to say? Interesting. The vegan community is riled up. Why do you feel that way? Because if it does not have meat and cheese, it's just sad, really. I disagree. Bro, we got a vegan, there's a vegan deli over here.

And I respect my vegan homies out there. Also, who's funding the National Sandwich Council? Is it the Hot Dog Society? Do you know? I mean. Who's backing them? Thank you for the ice cream. We're also eating salt and straw ice cream.

Shout out. Wow. Okay. So that's so interesting. So you think vegetarians don't deserve to call whatever they eat between bread a sandwich? Well... That sounds shady. So let me retrace my steps a little bit.

Go ahead. So veggies, yeah, they can be sandwiches, right? But per the definition, it says meat between bread. It's an easy way to define it. It is. And a hot dog is first and foremost a meat log. If life was easy, then we would just be defining anything. Life is not easy.

Life is hard. Life is difficult. I hereby denounce the National Sandwich Council. Their opinions do not reflect that of my own, nor do they objectively. They do not reflect the thought of this podcast. We are anti-National Sandwich Council. Their opinions do not reflect that of my own, nor do they objectively. They do not reflect the thought of this podcast. We are anti-National Sandwich Council. That's right. We are pro-associated sandwiches of America.

What's up? I respect the opinion, though, Sarah. I do respect your opinion, although it's wrong. It's wrong. Is this your cute family? I think you're on my side, and I'm still arguing with you. Hi, cute family. Hi, fam. Hi. Come here. What's your name? Your name's Jonathan?

Jonathan, do you think a hot dog is a sandwich? No. What is a hot... So what is it? It... What? Because so you have bread here and then you like have

toppings here and then you, like, have, um, toppings here, and then another, and then another piece of bread. It's just like... So you think a hot dog is iconic, is what you're trying to say. Yeah. Jonathan, I think you would, you would get along great with our historian, Ken Albala, because he said the same thing that you did. Two pieces of bread with something in between them, That's a sandwich. But not a hot dog. Jonathan, I disagree with your assertion, but I respect you. Me too.

And I like you. Thank you for coming on our podcast. Thank you for coming out, y'all. So nice to meet you. You guys have a very beautiful family. I appreciate it, guys. Thank you. Alright. Hello. Hello. Hello. We gotta let other people sit down.

Who's up? Step up and challenge us. Oh, wow. Come through. I like hot dogs. How did you like the hot dogs? I like the colts better. Ah, haha, fair enough, fair enough. Thank you so much. More importantly, is a hot dog a sandwich?

Yeah. Right? So you think it's very simple, you said that very self-assuredly. But why do you feel that way? What makes you feel that a hot dog is a sandwich? Exactly that, I feel that way. That is just like, it seems right. It seems right. Yeah. And that's, you're just, you're just like, it doesn't matter if I get swayed one way or another.

The rule is a hot dog is a sandwich. Well, it's not a rule. It's a feeling. People cannot feel that way, but it's like, it's not a distinctive meat. Like there's no meaning in that definition. There is no. Okay. Interesting. There's no way. There's no meaning in that definition. There is no... Okay. Interesting. There's no meaning in the definition of a sandwich in terms of intuition? Categorizing hot dog as a sandwich, even though to me it is true, it's not meaningful because no one's going to call it a sandwich in day-to-day life. But there are laws that specifically dictate sandwiches differently from other things, though. Yeah.

In that case... So that's where in practice impact in law sure like in Ireland or something Subway is considered cake not bread like that's that's the government get the government out of our hot dogs well keep safety laws though I don't have a bias in hot doggery sure I wasn The thing is, I don't have a bias in hotdoggery. Like, I wasn't born in America. I don't have that experience. Interesting. I don't have the ballpark experience.

I've never been to a baseball game in my life. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, you don't need to go. They're fun. No, go once. Yeah, they're fun. I like them. I went to like a backyard barbecue once where there was hotdogs.

And I'm like, oh, that's weird. But yeah, in China, like we call things like that's the word for sandwich sign means it's like literally a loan word kind of deal and we use that for like cookies we use that for like like the mantou the clamshell mantou you put like Chinese cold cuts in it though that's sandwich so like there's no really there's no cultural definition of sandwich or hot dog so for me it's so ambiguous that hot dog might as well be a sandwich. So like a hot dog in China, that's just, that's using the same word as like a lot of just different big things. No, the hot dog in China now is called 这个, which literally means hot and dog.

That's funny. So now, so the definition has sort of shifted because it's become commonplace. Yes. Okay, so ergo, a hot dog is not a sandwich because it has its own name in China. Thank you so much. That doesn't define it, but okay, it does for me. Well, thank you so much. Hello.

Hello. What is your name? My name is Thomas. Hi, Thomas. How do you feel about hot dogs being sandwiches? So this is a question that shook me to my very core. Yes. It kept me up at night. is cheap we want gasps what exactly um anyway so i thought back to what i like to eat

and i thought about a cheese steak because i'm originally from philadelphia so i like cheese steaks and i'm like is that a sandwich. I would say it is a sandwich. So on a technicality, a hot dog is a sandwich. But don't you think that a hot dog deserves a level of like class and iconicism? Like it is what it is. Like a hot dog is Americana. Like when you think of hot dogs, you think about red, white, and blue, baby. This is Nicole's patriotic era.

See, here's the one thing that kept me up though okay if i tell you to bring sandwiches to a picnic and you bring a hot dog i mean i'll eat it it'll be fine but yeah i'll be like i told you to bring sandwiches but what if somebody brought what have you what have you said bring sandwiches to a picnic and somebody brought cheesesteaks would that yes would you be confused then that's that's good you know what i think i would but i would roll with it oh yeah i mean cheeseste lot of yeah i would think cold which makes me it's dependent on the place it must be dependent on the place it depends on your mood yeah that's the thing when somebody says i'm going to bring sandwiches if there's a more specific word for

something we use that right it's true if somebody is like i'm going to bring tea sandwiches i'm going to bring a hoagie, a ringed turkey. And so, like, cheesesteak is a specific word for a type of sandwich. Hot dog, I believe, is a specific word for a specific type of sandwich. I don't think so. Even though it is probably the highest example of something that we have a more specific term for, even though it can still be within the category. I think it just, I think it extends out of the definition and flowers.

I mean, I used to, I thought that a week ago. I thought that a week ago and I did soul searching. You did soul searching? Thank you. So did I. Okay. But I think cheesesteak is in that same category. Hot dog is the one more extreme from that. But still again under the category with leavened bread. I think they're close, but they're not the same. And that's're not the same and that's how I feel. Thank you so much guys. Enjoy the rest of your time. This ice cream is like the best ice cream I've ever had. Yeah this ice cream is dank. Does anybody have a lactate pill? I'll give you

$35 for it. Hey how's it going? It's going good how are you guys doing? Good what's your name? State your name and your position on whether or not a hot dog is a sandwich. My name is Emily and I am a firm believer that a hot dog is a sandwich. My name is Emily, and I am a firm believer that a hot dog is a sandwich. Thank you. Why? For some reason. Why?

Because I am a firm believer that if you put something between two pieces of bread, that it could be considered a sandwich. Now, I feel like a sandwich, there's also many different types of sandwiches. What about a frisbee, though? You put a frisbee in between two pieces of wheat bread? It would be like a frisbee sandwich.

I feel like that would still be classified as a sandwich, but not an edible one. Sure. Okay. See, but, like, my feel, the way I feel is, um, everybody's just, like, ganging up on me. And, like, I don't know, maybe it is sometimes, but no, it can't be. It's not an easy question. A hamburger is a sandwich because it's two separate pieces of bread. Yes, I agree with you. The hinge and the meat tube makes it too iconic for it to be anything else.

I'm sorry. I'm just not going to change my mind here. I feel like you need to believe if you say a hamburger is a sandwich, I don't think this is necessarily true. Our philosopher homie would say this is not necessarily true. However, I feel if you classify a hamburger as a sandwich, you should also classify a hot dog as a sandwich. Because hamburgers are, I'd say, more iconic than hot dogs, right? We've exported them across the globe. No, I think hot dogs are more iconic.

Because then you're just on the hinge. How many words do you have for hamburger? What do you mean? How many words do you have for hamburger? How many words do you have for hot dog? You have glizzy. You have sausage. There's like so many different things you can call a hot dog

because it's so iconic. But hamburgers just say a steamed ham, maybe. Shout out to Bill Oakley. Yeah, shout out Bill Oakley, friend of the show. Shout out to Bill Oakley. But yeah, I think hot dog, it just can't be. The tube, the tube just speaks to me in a way that a patty, that a slice of turkey, that a, I don't know, know sprouts can't it just can't do it

for me Nicole you're gonna be convinced by the end of the day that is it's gonna take a lot of work from a lot of people to try to get me to change my shirt so I feel like there's a chance it's only one 1045 what time is it's 1040 very good very good the side dude that's fine okay hi what's up what time is it's 1040 very good very good the sun dude step on up oh my gosh okay hi what's up what's up what's your name what's your position what's your sign my name is elijah and i have no idea i'm very frazzled at the moment i kind of rely on you guys to tell me this so like not i don't i don't what's your sign my sign yeah i'm a cancer okay nice we love that i don't know what that means i'm really emotional i guess it doesn cancer okay nice I don't know what that means I'm

really emotional I guess it doesn't really matter this is good this is a good primer this is good for us to okay now check our own beliefs because I'm gonna run this down for you okay so we talked to a historian okay he is what I would call a sandwich originalist that's right he believes the sandwich was invented as two pieces of bread with something inside of it ergo that is all a sandwich is and can be. So a hot dog is not a sandwich to him. But he then had to agree that Subway

does not sell sandwiches because it is only one piece of bread. It's a tough pill to swallow. That's a very tough pill to swallow. A hot dog bun, isn't that like, I know it's like one piece of bread technically, but if you split it down the middle, isn't it kind of like two pieces of bread?

