detroit eats: coney island hotdog

Detroit gave me a pleasant surprise when I first visited the city during a business related road trip with Mr. Sazy Rock. One of those surprises was finding all sorts of Coney Island restaurants in town. Even more of a surprise was realizing that they were all different and separate entities. Apparently, someone did not trademark the name so other businesses also named theirs Coney Island. Each Coney Island restaurant may be distinguished by additional identifiers in their name.

Coney Island restaurants specialized in hot dogs. Mr. SR and I liked hot dogs. So we thought to compare and contrast all the many different Coney Island hot dogs we could fit in our belly during our all too brief stay in the Motor City. We did it so you do not have to.

First stop: Detroit One Coney Island.

Detroit One Coney Island.

Located between downtown and the Detroit Institute of Arts, it was a bit of a trek to get there. But, we walked pass it and decided to check it out. I was glad we did.

Detroit One's Coney Island Special.

We ordered a Coney Island Special (with ground beef and chili) and a chili cheese fries. The hotdog special was meaty and tasty. And, the fries were crunchy outside and fluffy inside. So tasty. At $2.75 for the hotdog and $3.20 for the chili cheese fries, it was a fairly affordable, albeit, unhealthy meal.

Detroint One's Chili Cheese Fries.

Second stop: Lafayette Coney Island.

Lafayette and American Coney Island.

Located in downtown and right next to American Coney Island, it was very easy to get there. The short order cook was very friendly and proud of the fact that he had been featured in a magazine. 

Lafayette Coney Island.

Lafayette Coney Island.

We ordered a regular Coney Island hot dog for $2.60 (without onions). It was not a special (no ground beef), but it was still tasty. I can see how people prefer Lafayette over other Coney Island restaurants.

Lafayette Coney Island hotdog  without onions.

Third Stop: American Coney Island.

American Coney Island.

Also located downtown and right next door to Lafayette Coney Island, we went next door to compare and contrast these neighboring rivals. 

American Coney Island hotdog.

We also ordered a regular hot dog for $2.65. Again, it was tasty and I can see why it was popular and crowded.

So, which one did I think was the best?

Many Coney Island hot dog fans will probably disagree, but Detroit One won in my book. True, I had the special at Detroit One. But the hotdog and chili combination worked best. The hot dogs were juicy and the chili (even without the beef) was rich and not too salty. Plus, I really liked the chili cheese fries.

Now, I am off to take care of my heart burn.

What is your favorite Coney Island?