Enid, OK: Dogtown

Aaron's parents came and stayed with us this past week. They were our first visitors in Oklahoma, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we had a really nice time together.  We stayed pretty busy checking out new places (even to us!), chatting up a storm, tiring out the cat, and of course....eating!

The first day they were here we took a stroll downtown, which is a great place to walk around, with little shops and statues and old buildings and that sort of thing.  We were getting pretty hungry, and I had heard of this new funky hotdog place that just opened up.  We decided to check it out, and boy were we glad!

It's in this little place just off of the square that looks like it use to be a diner.  There are a few seats outside, and it looks kinda nice.  But when you walk in...the atmosphere is GREAT!  The colors, the style, the music, it's a hip little happy place with a giant chalk board with AMAZING hotdog combinations for FABULOUS prices.  I wish I had taken more pictures of the place, but I didn't, which is a perfect reason to go back and have more hotdogs!  They have a little bar that seats maybe 4 or 5, and a small back room with a bunch of booths and tables.  But check out that menu board! It's insane. They all sound great...and trust me...the ones we've ordered tasted just as good as they sounded.  Let's take a look, shall we?

Here we have the Old Yeller:

The Old Yeller is a hotdog with macaroni & cheese, grilled ham and coleslaw.  Yes, it is all piled on top of a big fat Nathan's hotdog.  It's huge.  The bun it's served on is almost a hoagie roll, which had perfect texture, but seemed slightly too big.  It really wasn't an issue. I think an easy solution could be hollowing the bread out slightly and stuffing the toppings in a little bit.  Or a slightly smaller bun.  But the taste! Oh YUM!!!  The hotdog was cooked perfect and being a Nathan's it was flavorful and substantial.  I love coleslaw on my hotdogs, and of course macaroni and cheese couldn't hurt either.  The Old Yeller costs $4.99 and it's an additional $2 for a 24oz. drink and handcut fries.  I loved the fries.  They tasted fresh and I really liked how they WEREN'T doused in salt and seasonings.  Mmm.....

Next, Aaron's dad ordered the Chihuahua:

I didn't try this, but was told it was really good. It must have been, because we talked about the hot dog place all week.  The Chihuahua is a hotdog inside of a fried tortilla topped with guacamole, salsa, cheddar cheese and scallions.  Yum! And only $3.79!

Here we have the Treehugger, ordered by Aaron's mom:

This would normally be served with a vegetarian hot dog, but they were out of them, so she ate this with a big meat dog.  Topped with provolone, onions, tomatoes, cucumber, sprouts, cheddar and avocado, this just looked like a mountain of goodness.  A mountain that I will try sooner than later for $5.29.

We were lucky to catch this place open, apparently it was only it's 3rd day, and they had recently gone through some personnel issues.  Our wait was quite a bit longer than it should have been, but numerous employees and the manager (owner maybe?) came up explaining the delay, apologizing, etc. Some other patrons had an issue, mostly because of time restraints with lunch breaks and their own stubbornness and bitchiness   The manager sat with them apologizing and explaining the issue, and in some cases, comp'ing their meal.  We had no issues.  The fact they came out to let us know what was going on was great, and the staff was very nice.  We were enjoying each others company and although we were starved by the time the food came out, we had fun chatting it up and checking out other peoples hot dogs.  Even with a long wait, our food, service and atmosphere made our Dogtown experience great!

I was really hesitant about a themey restaurant like this opening in downtown Enid.  There aren't many good (or even decent) options in the area, and only being here 2 months, I've already nearly given up looking.  But I am so glad I didn't.  Yes, it may just be hotdogs, but it was a great experience and one that I look forward to going to on a regular basis.  I can't wait to bring Aaron there.  Maybe this weekend for a Wild Thang and a beer!

You know what would be cool?  If they had some sort of "frequent dog card" or something like that.  Like a card you get stamped that shows you've eaten every one of their dogs. And maybe get a free hotdog next time.  I think that would go over really well.  With me anyway.

I know it's tough for new restaurants to open in small towns nowadays, and I really hope this place is able to stick around.  I know I'll be going back to get fat and support it!

Let's check out the final review:

Dogtown -115 E. Main Street, Enid, OK

$19.77

1 - Old Yeller
1 - Chihuahua
1 - Treehugger
3 - Combos (Large soda & fries)

Food: 9
Atmosphere: 7 (Could easily be a 9 if speed improves without compromising quality)
Presentation: 9