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Shallow-Fried Chili-Cheese Hot Dog
Tuesdays are Lunch Bunch days in Downtown Oakland. Anywhere from 3 - 6
friends get together and visit a local spot for easy conversation and
cool flavors. This week we went to Rico's at Franklin and 15th, and for under ten bucks, I got a meal that threatened to siphon ten years off the backend of my mortal coiling.
Rico's is unassuming at first glance. Just a diner-looking spot with license plates on the walls and lots of American food options and you have to order and pay at the counter. I think the black vinyl and old chrome chairs are quite elegant, and the tables are made of warm, worn wood.
They also have the kind of food that will make your stomach take your brain out back, behind the barn, where your ears can't hear the mercy-killing.
Nice cantaloupe!!!
Anyway here's how it went down: the four of us were totally confounded by the menu options, and I was thinking I might go for a Mexican breakfast scramble sort of deal, but then we saw this crispy hot dog listed and wondered what that was about. Beneath it were some competing dog styles — chili dog and cheesy dog. I'm not sure who in our party did the math, but it was suggested that combining all of the dog variables into one unifying equation was a real option, and that maybe someone should try it. So I did.
IT WAS WAY BETTER THAN YOU'D THINK! It's a real success story for Rico's, I think, that they were able to make this thing not the destroyer of worlds it seemed destined to be. The cheese didn't taste like cheap American cheese (is there fancy American cheese?), the chili was hot and a little spicy and had nice chunks of quality meat and beans, and the dog itself was something else.
To start, they must have just boiled the thing as usual. I don't think they battered it after that, really, though there were some small light-brown bits on the ends, which were a little crunchy, but were probably just bits of crispy skin that'd been lightly fried. One great thing is that Rico's tends to use high-quality ingredients just about everywhere. Real fruit shakes, Acme breads, organic vegetables, etc. I could fully taste the meat, so it didn't feel like they were trying to hide anything by frying the hell out of it, and it was damned good. The bun was a bit sweet too, but maybe that was from the chili seeping into some crazy pockets.
Anyway, I killed the whole dog and the milkshake and I felt somehow clean. I felt like I hadn't just put some new pollution into my guts, but had instead laid down a good foundational layer for the afternoon in front of me. I didn't even want to take a nap afterwards!
Way to go Rico's. Also: NICE TOTS.
Rico's is unassuming at first glance. Just a diner-looking spot with license plates on the walls and lots of American food options and you have to order and pay at the counter. I think the black vinyl and old chrome chairs are quite elegant, and the tables are made of warm, worn wood.
They also have the kind of food that will make your stomach take your brain out back, behind the barn, where your ears can't hear the mercy-killing.
Nice cantaloupe!!!
Anyway here's how it went down: the four of us were totally confounded by the menu options, and I was thinking I might go for a Mexican breakfast scramble sort of deal, but then we saw this crispy hot dog listed and wondered what that was about. Beneath it were some competing dog styles — chili dog and cheesy dog. I'm not sure who in our party did the math, but it was suggested that combining all of the dog variables into one unifying equation was a real option, and that maybe someone should try it. So I did.
IT WAS WAY BETTER THAN YOU'D THINK! It's a real success story for Rico's, I think, that they were able to make this thing not the destroyer of worlds it seemed destined to be. The cheese didn't taste like cheap American cheese (is there fancy American cheese?), the chili was hot and a little spicy and had nice chunks of quality meat and beans, and the dog itself was something else.
To start, they must have just boiled the thing as usual. I don't think they battered it after that, really, though there were some small light-brown bits on the ends, which were a little crunchy, but were probably just bits of crispy skin that'd been lightly fried. One great thing is that Rico's tends to use high-quality ingredients just about everywhere. Real fruit shakes, Acme breads, organic vegetables, etc. I could fully taste the meat, so it didn't feel like they were trying to hide anything by frying the hell out of it, and it was damned good. The bun was a bit sweet too, but maybe that was from the chili seeping into some crazy pockets.
Anyway, I killed the whole dog and the milkshake and I felt somehow clean. I felt like I hadn't just put some new pollution into my guts, but had instead laid down a good foundational layer for the afternoon in front of me. I didn't even want to take a nap afterwards!
Way to go Rico's. Also: NICE TOTS.
Comments (6) · Post a New Comment
Tim · God bless Rico's. There's a gutbusting element, to be sure. But I dare anybody to suggest the food is not a) completely tasty in its way, and b) totally good-looking. I mean, look at those pictures! Lunch bunch 4 life.
mct · Telling some truths. Rico's is dope.
Other Alice · Yeah, I'd eat that.
cory · I want to lunch bunch. Maybe once a month I'll make the trek.
dan · is there some type of green seasoning on the tots?
Average Betty · "Napoleon, give me some of your tots."