It's a hinged piece of bread. It's a hinged piece of bread. No, I believe it is two separate pieces, but I don't know if I think that that is necessarily important to the debate. Sure. Oh, really? You go to France, right? Baguette, a jambon beurre, you know, you get a sandwich on a baguette. That's not a sandwich. You know what I mean? A jambon beurre is a sandwich. Parisian hot dogs are served in a baguette. That's because it doesn't have a beautiful force-meat liquid batter called a hot dog in it, Josh.

We wrote down our sandwich laws. Would you like to hear our hot dog laws? I would love to hear our hot dog laws. Would you like to hear our hot dog laws? I would love to hear our hot dog laws, yes. Okay. It must contain liquid batter force-meat. No size parameters.

Must have a ratio parameter. Must be able to be reasonably eaten with your hands. That's true. Must be a land animal with legs no gators no gator dog gators okay anything made out of fish is not a hot dog one contiguous piece of bread if it breaks throw it away unless it's accidental intentional intentional fifty seventy five dollar fine condiments go directly onto the dog if some gets on the bun no no big deal. No, yeah. And Josh's special tornado hot dog topping method is not recognized by the council.

So those are our hot dog laws. Yo, when we wrote this down, I feel like it made sense, and now it means nothing. Yeah. Write drunk, edit sober. I think what we need to do, what we need to do is we need to draw a spectrum of sandwiches from the perfect stereotype of, say, a ham and cheese on wheat bread whatever All the way down to say like an ice cream cone Cause that could be considered a sandwich if you

An ice cream cone is not a sandwich An ice cream sandwich is not a sandwich either In the most, in the loosest definition, but that's what I'm saying You need to draw the extremes and then you need to start inching towards the stereotype with what? So you go from an ice cream sandwich to, say, you know, an Oreo cookie, cheese and crackers. I think a hot dog is up here. I think the spectrum is here, and the hot dog is on top. Wait, can I throw a scenario at you guys?

Yes, of course. Okay, so say you have, like, a really nice hot dog, right? A really nice one. You know, you do the whole thing. It's really, like, it's hot dogging. And then the bottom of the bread falls out well but it's still intact is that not now just a sideways sandwich no i i've heard that argument a lot and to me it's however the dish was intended to be served right if you drop a taco a hard shell taco

on the ground is it now nachos yeah it's a very slippery slope that's a broken no i think i think i think it's intent that matters okay where do Where do you stand now? Do you believe a hot dog is a sandwich? I think so, and I can't tell if it's because the podcast is called that, so I feel like I'm leaning now towards it because it's called that. I don't know. So tell me, how's your birria sandwich tasting? It's really good. Is it actually good, though? It's really good. Thank you so much. Oh, I get it. I appreciate you. This is so cool. Thanks so much. much thanks so much enjoy the rest of your time here who wants to challenge us to a debate the Hamburger Council has made it to the hot dog is a sandwich life podcast oh no and they got a copy of the culinary bro

down which we want to ask you to sign but I'm not gonna sign I gladly will but Oh no, and they got a copy of the Culinary Bro down in the book, let's go! Oh no! Which we want to ask you to sign, but I'm not going to buy it. I gladly will, but first, if you can sway her into believing that a hot dog is a sandwich. Wait, do you two, first of all, what are your names? Hi, I'm Trey. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet the two of you. Do you believe a hot dog is a sandwich? Here's where we come down on this.

Okay, okay. When first thinking about it, and we're in the middle of episode three, we thought, could a hot dog be a bao because of the steamed bun? Yes. And then we thought, is it closer to a soft taco because of the bread hinge that you talk about? Okay, okay. But then I think largely the bun is inconsequential, because when you talk about a hot dog, even without the bun you're still thinking about the casing inside sure if you get a hot dog pizza it's going to be the sliced up wieners if you get hot dog and spaghetti it's going to be cut up in there and there's so many

other sausages that we do categories all these other sausages as sausages but you know when you're getting a hot dog it is only one flavor profile it is hot dog and you know you're getting a hot dog, it is only one flavor profile. It is hot dog, and you know you're eating a hot dog. That is the flavor of hot dog. It's simply hot dog, yeah. It's just hot dog flavor, but... So here's what I think. Neither a sandwich or anything else, a hot dog falls into its own genus and species.

Right, right. A hot dog is a monotreme. A hot dog is a platypus. I literally, monotremes feed their young by secreting milk through pores in the skin, not with nipples! That's what monotremes do, and they are separate. Hold on. Sorry, you got me excited. I am very convinced by the platypus monotreme- I was just talking about monotremes the other day, and I don't remember why, but what a hilarious coincidence.

Incredible, incredible. And somehow I have now been swayed by the platypus argument that a hot dog is not a sandwich. Also, the bao thing, because I was very resolute in that it is a sandwich for a while. Sure, sure, sure. I've been wobbling. The thing that trips me up the most is the bow argument, because I would never call a bow a sandwich. Never.

Yeah. But it's phenotypically very similar to a hot dog. And the fact that you made the platypus comparison. I think it, I think. I no longer believe. A hot dog is a platypus. I no longer believe that a hot dog is a platypus. I no longer believe that a hot dog is a sandwich. Take your shirt off! I believe that a hot dog,

like a platypus or monotreme, is in a separate genus entirely. Take your shirt off! Change your shirt! I need a new shirt! Ryan! I need a new shirt! Ryan! Ryan, we need a new shirt! He's a large, but he wears a medium! Oh my god! You did it, you sickos!

This is insane. First of all, you guys are a great team. I did not see this happening. The way that you guys argue, I feel like we can learn. Yeah. Did you see how nicely we- Did you come prepared? Did you, like, have notes? We're team burger, if we're being honest. We are a team.

The way that you guys came together and did that was one of my favorite things I've seen today. Thank you so much. We're so excited to be here. We saw you coming to Smorgasburg. We literally screamed. We're so excited. We've listened to you for years.

We just love you. Yes. Thank you so much. You swayed Old Man. That means everything to us. We're going to be feasting on that for the rest of the day. I don't need food now. Incredible.

So nice meeting you two. So good to meet you. Enjoy Sturgisburg. Very impressed by the argument. They get everything. Y'all are rocking it. Best day of my life. My life.

Aw, yay. It is now the official position of a Hot Dog is a Sandwich podcast that a hot dog is not a sandwich. It's about damn time. Hi. Hi. How are you? I'm great. Remind us of your name again. Jessica. Jessica, nice to meet you. So how do you feel about a hot dog being a sandwich? Well, I brought notes with me today. Wow, wow, wow. Break them out. So I'm going to break them out. So I recognize that the Merriam-Webster's

dictionary, their definition does kind of classify a hot dog as a sandwich. However, I believe that a hot dog is not a sandwich. Thank you. Welcome to the club that I've been a part of officially for four minutes. I don't even have to debate now, so it's great. But my argument is there's sandwich shops and there's like hot dog shops. That's what I'm saying. They don't sell hot dogs at a sandwich shop. That's right. Like would you do? But they don't sell, well hold on, like just to be a little little prickly devil's advocate here, you know,

they don't sell Phoebe and Jay's at, you know, sandwich, at all sandwich shops. That is true. Phoebe and Jay's still a sandwich.

Okay, well, you mean, do you mean that a sandwich house has to sell all kinds of sandwiches to be classified as a sandwich shop? No, but that's what I'm saying, Nicole.

No, I'm telling you. No, no, shush, shush, you beautiful mouth. You mean to tell me that Come on, mouth, beautiful. I don't know. Weird. So, you mean to tell me that the Som I mouth beautiful? I don't know. Weird.

So, you mean to tell me that the SummerSand sells, like, I don't know, like, Jersey Mike's. Are they supposed to have BB&J's and grilled cheese sandwiches? And cream cheese Nutella sandwiches, which are my favorite sandwiches. That's right! No way! No, cream cheese... That's gross. Ew. Shut up! Ew, the sour with the chocolate? I wouldn't eat it in between matzah! Okay, that's fun.

I mean, I believe that, like, a hot dog is its own thing. Like, a burger is not a sandwich, a burger is a burger. Well, I think a burger is a sandwich. If I told you, hey, would you like a sandwich, and I brought you a hot dog? I'd be mad. I'd be pissed off. Yeah, but if you asked me if I wanted a sandwich, and you brought, like, I don't know, hummus, ketchup, and iceberg lettuce, I'd be like, I'm pretty mad, but that's still a sandwich. I still disagree. That sounds kind of good. I'm in. My last argument. They're in a similar category. Uh huh. Like fruit. Apples and oranges. An apple's not an orange. But they're both fruit. That's fair.

They taste different, they look different. There's apple pie. But there's no orange pie. Maybe there should be an orange pie. But that's an argument for a hot dog being a sandwich, right? How so? If you're saying that apples and oranges are different, but they're both under the category of fruit- They're in a similar category. There is a similar category like Merriam-Webster's dictionary definition.

So is a hot dog a sandwich? No! I disagree. I don't think so. But it's a hot dog. But, but, but, but you said that apples and oranges are fruit! So are you saying hot dogs and burgers are sandwiches? No, I'm saying they're in the same category of bread with stuff in the middle. Bread with stuff in the middle.

Sorry, we're a little on edge, you know? We're a little tired, we're a little wired. I get it. I would eat a hot dog. The sunscreen, I get it. It was really nice of you to bring really nice. Thank you for coming out. I respect your opinion. Y'all wanna step up to the debate? Jump in, jump in. You guys are both so tall and long-legged.

What's it like? I'm jealous. There's less oxygen. Oh really, nevermind, I'm not jealous. If you faint, we're not legally liable from the lack of oxygen. So what are your names? Kimberly.

Kimberly? Sebastian. Kimberly and Sebastian. So how do you feel? Is a hot dog a sandwich? Kimberly. Kimberly? Sebastian. Kimberly and Sebastian. So how do you feel? Is a hot dog a sandwich? Yes or no? My gut says no. Uh-huh. My logical chain says yes. And tell me about the logic that led you to believing that because I was in your position less than eight minutes ago. Oh. I've switched. I have now switched. He's picked to the dark side now. No, but this is why we wanted to talk to people because we're looking to be convinced. I'm looking to believe in anything. I will join any cult right now.

