There is a Hot Dog war brewing in Orange with the opening of Game Day All American Hot Dogs just steps away from PCH Hot Dogs. PCH is the long time leader in Hot Dogs in Orange, while Game Day is the upstart that just opened yesterday. While PCH boils their dogs and steams their buns, Game Day grills their dogs and serves the buns au naturel. straight from the bag. Game Day has a menu of Dogs, Speciality Dogs, Burgers, and more, while PCH serves dogs or fries. I spoke with a man who I think is the owner (Richard) briefly last night about their product, they make their chili in-house and are still working a bit on tweaking the menu but personally I think they already have a winner even thought I did make a suggestion or two.
The stars of my meal were the dogs, perfect grilled hot dogs with just enough snap and a nice spiciness in the background that I thoroughly enjoyed. Chili and many other specialty toppings are made in-house. For my first taste at Game Day I ordered the Coney Dog ($3.95) which is a hot dog with chili, mustard and onions and a Carolina Dog ($3.95) which comes with chili topped with cole slaw. The chili has a nice meaty thickness to it that stays on the dog while you are eating it and mixes perfectly with the hot dog. This was a dog that didn’t need cheese because the toppings on it already hit the spot perfectly.
The Carolina Dog actually reminded me of my visit to North Carolina last year when I visited Penguin Drive in in Charlotte. I would order ten of these dogs if I had the stomach to eat that many it was that good. The cole slaw is a vinegar and mayo based version that by itself would be too overpowering but it mixes so well with the chili I can easily say it was one of the best hot dogs I’ve ordered ever.
My only issue with the dogs was that the buns could have used a little love. It is sort of a balancing act here, with all the toppings the buns have to be able to stand up to it, but at the same time the buns could be winners if they were just a little bit softer. Regardless Game Day took an uppercut to my senses and officially thrown down the gauntlet as a prime underdog in the hot dog battle of Orange County.
On a side note they have Coke products which is a BIG plus to me, and their machine serves crushed ice, which makes every drink awesome. I’m looking forward to many more visits to Game Day All American Hot Dogs they are a winner.
[xrr rating=4/5]
Game Day All American Hot Dogs
3009 E. Chapman Ave.
Orange, CA 92869
(They are in an old Taco Bell building that used to house Aloha Hawaiian BBQ).
