While junkyards in themselves don’t seem particularly appetizing, the concept of a junkyard as a way to describe food items holds a lot of promise. “Junkyards” and their close associates, “garbage” and “kitchen sink” suggest a menu item with everything thrown in on top. It refers to something generous, and perhaps a little wacky all at once. For example, Junkyard Cookies are cookies with chips, nuts and several sorts of candy. A Junkyard Burger might share the bun with fried cheese curds and pepperoni slices.
And Junkyard Dogs? Well, we shall see.
Junkyard Dogs set up shop this summer on Dublin Granville Road in Linworth. The joint celebrates catchy hotdog combos beneath a logo that celebrates another junkyard classic, the junkyard canine. In this case, it’s a vaguely grumpy bulldog. Junkyard Dogs also happens to be co-owned by a local celebrity, one Jerry Elliot, whose name might ring a bell for QFM96 listeners. He shares ownership with Ed Bisconti, the proprietor of the much-loved Borgata Pizza. So, that makes two celebrities, all in.
The menu extends beyond frankfurter fare to include related options like vegan hotdogs, brats, fries and milkshakes.
But let’s get right to it, shall we? As designed, the namesake menu item, the Junkyard Dog ($7), is equipped with coney sauce, “cheesy onions,” bacon, jalapeño, coleslaw, garlic aioli and spicy brown mustard. As executed, it’s delivered with a good blanket of meaty sauce – enough to cover the length of the dog, the cheesy onions are sautéed with cheese that has been unexpectedly fused on the grill. It shares significant common ground with a cheese wafer from a tony restaurant salad. It works just fine on a humble-ish hot dog, so bonus points for that. And while coleslaw isn’t typically a favorite on hotdogs, it’s pretty easy to obscure its contributions with the other elements in the combo.
Of course, guests don’t have to go full junkyard. There are plenty of more conservative hotdog options. Case in point: the Chicago Dog ($7) comes with mustard, onion, relish, tomatoes, sport peppers and a pickle. With lots of shapes on board, it comes together less cooperatively than the the junkyard dog. That makes it therefore objectively less fun.
For those with a creative bent, there are options to build your own masterpiece with a topping selection that extends beyond the junkyard into options like sauerkraut and sweet or spicy mustard relish. There are also a couple of sausage options on the menu: The Italian Sausage ($8) is pleasantly perky and served with grilled onions and peppers: It’s serviceable if not life-changing.
For sides, you can get fries or hubcaps – zig-zag-ruffled discs ($6). In regular form, the sides make good companions for the dogs, and can be loaded up with the spectrum of Junkyard toppings.
Like any decent hot dog joint, it offers house Milkshakes as well ($7). On the pricey side, the chocolate version delivers the classic goods: thick, sweet, mildly chocolatey, with whipped cream on top.
Junkyard dogs can be found at 2245 W. Dublin Granville Rd. It’s open Mondays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.
For more information, visit junkyardhotdogs.com.
All photos by Susan Post