I love that. If somebody has it, I'm in. So vulnerable. Easy mark. I think, so I started with a parallel argument about a tomato being a fruit. Okay. Because we were talking about like colloquiallyially a hot dog is not really a sandwich. Like no one goes to a sandwich shop and is like, I want a hot dog. And no one is like, oh, my favorite fruit is the tomato.

But there are like certain characteristics of a sandwich or of a fruit that make a tomato a fruit. And I think the characteristics of a sandwich could make a hot dog a sandwich, even though I still wouldn't refer to a hot dog as a sandwich could make a hot dog a sandwich even though i still wouldn't refer to a hot dog as a sandwich because that's like not whole truly what we're accustomed to but interesting if i think about like bread and something in between bread and a bread not necessarily having to be two pieces because there's subs and things that are sandwiches then i think a hot dog could be a sandwich. Wait, that's a really good argument.

Because, so we've had the tomato, is a tomato a fruit debate? And one of my problems with it is that it's a fruit. Fruit is a very botanically specific term. Yeah, correct. But it is a nebulous culinary term. There's no botanically specific term for vegetable. Vegetables don't exist botanically. They're, you know, you have tubers and bulbs and stalks and all that.

Alliums. But fruit does. So we would never put tomatoes in a fruit salad however we understand that there is a need for a botanically specific term yeah so for like sandwich there may be a need for a say a legally specific term for a sandwich right if you're doing tariff law, stuff like that, you need a legal definition of it. However, you understand that that can completely be separate from your life. Yeah. Like that almost exists for a very small group of people. Tomato is a fruit for a bunch of botany nerds or people who want to be an a-hole at a party.

You know, ketchup's a smoothie. No, it's not. But you understand that the terms can be split. Yeah. No, that's what i think there's like there's there's kind of the practical way of referring to things and then there's like okay well we need to have some like definition that's more like scientific or logical so that we have like a concrete understanding of what something is but obviously there's going to be like looseness to that depending on which circle you're in if you're in the botanical

nerd circle then fine you have like implications there but otherwise you're gonna be like looseness to that depending on which circle you're in. If you're in the botanical nerd circle then fine. You have like invitations there. But otherwise you're gonna be like, oh yeah, a sandwich, a hot dog. They're different. I understand that. But a hot dog is a sandwich. We live in a society. We need rules.

A hot dog is a sandwich. No! A hot dog is a sandwich. Where's my other shirt? Oh my gosh. Where's my shirt? He's switching shirts again. Wow.

A hot dog. Watch out! I can actually believe that it's a platypus and also a sandwich. My job here is done. The shirts are sticking to me so hard. Thank you so much for coming on. Thank you. You have swayed Josh, you have not swayed me, young maiden! That's okay.

Got half. So nice to meet you guys again. Nice to meet you, thank you. That is a genuinely compelling argument. No. Hello. Hello. Hello.

So remind us of your names again, por favor. Rise and grind gamers. My name's Tim. I'm Haley. Hi, Tim and Haley. So how do you feel? Is a hot dog a sandwich? Yes or no?

Well, I have over 26 years of experience eating food. So I think I'm qualified to say a hot dog is a sandwich. Let me bring up the cousin, the meatball sub. Thank you. Oh, yes. See, just like the meatball sub, a hot dog doesn't have to refer to a hot dog in the bun. But it is still a sandwich. We don't call it a sandwich.

We also don't call hamburger a sandwich. That's just a quirk of the English language. But it is a hamburger sandwich. But it is. It is what it is still a sandwich. We don't call it a sandwich. We also don't call hamburgers a sandwich. That's just a quirk of the English language. But it is a hamburger sandwich. But it is. It is what it is. Yeah, we could call it a hot dog sandwich. But we don't because that's just how English language works. So you think a hot dog sandwich is the official name of a hot dog? It's like an implied sandwich. It's an implied, yeah. It's a silent sandwich at the end that we've dropped off because we don't need it anymore.

So you mean to tell me Madonna needs to be known as a singer Madonna singer now No, but I'm saying when you say Beyonce there is an implication of Knowles. Yeah, or wait. No did you keep that or no? I don't know maybe she's wait. No maybe Mrs. Carter mrs. Carter. She didn't take Carter Beyonce Carter does Beyonce still have a legal last name does anybody know? Beyonce still have a legal last name. Does anybody know? What is Beyonce's real name? Beyonce Giselle Knowles-Carter.

Beyonce Giselle Knowles-Carter. Thank you so much. Michaela, I'm so glad you knew that. Michaela is our local Beyonce expert. But no, guys, I'm telling you. Hot dogs are so iconic and they're so unique. And they just define so much that calling it a sandwich is just rude. It's just disrespectful to hot dog history. Is it rude to call a tomato a fruit? You know?

No, because it's correct. A tomato is a fruit. That's what I'm saying. I think there is a normal use of language in terms of you would never say hot dog sandwich, and then there is specific and necessary use of language to define and categorize. We don't need to define and categorize everything. I think if we want to protect hot dogs, we need laws, Nicole. If we need to protect hot dogs, we need to let the hot dogs fly free, Josh. If you love it, let it go. Haley, do you have any thoughts?

Yes. Okay, so I'm of the other belief. I think a hot dog is not a sandwich. Okay, yes. Because I think a hot dog refers to the meat and not the bun. No, that is a wiener. Without the bun, it is simply wiener time. I don't think so.

A Hebrew natty is still a hot dog. Amen. Amen, sister. I think you can't go into any sandwich shop and pick out your meats and say, I want the hot dog on my sandwich. Well, that's begging the question. I say Wiener Schnitzel is a sandwich shop.

Are you kidding me? Wiener Schnitzel is a hot dog place. It's like Subway. To say that it doesn't sell sandwiches is begging the question because you have to decide if it's a sandwich first. You can't just say it's not a sandwich shop because then you've already decided. I'm sorry, I don't agree.

Yeah, now I disagree with you. I don't agree with you. McDonald's isn't a sandwich shop. McDonald's is a fast food restaurant. Fast food restaurant. We need to deliberate. We need a sidebar need to sidebar. We need to sidebar. So nice meeting you guys. What's your name? Jonathan. Hi Jonathan.

Nice to meet you. This is Josh. I'm small. I'm sorry, I'm eating a hot dog. It's okay, it's okay. So I think a hot dog is a sandwich. So in as to say like, okay, a sandwich is just like a categorization that like generally people can understand and like this is coming from a lens of like okay like there's a lot of Taiwanese foods that I don't know how to explain to people like there's certain things that I would call like a burrito to people just to like explain the general consensus of like okay this is like a rabbit like the beef

the beef roll beef roll and like there's like some like there's this specific like dessert that I'm thinking of like two sco roll. And like there's like some like, there's this specific like dessert that I'm thinking of. Like two scoops of ice cream. There's like candied peanuts and like cilantro. And like they wrap it up. Oh, yeah. Dude, we've made that before. It's fire.

Oh, that's excellent. Yeah, I love it. But like, it's like I would call that a burrito to somebody who's like never had it. Because I'm like, okay, well then like, what's something, or even like guabao. Like, you know. Guabao, sure. I would say like, okay, that's a sandwich to somebody who's never never had it so the guabao thing is what originally tripped me up where i was like one if i'm not from taiwan i feel like it's not my place to categorize that as a sandwich or not however

the fact that you said it's actually very helpful to be able to explain things to people i mean that's the function of language right words exist to be able to explain concepts the fact that you would call guabao a sandwich to explain it to people who were like what is it if you're like well you take a bun and then you steam it and then it's like no it's like it's like a little taco sandwich foldy pork but delicious you know yeah i that actually really gave me the confidence to say that a hot dog is in fact a sandwich. So thank you. That's huge. That's huge. I have nothing to say to you. I have nothing to say to either of you. I appreciate the perspective. I don't have an instant answer. Your position was very, very intelligent and I appreciate it, but I need some time to think. Sounds great. So give me some time to think. Hey, nice shirt. Hi, thank you.

What is it? It's the Avatar. Sick! What's your name? My name's Fritz. No, Avatar's blue. No, that's the... Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar,

Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, Avatar, guy and then he does a little bit of he does some colonialism. If Avatar was so good where's Avatar 2? There's four seasons of Avatar. They're making a new Avatar movie. Yeah they've been making one for like ten years now. No no I saw a preview of it in a movie theater. Oh shoot a preview. And the blue chicks look hot. Sorry go ahead. What's your name? What's your name? I'm Fritz. Hi Fritz. How do you feel about a hot dog being a sandwich? Yes? No? Maybe so? I okay so things can be more than just one thing, right? Yeah. Like a hot dog can be a hot dog while also being a sandwich.

Dualism. Hot dog dualism. Yes, there's a duality of nature there, right? Cartesian dualism, right? Yes, exactly. Brothers and sisters, yeah. So like let's go to shapes, right? Like a rectangle is a square, but a square is not a rectangle. In the same way, a hot dog can be both a hot dog and a sandwich. Like if a rectangle is a rectangle is a square, but a square is not a rectangle. Correct. In the same way, a hot dog can be both a hot dog and a sandwich.

Like, if a rectangle is a rectangle and a square, who's to say that a hot dog can't be both a hot dog and a sandwich? I agree with that. So insightful. That was one of the things that changed my mind to fully believing that a hot dog is a sandwich because the fact that on normal use, you understand that it is not. However, there is also specific classification that is needed, you know?

And so it can be both things like I can live your heart as a hot dog but it lives in the legal system as a sandwich yeah I'm not trying to diss the safety of a hot dog like of course they're hot dogs yeah but they can also be sandwich I've eaten like four hot dogs today I've had like two and a half this is my first one I've been too nervous to eat it. I love the opinion, man. I respect it. I appreciated it. All right, guys. Zach Brooks is in the house. We got Zach Brooks, market manager, Smorgasburg, Los Angeles.

