The Hot Dog Guy

I am kind of a hot dog connoisseur. I love them. No seriously! I totally found this place by accident, the French Market doesn’t make me think of an amazing American hot dog stand. Boy was I glad I stumbled upon this little gem. The hot dog was cooked just right and flavorful, the bun was perfectly steamed. The price is right for the French market it’s not going to be a $ 1.99 dog but its worth it’s weight in gold. You will not be disappointed. I promise.

I finished my Jumbo Polish Sausage Maxwell Street style, it was fantastic. The sausage, the bun, sport peppers, onions, and mustard all were very fresh!
I’m not sure why everyone is complaining that this place is expensive. Find me a another place in the French Market where you can get a whole freshly prepared meal for $ 6.00 and I’ll go there to eat too. When I say meal, I mean entrée, side, and drink.
Cool couple of guys to talk to and the Polish was ready in a hurry. No complaints here Unilocalhaters.

Get hot dog. They just started selling chili dogs and it is just delicious. I’d even dare say that it’s better than Portillo’s.

I feel bad giving this place a bad review, because I really want to support their efforts to establish an «American» food beachhead in the Fortress Europa that is the French Market food court. Plus, I really bonded with the guy who made my hot dog during my 10 minute wait. But there’s the first problem: I HAD ENOUGH TIME TO BOND WITH THE HOT DOG GUY. No offense to hot dog professionals everywhere, I admire them all and respect what they do, but I want my hot dogs quickly and with a minimum of interpersonal contact. (Especially if I’ve done a horrible thing like ordered 3 chili-​cheese dogs, which has been known to happen. Then I can barely even look them in the eye.) In fairness, he did offer me some free chips for the wait, but what about my order of 2 Chicago-​style hot dogs at a Chicago-​style hot dog stand could have taken so long to prepare?
Then we come to the hot dogs themselves. For people who grew up on New York-​style hot dogs, they’re certainly a revelation, but as others have noted, they’re not anything I couldn’t get at virtually any Vienna hot dog stand in the city. And they’d be at least a buck cheaper and probably come with a bunch of french fries. Hell, for what I paid, I could go to the Vienna store myself and get a whole pack of dogs and buns and put myself in the emergency room.
So, it’s overpriced, takes longer than it should, and it’s only mediocre. For the French Market food court, that’s par for the course, but if you’re selling macarons or banh mi in Ogilvie Transportation Center, you’re probably the only game around, so you can get away with mediocre. Given that there are probably 10 cheaper hot dog stands in a 6 block radius that are better or just as good, the Hot Dog Guy is going to have to do a little bit more to stand out.

Disappointing. The place doesn’t have much selection, therefore what they do should be pretty great. The jumbo hot dog (no regular hot dogs here) had a somewhat hard bun that was particularly unappealing. The cooking of the hot dog was about what you’d hope for, it didn’t seem overcooked. They’ve expanded their selection to having chili, and that was tasty but unexceptional. I don’t expect to return. The french market has lots of good places instead. For hot dogs, UB Dogs isn’t too far, and Fast Track isn’t too far either.

Very well seasoned, delicious Polish dog. visiting from Jersey I gotta say, sorry New York but this puts NY dogs to shame!!! all kinds of veggies on top, delicious!!! both the Polish sausage itself and the big «salad» on top were well seasoned. great!

**1.5 stars**
$ 3.99 for a hot dog? Puh-​lease. This is a dollar more than what it should be. This is a very average Vienna Beef hot dog with you usual toppings. Its absolutely nothing to write home about.
I’m glad they opened a hot dog stand in the French market, but I was really hoping it would be more along the lines of the other interesting options they have to offer there. This however is an overpriced, average spot that does nothing to diversify the market’s appeal. I would much rather get a pastrami sandwich down the way, or a high quality sandwich at Pastorals.
PS — The first three reviews are bogus reviews if you ask me. Five stars for this place is ridiculous, and anyone that says this is the best hot dog in Chicago needs to have their head examined.

Best Chicago dog in town! Hot, juicy, great toppings = Merry Christmas!
As a fat guy, I know a great dog — this is it.

Stopped by here over the weekend and fell in love! Had a baby beef sandwich along with a Chicago style dog– and they were both as good as it gets. Anytime I’m near the French Market I’ll be stopping in again.

Great addition to the French Market! Great tasting dogs; would recommend giving it a shot if you’re in the market… good chance you’ll go back for seconds!