WEINIEDOG’S

Mario Pacetti Sunday, November 15, 2015 Comments Off on WEINIEDOG’S
WEINIEDOG’S

Kristi Wooldridge, Weiniedog’s Hot Dog Stand • weiniedogs.com

377-8067 • Chicageaux Bar, 829 University Drive, Lake Charles

I’m a huge fan of hot dogs and have been for as long as I can remember. Some of my most favorite hot dog experiences have come from the little stands that you’ll find only in large cities because a decent amount of foot traffic is needed to make them profitable. You may also see them in areas with a flourishing night life.

I read an online review from a gentleman named Matt Ison who was going off about how great the “Hot Dog Lady” was. Well, up until this year, the mario2 Boudin Burger Hot Dog Lady — AKA Kristi Wooldridge — has run small hot dog stands in multiple locations around Lake Charles. Ison had come across Wooldridge as she was working outside Cowboy’s Nightclub one night.

Ison and his crew were beyond in love with their food experience. But since I don’t stay up late enough to check out these great little treats, I’ve just been missing out.

I’m not sure of the exact date Wooldridge opened up shop in Chicageaux’s Bar on University Drive. But the opening gave me a centralized location I could go check out during my time running around Lake Charles.

I’ve now been three times in as many weeks. Thanks, Matt, for a great review. Now, let me see if I can do the follow-up justice.

On my first visit, Garrett and I went for lunch. We had the pleasure of meeting the Hot Dog Lady. Wooldridge has a very bubbly and engaging personality, and she really loves her food.

She has a valid reason for that love. I ordered the Boudin Mac & Cheese Burger. This is boudin made into a patty. The edges get nice and crispy. It’s topped with nacho cheese and ketchup and served with Zapp’s chips. It was crazy how the flavors from the boudin and mac came together on a bun. All I can really say is you should try it.

mario3 steak Fries Garrett ordered the Philly Cheese Steak Fries, which was as evil as it sounded: crisp fries topped with Cheez Whiz and chopped steak. We talked about the fact that Wooldridge uses the Cheez Whiz, and how when I used it on my cheese steaks, people had the thought that we used Cheez Whiz that came in the can with the squirt top. I always laughed when they asked about it.

Wooldridge has a very creative menu, but these items, as great as they are, is not the main reason we are here. That reason is to talk about hot dogs. She has more than a dozen different hot dogs on her menu, with more than 20 toppings to choose from if you desire to be creative and make your own dog.

I like the fact that you can build your own. But what I like more is the fact that she’s taken the time to create a menu for people who are used to making food and find that it’s nice not to have to be creative.

I really enjoyed my hot dog from Botsky’s, and I gave that venue a more-than-favorable review. But as I was trying the half dozen different dogs I’ve tried thus far, I realized that while Botsky’s provided great ingredients, the hot dog that I loved so much was really of my own creation. That’s fine; but I really enjoyed Wooldridge’s creativity in her hot dog selections as well as all the other items.

I went in the other night with my sister and had the Chicago Dog, which has peppers and onions and tomatoes with relish and mustard. This dog never fails. I also had the Viator. But I got so caught up in the boudin and mac and cheese eggrolls that I can’t even remember the toppings. I do know that there was none of it left when I got finished.

The eggrolls were insane, and I could have eaten an additional order, but after the two dogs, eggrolls and her bomb-ass garlic butter fries, I was on the verge of almost passing out.

The only drawback to this spot will be the fact that people can’t bring kids, as the location is classified as a bar. But you can call in orders; they are set up with the Waitr App that delivers to your house.

Kristi would like to challenge Mike from Botsky’s to a hot dog contest to find out for sure whether we have a King or Queen of Hot Dogs in Lake Charles.

Marli’s Catering 

718-6184

mario4 marli On a closing note, my friend Marli Harrington Priola has jumped into the food business and started doing catering. I’ve been following her progress on Facebook for some time. She hasn’t really pushed hard to get people to know she’s there. She’s taken her time and mastered her craft.

Now that she’s prepared, she’s ready to be a force in catering in SWLA. She does business functions, showers, parties, etc. Her catering ranges from very simple home-cooked meals to very advanced Italian dishes.

Marli’s Catering made a Shrimp Beurre Blanc for the 2015 Rouge Et Blanc. She decided to change her Beurre Blanc from a traditional dish to one that consisted of grilled shrimp, bow-tie pasta, cherry tomato and feta cheese topped with an avocado Creole remoulade sauce.

If anyone that knows anything about cooking for functions such as this one — at which you are constantly plating — you know you want to make it simple and not over-complicate the dish. Chelsea and I both felt Marli nailed it.

She was paired up with Southern Pecan Beer. I’m not a wine drinker, so this was a godsend for me. But I thought I might wear out my welcome if I continued to ask for refills, so we reluctantly moved on.

Priola is a local caterer with strong ties to this area. She’s a great up-and-coming chef. I think if given the chance, she’ll do extremely well in this industry.

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