And what does he have here? What do we have? This is a sandwich. Holy crap. That is a sandwich. That is a sandwich. This is a hot dog sandwich. This is a sandwich.

Zach, tell me about what you think you're saying. Listen, I mean, you're serving hot dogs today. This is a sandwich. Zach, tell me about what you think you're saying. Listen, I mean, you're serving hot dogs today. Yes. You got a Reuben hot dog, a Bidia hot dog. Those are hot dogs. Yes. You will not find, you go to any, you find me a menu in any restaurant in this country that has a sandwich

section of the menu where a hot dog is listed in that section. Josh is about to pull one up. No, it's fine. I'd like to see that, and I think that helps your argument. But it- Yeah, here's Papa Jack's. And where is that? Papa Jack's.

Who gives a shit about Papa Jack's? I don't know, someone tweeted this at me. How is that served? Is it on a hinged hot dog bun? I bet it's on a hinge. I don't work at Papa Jack's. Oh, you bet. You don't know? I don't work at Papa Jack's, bro.

Listen, I wanna see what that looks like. Because if I saw something on a menu that said a hot dog sandwich, or a hot dog listed under a sandwich, this right here is what I would expect to see. Right. Which is not a hot dog. It's a hot dog sandwich. Two different things. The bread is cut up. The

hot dogs are cut up. It's cut up. No, no, but I'm saying there is necessity for, say you're a diner, right? Because I've seen hot dogs on the menu under the category of sandwiches at a diner. They got 200 items on the menu. They need to separate them by something, right? Is it on a hot dog bun?

Or is it on two pieces of bread? No, it's on a hot dog bun, man. I mean, listen, I think you can obviously come up with a definition for a sandwich that a hot dog fits under. That's right. That is the argument for. But to me, I feel like if I order a hot dog, I want to see what you're serving in a bun. If I order a hot dog sandwich, I want to see this, which is hot dogs in something that is commonly accepted as sandwich bread. And I feel like a hot dog bun is not commonly accepted as sandwich bread. You ever had a lobster roll?

If you, that's a roll. That's a roll. A lobster roll. But, you son of a bitch. You son of a bitch. We got him. That's a roll. A lobster roll. Oh, it's a... You son of a bitch. You son of a bitch. We got him. That's a good one. No, a lobster roll is a roll.

It's not a sandwich. Listen, I can admit. Damn it. I can admit when I am... Not... I mean, not wrong. I mean, it's not wrong. Zach wouldn't be wrong.

You have to go back. Is a lobster roll a sandwich? You gotta lick your wounds a little bit and come back. You just gotta lick your wounds and come back. Do you want half of this hot dog sandwich? I would love a sandwich. Can you describe the hot dog sandwich to people? Well, I basically what I did.

So at this point, I've eaten everything there is to eat at Smorgasburg. And so I do every week what's called a smorg hack, where I take food from one vendor and bring it to another vendor and have them mash it together into something. And it's always, of course, thoughtful and intelligently planned. It's not, you know, I mean... Willy nilly. Yeah, exactly. And so today, my smorg hack was to take your hot dog to one of our sandwich vendors...

Love that. ...and have them make it into what is clearly a hot dog sandwich and everyone will recognize as a hot dog sandwich. But now you know that we're both sandwich vendors out here, man. We're both sandwich vendors just making sandwiches. Ugh, this is a true honor, a real honor.

Hey, go listen to Food is the New Rock. Step on up. Not too bad, man, how you doing? Hello. Hello. Hey there. So, state your name Food is the New Rock. Step on up. Not too bad, man. How you doing? Hello. Hey there. So, state your name. My name's Cameron.

How do you feel about a hot dog being a sandwich? Yes, no, maybe so? A hot dog's not a sandwich. Okay, what is it? A hot dog is a sausage. Oh, but you're saying that the bun is not included in your definition of hot dog. If you make a three-year-old a hot dog and they don't want the bun, you're chopping up a hot dog. You're not chopping up something other than a hot dog. So I would call this the equivocation fallacy.

To me, there is a social contract. There is an understood implication that when we ask the question, in good faith, Cameron, is a hot dog a sandwich, that we are talking about the version served inside of a bun. I believe you are a bad faith actor and you have come here to stir the pot. No, but I think that we are talking about that and I would even go so far

as to say that we should not call a bunless hot dog a hot dog, that we should exclusively call it a wiener, a frankfurter. Yeah, okay.

Okay, I agree with that. So that is my official position. I agree with that too. A hot dog is a wiener. Yeah, but you can go to Costco and you can get the hot dog or the Polish. True. And you're just swapping out the meat, but it's the same dish. And they both taste really similar to you.

They're both the same. Both the same, I know. Damn, now we gotta consider Costco in our decision making. I hate when you guys do that. I always do. No, they switched, they're not using Hibernati's anymore, are they? What do they use now? Didn't they switch?

I thought they've always been their own. No, before they used to advertise Hebrew Nadi. Back in the day. Back in the day. To keep them the same price, they had to buy a hot dog factory. Pretty much. To go through all that effort. Yeah, it's Brooklyn now. Yeah, yeah, I guess.

God, I want a Costco hot dog. Cameron, thank you for... You ate, like, eight hot dogs. I know, I want more. Welcome, welcome. State your name and your position of hot dog-hood. I'm John. This is Kinsey.

Hi, John. Hello, John and Kinsey. Hi. And I think that, all right, so my position on this is that a hot dog is to a sandwich as a square is to like a rectangle, right? Yes, you are not the first person to say that. All right. Can you extrapolate for me who hates shapes? I hate shapes. Oh well, I do too, yeah. I'm definitely not a shape person either, but like I feel like it's like a classification. It's like the animal kingdom. Like there's kingdoms and classes. Yeah, all that. It's like the same kind of thing. Yeah, so you're saying that all hot dogs are

sandwiches, but not all sandwiches are hot dogs in the way that all squares are rectangles on all rectangles. Yes exactly I believe that I believe that to be true And I think that is the most basic way to illustrate the necessity of categories right yeah But why are we so hungry? Categorize hot dogs and sandwiches like what do we gain from it? What do we as a society benefit from that? I will say that I was very convinced by our dude from Taiwan Who is saying that it's easy for him to like even explaining to people back home

What a different dish is where he's like wow bow. Yeah, it's like a sandwich, you know explaining foods to people by using normative language Like that is important. Yeah but normative language to you is through an American lens, and that's not fair to do that to other foods. No, no, that's very fair. And so I think, though, in every different community, right, that's why I struggle with the universality of the phrase, is a hot dog a sandwich. Right. Because there's always an implied, whenever you're speaking, of to me, to my in-group, right, to the people that I normally spend time with is a hot dog a sandwich, because obviously different languages have different conventions. You go to to Britain anything on a round bun is a burger

So a fried chicken sandwich here is a chicken burger in England, and I would never say that they're wrong about that But I think we can only we are currently in America We can only look at it through an American lens And I think our homie from Taiwan earlier talking about that, that really convinced me that there is a necessity to categorize it. I agree. If for nothing else, to be just helpful and clearly and communicative.

I hate being... Amen. Final thoughts? It's not a sandwich. Yeah, same. Listen, logic only gets you so far. Emotions are what really matter. Emotions.

Hot dogs, yeah. Honestly, yeah. That's a good point, actually. Thank you, yeah. I do have an emotional connection to hot dogs. I've eaten like six today. Yeah, step up You guys can just sit on top of each other to like rush like toddlers in a trench coat or Russian nesting dolls Thanks, Dom, I'm gonna cry! Don't cry! It's not worth the tears! Do you have mascara on?

No! Okay, then you can cry! Don't cry! Nicole, don't look at her, for Christ's sake! Okay, what are your names? What are your names? What are your names? I'm Chris. I'm Esther. Esther. Nice to meet you. Are you all... Do you have a consensus on whether or not a hot dog's a sandwich? No. This is actually a quagmire in our relationship. Interesting. Okay, let's do some relationship counseling right now.

Giggity! Giggity. State your cases. We'll see if you need to break up or not. Fair enough, fair enough. Eight years down the drain. Leave her. Leave. I believe a hot dog is a sandwich in the same way a bun meat is a sandwich. It's cut open, but there's still like an intersection of bread, meat and stuff.

A sandwich is a huge umbrella term. Like why we got to be so like, you know, strict on the rules. Fair, fair. Okay. I don't think that it's a sandwich because, well, is a lobster roll a sandwich? We just, I believe that a lobster roll is a sandwich. It's a roll. It's a roll, right?

It's a roll. Right? Yeah. Sausage rolls in England. That's a roll. Well, a sausage roll is a sandwich. It's a roll. It's a roll, right? It's a roll. Right? Yeah. Sausage rolls in England, that's a roll. Well, a sausage roll is a pastry. That's fair. But then sausage in a roll is what I would call a sausage sandwich. What's a Wetzel dog?

What's a Wetzel dog? I think you're right. But I think we have to. We were talking about this earlier where it's almost unfortunate because we have to sort of view this through an American lens. earlier where it's almost unfortunate because we have to sort of view this through an American lens I am fascinated by the term bun in Vietnamese because it is it's a very very broad term right totally and bun me does specifically refer to the baguette right like because you can get a plain bun me and it just it's just the baguette it's called the bun me fair and then when you fill it with other things it's bun meat it's you know whatever you're naming it but then you have like

i'm thinking of like bun flan right they use the term bun to describe flan even though it's not a pastry really so i mean do you have like any insight on to what the term bun could actually like mean literally translated okay first of all i can tell you've been to garden grove a lot fountain valley homie little saigon all day yeah yeah. No, I cannot be an authority on this figure because I'm only half Vietnamese. But, okay, and I hear you. I really do. However, we are talking about hot dogs right now. Hot dogs are your game.

