Hot Dog Kids

Backyard Big Dog takes hot dogs uptown, and it works

By William R. Wood | Kalamazoo Gazette

October 01, 2009, 11:49PM

John A. Lacko | Special to the GazetteMarcus McCone gets his order handed to him by Elise Conner at the Backyard Big Dog on Stadium Drive.OSHTEMO TOWNSHIP — Owners and managers of Backyard Big Dog Gourmet Hot Dogs have a tough challenge: To persuade customers to try hot dogs that are different than the ones the customers are used to.

There are lots of hot dogs at Backyard Big Dog to select, from dogs with Swiss cheese, sour cream and pickles to dogs with coleslaw along with mustard and ketchup. But what is going to move a guy to try that rather than his favorite Chicago dog?

But one thing Backyard Big Dog has going for it is good meat. My companion and I, who got two gourmet dogs ($2.19 to $4.79) and one gourmet, homemade brat easily agreed on that. The gourmet dogs were especially tasty and juicy, so much so that we plan to get those for the kids when we return, rather than the less expensive and small “Puppies” or kids’ hot dogs which cost $2.99 with mustard and ketchup, Black & Barrel potato chips and a drink.

The hot dog meat was tasty, juicy and thick — a quarter pound of beef — and we could easily taste it through the fixings piled on our hot dogs.
John A. Lacko / Special to the GazetteThe Chicago Style Hot Dog at the Backyard Big Dog on Stadium Drive. We decided to be adventurous. I got the special of the day, which happened to include bacon, sauerkraut, sauteed onions and mushrooms and Swiss cheese. The flavors melded together nicely for a nice little meal.

My companion got the Snoop Dog topped with a chili made at the restaurant, along with onion and mustard. She tasted the chili by itself first and liked it.

The buns used for the hot dogs are substantial and made at Renzema’s Bakery of Parchment. The brats are homemade as well, created at Harding’s in Plainwell. They are made with pineapple (Maui Brat, $4.99), habanero peppers and Cajun spices (Atomic Brat, $4.99) and jalapeno peppers (Backyard Big Brat, $4.99). The one I got, the Alternative Brat, which was a plain brat made into a Chicago dog, had a full, robust flavor but was not as good as the restaurant’s regular, quarter-pound dogs.

The most popular hot dog at the restaurant is the Chicago Dog with the regular, quarter-pound dog. It is topped with mustard, relish, chopped onions, tomato wedges, sport peppers, celery salt and a pickle spear.

Address: 7000 Stadium Drive, Suite No. 4, at Eighth St., Oshtemo Township.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays.
Phone: 269-353-3253
www.backyardbigdog.com