Hoyt's Hotdog Stand

Being a bit of a rush for lunch today, I found myself working on Broadway Drive. This was the perfect opportunity to try Chef Hoyt Tanner's Hot Dog stand, that's right I said Chef Hoyt Tanner.

Known to many in the Hattiesburg area as simply "the Hot Dog Man", Hoyt Tanner is a classically trained Chef with a background in Classic French and Continental Cusine, before moving to Hattiesburg from New York City, Tanner owned his own restaurant and has more than 25 years experience with much of it being an executive chef. After moving to Hattiesburg he served as the Executive Chef/General Manger of Walnut Circle Grill for about two years.

I said all that to say this, the man is a little over-qualified to be smearing mustard on a dog for folks not to appreciate it. I won't pretend to know how or why such an expert in the culinary arts is slinging Hot Dogs out of a tag-a-long cart on Timothy Lane between West Pine Street and Broadway drive, but the man has hot dogs down to an art.

He has several lunch combos and the like, but having a bottle coke in the car, I ordered one of his regular New York Style Hot Dogs and a Spicy Jumbo Sausage on a bun. The NY style hot dog was just that an all-beef "Sabrett" more than bun length frank that was hot, juicy and had that all important "snap" when you bite into it. But, this spicy jumbo sausage on a bun is one of the best meat on a bun that I've had in a long time.

As you know I am pretty traditional when it comes to hot dogs, some mustard and a few onions are about all I need.

I highly recommend stopping by and seeing Hoyt, great dogs and not to mention that he's quite a character if you get him going.

Happy Eating

Big Herb's Hotdog Stand

My "regular" job takes me all across the greater Hattiesburg area on almost a daily basis. An interesting trend is emerging across the area - lunch trucks and street vendors. To my knowledge there are now three traveling vendors selling hot dogs in the Hattiesburg area, one just off of Broadway Drive near Timothy Lane, one just off of Lincoln Road near the Hancock Bank. And a third in Petal on Central Ave. on the property where David Dearman Auto has closed. Our friends at myhattiesburg.com have also pointed out that there's a Gyro vendor operating (or soon to be) on Westover Drive.

While working in Petal today, I stopped at "Big Herb's New York Style Hot Dogs". He's the vendor on Central Ave. Very nice man, who hopes to be in business there for a long time. He has a modern vending cart with running water, propane burners and his station was very clean.

He offers a lunch special which included two hotdogs, a bag of Lays chips and a 12oz. canned coke for $5.00 including tax. That's a pretty good deal.

Now the dogs that he is serving are not your run of the mill grocery store franks, these are the real deal that you would get from a vendor in New York, a more than bun length all-beef frank that were fresh, hot and had that all familiar "snap" when you bite into them.

He's got all the condiments on the cart that you care for - chili, onions, relish, sauerkraut, a couple of different kinds mustard, ect. All the condiments looked to be fresh and stored in a sanitary manner.

The dogs were great, the service was fast and friendly. I wish Big Herb well in his endeavor, I know that I'll be stopping in often.

Over the next few weeks I am going to try to make it a point to stop in and try the other vendors that have popped up around Hattisburg.