I didn't mean to change the subject. It's okay. I see where this derails a lot, Nicole, for you. But what happens whenever I have a bun me and I put a hot dog in it? Ew. What's it now? Hey, man, I would eat it. And this is actually the crux of my argument. My argument is that a hot dog is a purely American phenomenon.

It's true. And there's interpretations of that phenomenon throughout the world. There's Mexican hot dogs, there's Polish dogs. You know, it's become its own universal global genre. It's an icon, see it. It is an icon, everybody. I want everyone to say a hot dog is an icon. One, two, universal global genre. It is an icon, everybody. I want everyone to say a hot dog is an icon. One, two, three.

A hot dog is an icon. And I can agree with that and believe it is still a sandwich. Amen. Oh, you two are so cute. You should stay together. You should stay together, by the way. Thank you. Step up.

Come on over. Scoot in. Hi, so nice to meet the two of you. What are your names? I'm Chyna. Hi, Chyna. And I'm Evan. What up, Chyna and Evan? scoot in hi so nice to meet the two of you what are your names uh i'm china hi china and i'm evan what up china and evan so tell us how you feel the hot dog is sandwich yes no maybe absolutely absolutely person of reason why well i mean the big question is is a bun a piece of bread and it is of course it's not a piece of bread it's two pieces of bread

it's two pieces of bread that is stuck together by a hitch. It's not a piece of bread. It's two pieces of bread. It's two pieces of bread that is stuck together by a hinge. And it's stuck together. It's just, in a hot dog bun, it's a loaf of bread cut horizontally,

right, instead of vertically. And so therefore, you fill it with meat and it's just, it's just a little flappy piece on the bottom. That stuff falls apart

all the time. Is a Twinkie a ravioli? Okay. I like, I like this line of questioning. I think it's a dumpling. Okay. Is a dumpling a sandwich? No, because it's sealed all the way around. You and

I would get along. I mean, we do get along. We've known each other for 30 seconds, but I agree with everything you're saying. Okay, I want to hear Evan. Evan, how do you feel? Yeah, so I believe a hot dog is also a sandwich, so our marriage is safe. Oh my god. Yeah, don't pick the plates. No, but I think you have a very strong

grasp of grouping things together by certain, I'd say like phenotypical similarities. Because I agree with you that a Twinkie and a ravioli both obviously have something in common. Wait, no, they don't. Twinkies are filled after they're baked, therefore they're not dumplings. I'm sorry.

A Twinkie is... Ah, beans! Now the whole thing's done! Maybe it's cake, they don't. Twinkies are filled after they're baked, therefore they're not dumplings. I'm sorry. Oh, man. A Twinkie is... Oh, beans? No, the whole thing's done. Maybe it's cake, but lasagna. Oh, no. You think a cake is a lasagna? Tiramisu is dessert lasagna. Oh, my gosh.

It's just lasagna. Y'all are crazy. I do agree with you, though, that to me, slicing the bread a different way is such a flimsy difference to draw. I don't believe it. I believe that you put anything else in a hot dog bun you put turkey cheese tomato. That's a sandwich Amen, Annalise. Can you hide these for me so I don't keep eating the cold wet beef. It's delicious though Nephew

What's your name? Oh, I'm Jacob. Hi Jacob. Yeah, what's up, man? Can you tell us if a hot dog is a sandwich or not? I believe it's a sandwich. Okay, why do you think that? Wait, Jacob, first of all, how old are you? I'm turning 11. Turning 11. Okay, so you are one in the future.

And so I feel like we are looking to be impressed right here. Because you might be interviewing for a job with us in, what, four years? Do we hire 15-year-olds? We can. Okay, so consider this a job interview. Is a hot dog a sandwich? I believe it is, because with a sandwich, it's literally just meat, lettuce, and all that, and two pieces of bread. A literal hot dog is literally just that. It's a bun, it's a wiener, inside a hot dog. It's simple.

Yeah. It's simple. But little young Jacob, beautiful 11, almost 11-year-old Jacob, life isn't that simple, okay? Life isn't simple. You're going to keep getting involved in different definitions of things

and what a thing is, and you're never going to know. You're never going to know. You're going to get your heart broken one day. And then the next day, it's like, oh my God, it's not that anymore. And you have to be ready for that, okay? You're going to have to figure out how to file 1099 tax forms yeah do you know how to file

taxes i don't i'm 30 you ever done a w-2 life's not simple jacob yeah no i have not but i mean it depends how you see it because yeah a hot dog could be just its own thing because it depends how the bread is too because a sandwich it's just it's two pieces of bread that are not connected they're two different pieces well you ever been to subway yeah that bread's connected you say that's a sandwich right well uh with a hot dog if the bread's connected it could be its own thing i mean you could call a subway sandwich that's connected with bread you could call it like a hot dog. Jacob, you are the future.

It was so nice meeting you. It was nice meeting you. Bye, sweetheart. Come on down. Jump in. Hi there. Oh, thank you. Oh, we have two people divided on their opinions based on the shirts I'm seeing.

I love it. Actually, she's got to tell you something, Josh. Okay. Well, I'm wearing this in support of you even though that you're wrong. I've been hoodwinked. I've been bamboozled. I love that. Guys, this is the most important talking I have all day because I have a whole new perspective to bring to the table. Okay. Interesting. I hope no one's done this yet. Hot dog is not a sandwich. As you can see I picked up one of your... Yes? Birria? Birria? Birria? Birria?

Birria? Birria? I thought you tried. I nailed it. I picked up one of these. This is clearly a taco. Oh, okay, okay. I will say, I will say, are you going to reference the cube rule of food? Sorry? Do you know the cube rule of food? Have you ever heard of this before?

I don't. Okay, because there are a lot, there are a fair amount, nobody's brought it up today, and I'm glad you did, because we need to address the falsehood that a hot dog is a taco. Okay, let's do it. Because this was propagated by something called the Cube Rule of Food. We did a podcast literally called Noah Hot Dog is Not a Taco. Oh, no! We did. We did. Go back and listen.

But I'll reiterate. So, to me, tacos, tortillas predate leavened bread by almost 10,000 years. That's right. Right? And also, a vast majority of tortillas in the world are made from corn. And so for me, a taco must be on unleavened bread. You could argue that say, Navajo tacos have

a little bit of leavening. Like Texas style flour tortillas have a little bit of leavening, but those are still flat breads. Sure. And so I believe that once you leaven the bread, you are no longer in taco town. You're in sandwich city, baby! City of sin! I was gonna say sandwichville!

Oh, man. Are you gonna say the same thing for something like a Mexican pizza taco bell? Mexican pizza taco bell is a lasagna. No, Mexican pizza is a it's a mulita. Tostada. It's a tostada. Have you been convinced against the fact that a hot dog is a taco? You have some compelling evidence. I wasn't prepared for that. It's a test. Yeah. Have you been convinced against the fact that I like the taco you have some compelling evidence

I wasn't prepared for that. Yeah, I need to ask you guys And mythicon are you guys gonna be serving because we're going? Yeah, are you guys gonna be serving some classics like day in and out mac and cheese? We don't know yet We're definitely going to be sort of partnering with like food trucks and stuff and we're gonna put some mythical dishes on the menu But we still have to like hash out exactly what they are, but it's gonna be dope fingers We'll see you there in a couple months Are you nervous?

What's your name? Andrea. Andrea, hi. So tell us, is a hot dog a sandwich? Yes, no, maybe? How do you feel? Yeah, a hot dog is a sandwich. Yeah, okay. It's simple, it's very simple. Do you want to sit next to Josh because he feels the same way as you?

I'm just kidding. Why do you feel that way? Because it's got two pieces of bread and then you got the filling. Did you say it has two pieces of bread? I'm so sorry. I believe that a hot dog bun is a roll split down the middle. Don't let her bully you. Don't let her bully you, Andrea. It is two pieces of bread and then you got the filling. Did you say it has two pieces of bread? I'm so sorry. I believe that a hot dog bun is a roll split down the middle. Don't let her bully you. Don't let her bully you, Andrea.

No, it is two pieces of bread. A hot dog. Can you confirm that? Hold on. I. A roll split down the middle is two pieces of bread because a loaf is two pieces of bread. But like. No, it's not.

A loaf is a lot of pieces of bread. Yeah, exactly. But like you take two of those from the loaf and then you have hold on This is this is asexual reproduction, right? This is how you have a loaf. It is one entity It is one piece of bread, but it has the potential to split into multiple right? What do they call this like mitosis or something? Oh, what's it called? Yeah mitosis mitosis Sorry, I thought I was oh sis. No, that's like a Amoebas amoebas amoebas are Yeah, mitosis. Is it mitosis where you split? No, I'm sorry, uh, the zygote. Halitosis. No, that's bad breath.

Zygote. Amoebas. Amoebas. No, amoebas are, are, uh, what? I'm sorry. Mono, monocelular organisms. What I'm saying is I don't agree that a hot dog has two pieces of bread. It's one piece of bread that is split down the middle.

Creating two pieces. No! You can make a sandwich with two separate pieces. Like, I saw somebody made like a concha torta with like two conchas. Uh huh. Or you made, like, a concha torta with, like, two conchas. Or you can have, like, it still counts as two because it's... I disagree. I agree. I agree with you.

I think once you cut it, you've created two pieces. Andrea. And I think it's important. So nice to meet you. Hello. Hello, hello. Hello. Thank you.

I absolutely love you. Oh, my gosh. Thank you, guys. So nice to find you. So, what are your names? I'm Jez, Matt, Celine. Nice to meet the three of you. And I would like to say...

Vegas! No way! You left Vegas? We woke up four in the morning. Oh my gosh! Let's go. Well, you got one shot to wow us. You've already wowed us with your dedication.

Now you gotta wow us with your opinions about hot dogs. Yes, tell us. How do you feel? Sandwich. Sandwich, sandwich. How do you feel, Celine? All of you three are sandwich people! Have you indoctrinated her? She's a hot dog connoisseur.

