Fancy Franks Fancy Gourmet Hot Dogs

This week I joined a bunch of fellow Food Bloggers for a tasting of some new menu items for Fancy Frank's Gourmet Hot Dogs.  I  visited their Bloorcourt location on Bloor St. W. just west of Ossington Station.  They also have a location on College Street.

Walking into Fancy Franks I got the impression of a neighbourhood restaurant that seems to have one foot in the past with the classic Hot Dogs and some of the decor and yet a foot in the present with a twist on some of the Hot Dog preparations and a tiny bit of the decor if that makes any sense.  It does give you the feel of a couple of merging generations.   There is a long communal table in the middle of the restaurant with bench style seating and single seat bar height seating around the walls of the restaurant.

Although I will never win any food eating contests and didn't have enough room in my stomach that seems to hold a lot more than it actually does.  I only tried a few of the menu items presented to us.  I skipped the HUEVOS Hot Dog since I had scrambled eggs for breakfast and I also skipped one of the poutine's.  

I tried the FANCY SCHMANCY POUTINE, I love the name of this one.  It consisted of Fries of course topped with Shredded Beef Brisket I believe and gravy and topped with a fried egg and some green onions.  I love having a fried egg with hash browns so this one was right up my alley.   It would probably be a great thing for some after the club food fix.

The Hot Dog that I tried and liked very much was the FRANKIE GOES TO BUFFALO Hot Dog,  it's a buffalo wing style coated deep fried hot dog with Franks Red Hot sauce and some celery and carrots on top.  It has a nice crunch.  

On the subject of Crunch... I have heard that the sign of a good hot dog is in the snap of the outer casing.  It should have a snap when you eat it.   These hot dogs had that snap.

One of their other unusual Hot Dogs was the FRANKIE WANNA MEATBALL, a regular hot dog topped with meatballs and spaghetti.  This one was a bit tricky to eat and my meatball rolled off the dog and onto the table.  I get the concept but I think I would have just preferred a spaghetti marinara sauce topped dog.

And the other thing on the menu was their MINI DONUTS with Sprinkles.   These are plain vanilla donuts with icing stuffed into the donut hole and on top and then sprinkles on top.   I would have preferred if the icing was on the donut and not in the hole because most of it stuck to the paper it was served on.  They were ok but not exactly Tiny Tom Donuts.   I prefer light Krispy Kreme style donuts myself.

There were a couple of Paramedic Bloggers at the event who are searching for quick places to pick up food while they are on their shifts and it seems as though this place might fit the bill for something like that.

Although it was way out of the way for me to drop into I do think that it would be a popular place for people in the neighbourhood who want a quick hot dog and fries that are a little different than the street meat on the corner carts.

I am by no means a hot dog junkie and try and resist eating them on a regular basis and only succumb when I have a craving or I am in a hurry.   I do believe that people who love Hot Dogs and like a bit of a neighbourhood joint feel will love to check out this place and pick up some dogs and poutine to go.

Happy Hot Dog eating..