She does, eats almost always hot dogs. Oh, yeah. Is that like your favorite food ever? Oh my gosh. So maybe I should switch. Well, let me ask you something. As the hot dog connoisseur, you seem the most passionate about hot dogs. You have the most to gain and lose here. Do you think there's anything offensive? Do you think it cheapens your experience

if you call it a sandwich? You're confused? Welcome to my life. Do you think calling a hot dog a sandwich makes a hot dog less of a hot dog? Yes. You think so? Interesting. Why do you feel so strongly that you had to drive

from Vegas to here to tell us if a hot dog is a sandwich or not? Well, I don't actually have that strong of an opinion. It was mostly just you guys have been an amazing part of our relationship. As a marriage, we see you guys, we watch you guys all the time.

Oh my gosh. And also to congratulate Josh on his first win in the kitchen battles. To many more, to many more. Oh my gosh. And also to congratulate Josh on his first win in the kitchen battles. Hey! To many more, to many more. Sore spot, sore spot. I will repeat what Josh said in one of the episodes. Like everything that could be put in a sandwich

could be put in a hot dog. So a hot dog is a sandwich. I agree. You are people of reason. I think I gotta change my shirt. I will say Nicole is the best, so her opinion matters. Her opinion matters. Nicole, you are valid.

Thank y'all so much for having me out, truly. Of course. Thank you so much. So nice meeting you guys. Enjoy Smorgasburg, enjoy LA. Have the best time ever. Hello. I've met you.

Yeah. Is your name? No, Chris. No. Andrew. We had the same conversation last time. You're really close. Did I call you Chris last time? I think so.

Is your shirt a smosher? Yeah. Nice. Yeah, it was the only hot dog thing I had. So tell us your name, please. Hi, I'm Andy. Hi, Andy. Tell us, is a hot dog a sandwich, yes or no?

I'm going to have to go with yes. Okay, why are you so wrong? Nicole's getting belligerent. Because I'm arguing with to go with yes Okay why are you so wrong Nicole's getting belligerent Because I'm arguing with you Nicole Good response very good response Well the way I see it it's literally I would describe it as like the wiener Being sandwiched in between the two halves Oh so the verb

The verb sandwiching This is not any sort of euphemism Nicole is sandwiched between us right now We a sandwich. Yeah, we're people sound where people sandwich you are a standard radical sandwich inclusionist Yes, and I respect that I respect my RSI is out here. Does that have another meaning? Maggie's too busy. She can't like it. Is it like a terrorist army somewhere? I really hope not. I hope not not. I hope not, too. It was really nice meeting you. Hello.

Hi. How are y'all doing? I'm fine. Guys, hello. How are you? Hello, hello. I'm Jeff. This is my wife, Michelle.

Hey, Michelle. I'm Jeff. Hi. How's it going? Oh, it's hot. It's hot out here for a bit. Where are y'all coming from today? We're from Orange County, John's Boy Disneyland.

Hey, wait. What part of Orange County, John's Boy Disneyland. Hey, wait, what part of Orange County? I grew up there. Yeah. We brought some gifts. What? Out of our garden this morning. Oh my gosh.

I am so stoked. What? These are like an hour off the plans. Oh my gosh. Wait, what is it? I can't wait. We've got mix. Mad Hatter peppers.

What? Centipede ground. What? We got a little bit of a growth problem. That's fine, some of us do. Wow. More importantly, is a hot dog a sandwich?

I'm going to sit there and say no, it's a taco. I believe in Food Cube. Oh no! The Food Cubists, we are at odds with the Food Cubists. I'm sorry. I respect your culture, but I do not like it, sir. We are on separate sides now. Well, I respect your opinion, but I ignore it.

Most people do. We are a divided household. I believe it is. Thank you. And he just likes hot dogs. Very nice. That's a perfectly valid opinion. And that's the best opinion I've heard all day.

That's a perfectly valid opinion And that's the best opinion I've heard all day Well, that was a lot to take in I'm tired and I'm sunburned Shout out to the people who actually brought me drinks Because I Instagram bring me drinks And somebody brought me a beer And I opened it on a card table Yeah, someone brought us like a 12 pack of Coke

Thanks, that was really nice Nice Coca-Cola in the sunshine Thank you you. We really do have the best fans. We have the best fans. We have the best fans. We also have the most intelligent and inquisitive fans ever. They sat down with us and they spilled out their hearts to tell us if a hot dog is a sandwich or not. And you know me, I've been a staunch hot dog autonomous this whole entire time. I flopped a little bit with Dr. Normer because he kind of made me think a little bit outside of the box, made me think outside of the spectrum. And for that, I'm very grateful. But also, I was totally behind Ken Obala's side.

And I believed in him and I believed his message that a hot dog is iconic and should be treated as such. A hot dog is Madonna. That's what I kept saying to myself the whole time that i was at sworgensberg hot dog is madonna yes madonna is an artist but she's also a philanthropist she's also a dancer she's always also an artist she's a million and one things so that's what my whole entire like basis was on a hot dog deserves its own its own name it deserves to be its own thing because it is its own thing. But we had this couple. They had team hamburger

shirts. Remember them? I sure do. They were decked out in hamburger gear. Do we know what that was about? No. Heck yeah, dude. I didn't want to dig because it was a hot dog day, not a hamburger day. You know what I mean? They did bring your book and I signed your book, actually, which is the funniest thing in the world. And

they sat down and they argued in such a refreshing, understanding way. They were just firing on all cylinders. One of them would talk, the other would listen and quip and kind of like how you and I talk, which I loved. And they brought up something that really changed my mind and really made me get a little bit introspective about this conversation. I was, you know, this whole time I've just been one way the whole time. But they said something. They said a hot dog is like a platypus. And that completely changed my mind. That just completely made a complete like brain aneurysm of sorts for me, where a hot dog is a hot dog 100%. But it is a sandwich for all intents and purposes.

You know, a platypus is a mammal. It's not the first mammal you think of. It's not the first mammal anybody thinks of, but it is a mammal. It's classified as a mammal. Sure, it lays eggs. Sure, it has a bill. Sure, it has maybe a tail.

But who knows? Who cares? It is what it is. A hot dog is a sandwich. And it really sucks to say that. Because this whole time I've been thinking one way. But, you know, facts are facts. And facts are in front of you.

And, yes, it's a slightly emotional argument. And I get that. And people's livelihoods depend on hot dogs. I get it. Vendors. People that do taxes. All these things have to do with a hot dog being its own thing. Vendors, people that do taxes, all these things have to do with a hot dog being its own thing.

But it's really not. It's really not its own thing. It is a sandwich. It sucks to say. It really breaks my heart to say it. I'm literally banging the table right now because it shouldn't be that way. It shouldn't be that way.

But it is. Nicole, the platypus people were the entire reason that I switched my vote to a hot dog is not a sandwich. What are you freaking talking about? Because a platypus exists without their mammals, sure, but they're also monotremes.

They're mammals. They're monotremes, which means they don't feed their young from nipples. They feed it by secreting nutrients to their skin, meaning they have enough differentiating characteristics to be outside of several parts of the order and classification. They literally got me to change my shirt, Nicole!

They got me to change my opinion, John! So I don't care if you're right for the wrong reasons. You know, if you get the right answer on a math test, and you show your work improperly, it don't matter. You don't have to show your work. Not all teachers make you share your work. Yeah. And, you know, in life, you don't have to share your work. Yeah. And, you know, in life, you don't have to show your work.

Because, Nicole, you— I'm not in front of a jury of my peers. I'm talking to you, Josh. You're not going to get railroaded into this right now. I've literally lost my voice from yelling at so many people. No, no, it's fine because— You need a hot drink. You need a hot drink.

This is where we're at right now. I literally changed my mind because of them. But then I have now come all the way back around because I still believe that a hot dog is a sandwich. And I am very proud of you, Nicole, for coming to that conclusion, coming to the right side of history. Because there are reasons that we classify things in general, right? It is because language is meant to be used. Foods are meant to be understood and consumed. The reason we say things, it's not a random designation.

We're not saying that hot dogs are only sandwiches and they're not special. We're saying that it is helpful to be able to use the conduit of a sandwich to communicate what a hot dog is. Sure. And there was one person who changed my mind entirely. And I'm talking about Jonathan from Taiwan. Sure, yes. Jonathan was also very, very, very helpful in my decision making.

One of the reasons that I didn't want to call a hot dog a sandwich, especially after last week talking about cultural significance with Morgan Walsh, was that I was unwilling to call guabao from Taiwan, the Taiwanese steamed pork belly bun. I was unwilling to call that a sandwich. I talk about how if people call a taco a sandwich, I'm viscerally uncomfortable with it. And I still don't believe a taco is a sandwich

because I don't think it's helpful to call it that. I don't think a taco is a sandwich either. It's unleavened bread. A torta is a sandwich. Exactly, yeah. And most tacos are made from corn tortillas if you look throughout history. Corn or flour doesn't matter.

They're flatbreads. They're unleavened breads. They are their own classification. However, guabao, that is a leavened wheat bread. It's steamed. Many hot dog buns, I mean, they're baked first,

but then they're steamed. Guabao, Taiwanese pork belly buns have so many similarities to a hot dog, but I was completely unwilling to call them a sandwich, partly because I didn't think it was my place.

It's a Taiwanese dish. It's its own separate history. Right? But then Jonathan said when he I didn't think it was my place. It's a Taiwanese dish. Sure, yeah. It's own separate history, right? But then Jonathan said when he first moved here, it was incredibly helpful to be able to use words and concepts that have significance in America to describe Taiwanese food. Totally. So people could just know what the heck he was talking about, right? That's right. No, no, no, that's right.

You can't understand everybody. You can't expect everybody to be perfectly educated about, he brought up Run Bing. I don't know what Run, oh, beef rolls? I'm sure I'm mispronouncing it. Beef rolls? Not beef rolls, the ice cream rolls. Oh yeah, with the cilantro. Yeah.

That's in a crepe though. So it's in a crepe, but he said that being able to say, it's like, it's an ice cream burrito. Yeah, that's helpful. He said that was just a great way to be able to communicate what it is. And so if you were trying to communicate, there was another person who brought up the fact,

if you're communicating to an alien, somebody from Mars. The alien. It's a thought experiment. Yeah. If they came here and you had to explain what a hot dog is from scratch, right, which I guess you would have to also explain what a sandwich is from scratch. But to be able to compare those two concepts by saying, hey, these things are very similar. They have leavened bread. There is meat.

Again, not all sandwiches have to have meat in them. But meat is part of a stereotype of a sandwich. Sure is meat. Again, not all sandwiches have to have meat in them, but meat is part of the stereotype of a sandwich. That that is close enough to be able to describe that concept to somebody from another culture. And so understanding the usefulness of being able to communicate the fact that a hot dog is a sandwich because it shares so many characteristics to a sandwich. And then combine that with the idea of definitional dualism that Kimberly brought. Shout out Kimberly, Annalise's friend. Yeah, yeah. Because she really messed with my mind on this because she brought up the classification of tomatoes.

Yeah, I remember that. Which you and I have talked about on the podcast before. I didn't really vibe with that. Sorry, Kimberly and Sebastian. You guys are great, but I just couldn't really vibe with that. The reason that it really jived with me is that I used to be unwilling to call a tomato a fruit because I was like, no, the botanical scientific definition of tomatoes, I know they have seeds. I know they are literally the fruiting part of the plant. But when we are

talking about tomatoes, when you and I are talking about tomatoes, we're talking about it in the culinary aspect of it, right? Sure. Because it changes, right? I think it changes, but you can also believe both. There can be those multiple truths. You can believe that in the botanical scientific sense that a tomato is a fruit, but you can also understand

that in the culinary sense it is classified as a vegetable. The latter to me does not necessarily negate the former. You can understand that a hot dog has so many differentiating characteristics from what you might think of as the stereotype of a sandwich. However, you can agree that in a technical taxonomic – in a – Jesus Christ.

In a Texas. But you can agree that in a technical capacity, especially when you're talking about laws like Alexander said, that they bear so many similarities to what we call a sandwich, that they deserve to be within that category. However, you can have as many caveats as you want. You can have as many lectures about the history and the cultural importance of hot dogs as you want. Is a hot dog a sandwich? Yes, but followed by five minutes of me being annoying. However, that yes, afterwards is not negated by the following lecture.

Yes, a hot dog is a sandwich. I'm going to throw up. I believe in the Schrodingerian hot dog hypothesis, Nicole. Okay. A hot dog is both a sandwich and not a sandwich at the same time, depending on who is analyzing it. That's the worst answer ever. If you are a lawyer. You are literally not making an answer.

But they are both true. You didn't answer the question. Nicole, is a hot dog a sandwich? Yes. Is a hot dog not a sandwich? Yes. For the sake of the argument, it is a sandwich, but. A hot dog is a sandwich.

But. A hot dog is not a sandwich. No, no, no. However, that also means that the first one is true. Josh, a hot dog is a sandwich, but. Delete that. Delete that. Delete that. A hot dog is a sandwich, No, no, no. However, that also means that the first one is true. Josh, a hot dog is a sandwich butt. Delete that. Delete that.

Delete that. A hot dog is a sandwich butt. That's it. That's it. A hot dog is a sandwich butt dot, dot, dot. But that still means a hot dog is a sandwich.

Yeah, exactly. That's beautiful. Okay, well, we cracked the code. We cracked it for over six hours. Do we get anything for this? No, we don't get anything for this.

Josh, I thought this was like Willy Wonka. We get pride? Oh, what? Do you want the ticket to the Oscar Mayer hot dog factory? Do you want three Cupid's hot dogs for a year? That was literally in my contract. I just get 30 minutes alone at a single Wienerschnitzel, the one in Burbank that serves craft beer.

Oh, yeah. You told me about that. And I can do some damn 30 minutes at that Wienerschnitzel. Oh, I'm going right to the beer tap. Let that kick in over 13 minutes, and then it's right to the chili vat. He's going to take a bath in the chili vat. I'm just going to wade my feet in like I do with the hot tub. Nicole, what have you learned over the last five weeks?

Okay, I've learned that if I allow myself to absorb information, I can have the right answer. absorb information, I can have the right answer. If I just stop, if I just open my ears and listen to people, and, you know, I can stay true to my convictions, sure. I can stay true to myself. But also there's no problem with listening to other people and seeing what their opinions are and being swayed. That's fine, and that's okay. You don't need to think of yourself,

you need, I need to think this way 100% of the time. No, not a way to live that's not a way to function in this society you need to listen to other people's opinions take them for what they are and create your own hypothesis and if it wasn't for five to six hours of constant hot dog information being smushed into my ears then i wouldn't have come up with a hot dog being a sandwich. Again, I hate saying it, but it is. It is what it is. A hot dog is a sandwich. It frustrates me, but it's true.

And that's what I learned. I learned that I can do anything I set my mind to. Did we come up with an answer that's going to satisfy literally anybody? No, I don't think so. But did Nicole grow personally? Yeah. Yeah, she did. That's why I'm here. This is a personal thing, okay? Anytime I do anything, chances are I'm doing it for myself, okay? Welcome to Narcissism 101. I've learned that if I don't start a cult, I'm going to join one. And so it's almost in my best interest to

just start one now. Yeah, yeah, Yeah. Because anybody that convinced me of one fact, I immediately switched my mind. See, yeah. But then when left alone for half an hour, I went, no, I'm the one that's right. My ideas are best. And I don't know. But I mean, honestly, a very big thank you. I learned so much from every single guest that we had, from every person

that we sat down, except for the people that talked about a hot dog being a taco. I learned nothing from you. They have their reasons for their thinking. I don't agree with it, but they have their reasons. Anywho, I learned a lot from people. Like you said, this really was a personal quest. Totally. And I'm incredibly grateful, Nicole, for you being here by my side.

Oh, thanks. Pushing me. Anytime. Pushing my boundaries. Pushing boundaries of this podcast. Yeah, I'm a pusher. I push people, Josh. And then incredibly grateful to everybody who listened.

But, you know, Nicole. What's up? This wouldn't be an episode of A Hot Dog is a Sandwich without... Opinions are like casseroles! All right, Nicole. First up, we got at Papa Sasquatch. Sonora dogs, also known as Mexican hot dogs, are the best. No discussion. And yes, I believe hot dogs deserve also known as Mexican hot dogs, are the best. No discussion.

And yes, I believe hot dogs deserve mayo. It's a match made in yummy heaven. I don't mind mayo on my hot dog. Are these bacon wrapped? Yeah. Chances are they're bacon wrapped. Yeah. If they're talking about Sonora dogs, which are a cousin to the hot dogs they serve on

the streets of L.A. outside of concert venues, bars, all that. But Sonora dogs are typically served. They're big in Tucson, Arizona. I mean, also they come from Sonora, Mexico, all that. But Sonora dogs are typically served. They're big in Tucson, Arizona. I mean, also they come from Sonora, Mexico, of course. Sure. But they're in a bolillo, which is like a big, I don't know, almost like a French roll, very crusty, not a hot dog bun. They got a scoop of beans in the bottom.

Oh, yum. Oh, and then the top, like, hot dog, avocado, cabbage, I mean, salsa verde, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, whatever you want. They're really fantastic. But when they got to L.A., people started making them in hot dog buns. The hot dogs are bacon-wrapped as well. And there's no beans in them typically. No, no.

There's peppers, onions and peppers. Yeah, peppers and onions. I like those. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I like those. The ones next to the Hollywood Bowl. Yeah. Those are the best ones.

So to me, mayonnaise is not good on a hot dog. Mayonnaise is good on the toppings on a hot dog. But if it's a naked hot dog, mayonnaise doesn't go well on it. But if it's a bunch of toppings, the mayonnaise is good. I just got chills all over my body thinking it was just mayonnaise hot dog bun. I tried it. I tried it. It was not good. I just got chills all the way to my butt. Hot dog and mayonnaise,

they have the same flavor to them. I don't know how to describe it. It's that tang. I get what you're saying. They have a very similar chemically tang. It's like salt, tang, and cream salt tang cream salt tang cream new r&b van salt tang cream get the money um god i'm too white that was gross jesus do you want to take that back oh yeah i recant you like 36 chambers right that's what it is 36 chambers i don't even know okay next up at dollar d-o-l-a-r says the only hot dog i'll eat is 7-eleven spicy bite for everything else i'd rather eat sausage over a hot dog i've never had this never oh i've had it

um and i have i have a thought this might controversial. I know we tried to write the rules of hot dog hood. I believe that if it's a spicy hot dog, it's no longer a hot dog. It is, in fact, a different type of sausage. Link? A hot link? No, I think Maggie's laughing at me, but no, I actually believe this. Because hot dogs, someone brought up what the Supreme Court, or at least one opinion on the Supreme Court, considered pornography, which is you know it when you see it. They brought that up in relation to hot dogs, which some consider that to be just a miscarriage of justice.

And that never should have been written down. It was wholly inappropriate from Supreme Court justice. And I tend to agree with that. But hot dogs, the spicing is something that's unique because there are other emulsified sausages, right? Yeah. You know, you have knockwurst, for instance. Knockwurst is an emulsified sausage, but it's a knockwurst because it has its own internal codices on it, right?

There's different spices made with different meats than a hot dog. I believe a hot dog, once it gets spicy, is no longer a hot dog and is another type of sausage. I don't agree with that at all. Once a chili pepper hits it, no longer. I don't agree with that at all. Fair. I've never had a hot dog from 7-Eleven.

Oh, yeah. Sorry. I forgot what we were talking about. 7-Eleven spicy bite. Pretty good. Never had it. Never had a hot dog from 7-Eleven. Never had a hot dog from 7-Eleven. Oh, yeah, sorry. I forgot what we were talking about. 7-Eleven spicy bite. Pretty good. Never had it. Never had a hot dog from 7-Eleven? Never had a hot dog from 7-Eleven.

Good. Well, they just keep them hot in little rolly bins. For like 24 hours, right? And they shape all their other foods like hot dogs so they can fit on the rolly bins. Yeah, I get that. That makes sense. That makes sense. They got a fried chicken hot dog.

They have hamburgers that are in plastic bags. They do, yeah. But they used to have a hot dog shaped hamburger called the cheeseburger big bite. Oh, see, that sounds good. It was pretty nice. It was pretty nice. A lot of just gooey. It was like a gusher filled.

It was like a beef gusher filled with cheese. Do you know what I like? Wetzel dogs. That's a pretzel dog, which is not a hot dog. No. It is separately. That's a dumpling. It is a dumpling.

Yeah, yeah. I agree. Yeah, because it's cooked. The raw dough is wrapped around the filling. It's a dumpling. Wetzel dog's a dumpling. Good news. Eight part series coming next.

All right. At White Tip Rose says, the amount of pork in a hot dog is directly proportional to the number of toppings that taste good on the hot dog. More pork, more good topping options. Example, mango salsa doesn't work on an all-beef hot dog. Okay. I agree with this entirely. This is to mask the pork flavor.

Well, no. I think pork is a more malleable flavor than beef. It's not to mask the pork flavor. It's that the pork flavor is already masking itself. Huh. So you got mango salsa on a Dodger dog. I don't like mango salsa. Don't think about something else.

Like salsa verde. Salsa verde. Let's say salsa verde. I like salsa verde. Right? Imagine that on a lighter colored, lighter flavored pork hot dog as opposed to the very aggressive like Hebrew national all beef hot dog. I wouldn't do that.

I wouldn't reach for that. What? On a pork or beef? A pork. Why? I don't like pork hot dogs. I like all beef hot dogs. No, but if you don't like pork hot dogs, all the more reason to put mango salsa on them.

I don't like mango salsa. You're not forcing you to eat the mango salsa. Josh, you keep bringing up mango. It's a thought experiment. You keep bringing up mango salsa. I don't like mango salsa. You're not forcing you to eat the mango salsa. It's a thought experiment. You keep bringing up mango salsa. I don't like mango salsa. Any mango salsa. I don't even like any mango salsa. I don't like peach salsa. I like pineapple salsa.

Get out of here. No, and it's always a place that's charging $9 for a taco and serving them in the little metal holders. I very rarely had any mango salsa that I enjoyed. Yeah, they put like corn syrup in it. Ew. Okay, Iron and License says there's no reason I rarely had any mango salsa that I enjoyed. Yeah, they put like corn syrup in it. Ew. Gross. Ugh.

Ugh. Okay, Iron and License says there's no reason for a double dog not to exist. We have double patty burgers. I want a double dog. No, there's like very good reason for a double patty burger to exist, but double dogs not to exist. I would. Okay, why? Go ahead.

Tell us why. Nicole, hamburger patties they stack right like there's so good hot dogs no but they don't they're they're round if hot dogs were say square then they would stack perfectly okay but like what if you just okay here hear me out what if you just slice every single hot dog in half and then you stack it on top like lincoln logs yeah you could do and i you know probably had – I want to do that. Well, you can. I mean, nobody's stopping you. I know no one's stopping Iron and License either.

Yeah. I'm sorry. Is that incense? I'm sorry. It's Iron and Incense, not Iron and License. We can't read. I don't know how to read. We cannot read.

I would do this. I love the idea of a double dog day. Well, but there's also a reason for double patty burgers to exist, which is that you can get more cheese in it. I understand that, but. What's the point of a double dog? Just get a bigger hot dog. No.

The whole point is you get sear, gushy, sear. Sear, gushy, sear. Do you understand what I'm saying? Yeah, I get that. No, no, no. You're increasing. Maggie, are you? Are you following Maggie?

The surface area of sear to gushy hot dog center is different. I see that. I see that. Why don't you just butterfly? You can also butterfly the hot dog. Yeah, but I don't think you need two tubes. Why not?

Do you need two tubes? Do you want two tubes? I have two tubes. You have two tubes. They call you two tubes, but you cut you a few on. Are there only two fallopian tubes? I think there's only

two fallopian tubes. All the women in the room are Google it ferociously because we don't know i don't know i i'm pretty stupid i if i had to guess i'd say like i'd say seven or to nine no they have to be even numbers where do they come there because there's one on each side yes or they're both lefties no or does anybody only have to annalise is drawing the path of fallopian tubes with her hands some people can can have one fallopian tube. They're the thing that look like ears in the diagram.

Nothing looks like ears. In the diagram, it's like a face and the fallopian tubes are the ears. There is no face. Annalise knows what I'm talking about. It is a vagina. I know, but the vagina, it's if you look at... I'm sorry, can you just say the word? Vaginger, it's like a... Just say the word. Yeah, those are ears.

Annalise, let the record show. Annalise is showing us a picture of a vagina, and it has ears, which are the fallopian tubes. A drawing of, not a picture. Ovaries, no? The ovaries are the ears? What? Those are ovaries. Wait, which are the tubes?

The tubes that lead to the ovaries. The tubes are the cartilage. The tubes are the cartilage. God, go back to seventh grade. The tubes are the top of the ears. Go back to seventh grade. Gosh. Listen, I know about women. All right. Obviously not. Neither do the top of the ears. Go back to seventh grade. Gosh. Listen, I know about women.

All right. Obviously not. Neither do the women in the room. Add foodographic mem. Hot dogs must be grilled. No boiling or pan frying. Sorry, Josh. Apology not accepted.

It's the only way to get a ripper. It's not the only way to get a ripper where it gets so nice and dry that the skin rips open along with crevices. No, actually, a ripper is a New Jersey specialty where the hot dog is thrown directly into a fryer. That is the proper ripper. I renounce you. Um, okay. I like grilled hot dogs.

I like, I love to pan fry my hot dogs. I don't know what you're talking about, food graphic mem. I love a pan-seared hot dog. Yeah, you can get a ripper, you can get a ripper doing anything. Do you know, does ripper mean something? Well, ripper is where the skin r dog. Yeah, you can get a ripper doing anything. Do you know? Does ripper mean something? Well, ripper's where the skin rips. Oh, I hope not.

I don't know what you're saying. I don't know if you're making jokes. It's where the skin, the casing bursts. Oh. I mean, I don't look, I don't necessarily search for that in a hot dog experience. I just kind of enjoy it regardless. I love pan-seared hot dogs. You can't take that from Nicole.

All right. I read the next one. What's this? Shut up. Trevor M. Lowe says, a mini corn dog is just an XL American ravioli. Okay.

Uh-oh. I have an upsetting opinion. Oh, no. Not again. What is it, Josh? Corn dog's a tamale. Shut up. Come on. It's a wet Josh? Corn dogs and tamale. Shut up. Come on.

It's a wet corn. You're wet. You're wet. I am wet. This is the first podcast that I haven't sweat. Well, it's pulling. It's pulling. It's pulling up.

I was like, because you're in a room with just me, and I don't make you nervous. Not anymore. Butterflies are gone. What? That's so sad. I don't actually think it's a tamale. Well, maybe it's a tamale. It's not a ravioli, because it's a tamale well maybe it's a tamale it's not a ravioli because it's a

leavened wet batter I'm just gonna let you do you boo just go ahead Trevor last one last one at Nordic Dove Dove

it could be dove like a Nordic person dove into the waters of the hot dog debate you know Nordic Dove says my fiance feels a hot dog's

wrapped in a tortilla is superior to a bun. Tacos con weenie. Nicole, what say you? Me gusta. Me gusta también. Solamente con huevos. Yo puedo

huevo en una frying pan y cut up hot dogs y sear muy sear, mucho sear y queso, maybe así así queso en la tortilla

en el horno para 10 segundos flip, 10 segundos más y perfecto desayuno ¿sí? huevos revueltos o frita me gusta mucho es muy delicioso

muchas gracias para tus participación en Opinions are Like Casseroles you don't need to respond I did it for us outro en español por favor ok no problem. Is that a challenge? Si.

Okay. Gotta quickly go to babble.com. No, no, no. No looking it up. Gracias por tu escuchar a hot dog is a sandwich. Tu quieres que escuchar mas de Mythical Kitchen. Hot Dog is a Sandwich Tu Quieres Que Escuchar Mas de Mythical Kitchen

Tengo Nuevo Episodos Every Wednesday Todos los semanas? Todos los semanas? No, solamente Wednesday Para podcast, solamente Wednesday No Thursday, no Monday We gotta know how to say Wednesday

Lunes, Martes Mercolay? Mircoles No Thursday, no Monday. We got to know how to say Wednesday. Lunes, Marches. Mercoles. Mercoles. Mercoles. Mercoles. Nueve episodios de Mercoles. Josh, we need to actually do this.

I want to go home. Sí. Gracias por atemptar. Atemptar. Mi español no es bueno, no es mal. It's right in the middle. It's okay. En el medio.

En el medio. Es medio. I love it. You just keep going. Me gusta. I think we should do one in English for safety. And on that note, thank you for listening to A Hot Dog is a Sandwich. If you want to hear more from us here in the Mythical Kitchen, we got new episodes for you every Wednesday. If you want to be featured on Opinions Are Like Casseroles, you can hit us up on Twitter at MythicalChef or at Hendee Zada with the hashtag OpinionCasseroles.

And for more Mythical Kitchen, check us out on YouTube where we launch new videos every week. And of course, if you want to share pictures of your dishes, us up on instagram at mythical kitchen yeah and hey anybody who listened to the entire series uh if you really liked the whole series and you want us to do another special series a big old deep dive send us your ideas on twitter or instagram also if you hated the series keep it to yourself thank you for listening it really means a lot the fact that you stuck by us during this whole thing thank you we love you can't wait to see you next week. Adios. We'll see you next time.