Dapper Dog

Great food, not many gems like this in San Francisco. Hard to find a hotdog spot that has great food. This is one of them.

Best hot dogs in SF! Located @ the corner of Market & Castro, it’s a tiny storefront next to Hot Cookie. Too small to eat inside, but there are 2 little tables out by the door. Menu has around 8 different specialty dogs & side items like French fries and potato croquettes. The hot dog meat is high quality, definitely not from a hot dog cart. I’ve tried all the different dogs from the Seattle, Chicago, to the Banh Mi. They’re all good & different in their toppings. The Banh Mi seems to be the most popular; my go-​to is the Salty Dog aka the bacon dog. One item of note is the Chicago dog: this is the only place in SF that uses the authentic neon green relish. Credit cards are accepted & this place is open late at night. In summary: high quality affordable hot dogs ($ 6+), more of a takeout place, best kept secret is their French fries: perfectly crispy golden brown & fluffy inside, simply awesome, but I digress.

Good place for a slightly expensive Hot Dog (but actually a pretty affordable meal). Excellent variety and combinations of condiments. I got the Chicago Dog and the plump wiener was succulent. Only downside to the place is no indoor seating (not usually a problem but it was raining) and even outdoor is limited.

HOLY SHIT! let me put it to you this way… I got my vegetarian girlfriend to eat it

Came here because I was craving a hotdog and also Sliders down the street was out of ho dogs. The hot dog was excellent. This black reminded me of Top Dog in Berkeley. I will come back here if ever I’m in the area and I want to hotdog. This is one of the best places in San Francisco for a hotdog. Hotdog plus chips plus a drink equals a good price.

Best hotdogs in the city. Big portions with a variety of different styles and sides. My personal favorite is the salty dog.

Their veggie dog is amazing-​balls! Texture, taste! Yum. You can get it with any of the toppings. My partner ordered some meat one and devoured it. The French fries were so crispy outside and HOT! Highly recommend it. 2 dogs with drinks and shared small fries was less the $ 25 in the CASTRO!

Omg their banh mi dog was amazing! Had all the same ingredients as a Vietnamese sandwich but on top was drizzled in spicy mayo. Reminds me of the ones they use on sushi rolls. I really recommend if you’re in the Castro and you need something quick to eat then come here and get the banh mi dog.

Best french fries I have had in decades!
Vegan dog was ok. But those fries. OMG tha fries!

I’m not the biggest fan of hot dogs, I’m more of a burger girl myself. But oddly enough I was more than pleased with my experience at Dapper Dog. My friend and I came in about 30 minutes to closing hoping to snag a quick late night bite. Even though we came in so close to closing the person at the counter, Owen, still helped us out and had a smile on his face. He was super nice & super fun. I asked him what his favorite was and he recommended the Banh Mi hot dog. I trusted his recommendation and went along with it, as well as grabbing a drink and an order of fries. The place was small but clean, and it lacked any sort of tables to sit at inside and outside so keep that in mind.
On to the food! I wasn’t expecting the flavors to mend well together, but they worked so perfectly together it was surprising how good it was. The hot dog itself was large and didn’t taste like one of those phony, sad, chemical filled ones you get at the supermarket. So good. I miss it already. I haven’t had this good of a hot dog ever. As for the fries I got, nothing special it’s your average fry straight out the fryer. I’m definitely going to come back again soon and try out some more stuff! Someone take me back already.
Tip (s): Parking is a pain in the butt considering it’s located right on Castro Street. There’s no where to sit, but there is a counter to stand and eat at inside, and a couple tables to stand and eat at outside. So, take your pick or take it to go.

I’ve been working at the Castro for quite sometime now, and I’ve always felt it needed a hotdog place such as DapperDog. I have not much negative things to say about this place since the food, service and cleanliness seem to all hit the mark of a fine food spot.
They have 3 different hotdogs to choose fro; beef, chicken or vegetarian. I really can’t say much in regards to the last two, since I want my hotdog; thick, juicy and all beef! And their Neiman ranch beef dogs sure don’t disappoint.
I’ve tried several of their concoctions, cubano, Seattle, philly and their breakfast dogs. I must say that I’m not impressed with any of them. Aside from just going with the tradition hotdog on a bun, topped with mustard, ketchup and sauerkraut, only one type of their dogs can make it better– The Salty Dog. I mean it’s bacon… You can’t go wrong with that.

Great tasting hot dogs with a big variety of a menu! We had the Seattle Hot Dog and Bahn Mi Hot Dog. Great flavors for a good price.
Huge menu so we’ll be back to try more and I’m dying to try the Potato Croquettes! Cheers!

I’m generally not a fan of hot dogs, but Dapper Dog convinced me otherwise. What I hate most about most hot dogs is the quality of the dog and its proportion to the bun. Dapper Dog takes care of both these issues. They are very generous with their quantity of ingredients, placed over a tasty hot dog that is just about the same size as the bun. Plus this is SUCH an affordable price for a simple and filling meal!
My favorite part is the fact that they have their most popular items posted on a board separate from their whole menu because it’s the question they get most often. More places should do this, in my opinion. Saves time and all. I got the Seattle Dog because it has CREAM CHEESE in it (omfg I love cream cheese) and my friend got the Banh Mi Dog.
They were boxed individually and carefully placed in a bag. There are a few places to stand inside and quickly devour your dog but it’s probably better if you take your food to-​go. The two people that helped us were very friendly and purposeful with making each hot dog. Certainly better than «fast food» quality even though they were «just hot dogs.» I already know that I’ll be craving these in the future, especially since they are open late. That could be dangerous… dangerously delicious.

I like the fact that there aren’t any major fast food chains in the Castro, but I dislike how mediocre pizza has been the dominant quick (and late) food option. Hence, Dapper Dog is a welcome addition to the hood! With an array of themed hot dogs, they feel more bougie than bland concession stand. Good size meat on an over sized bun that is usually too bready unless you choose a dog with a lot of toppings.
Loaded Potato Croquettes: Who needs hot dogs when you have these deep fried balls of deliciousness? Melty Cheez Whiz at the center of a mashed potato, bacon and chive ball with a crispy outer shell. These should seriously be standard issue at every bar, bowling alley and fast food joint. I actually like them better than any of the hot dogs I’ve tried.
Chicago Dog: Had the nice tang of a typical Chicago-​style dog. Maybe a little too heavy on the relish and too light on the celery salt. But tasty enough for your Chicago fix.
Philly Dog: A little disappointing. The «steak» was clumped to together like frozen Steak-​umms you didn’t bother to separate. There was no Cheez Whiz just provolone; how can you have a Philly Steak without the Whiz? And though I like jalapeños, I don’t know what is very Philly about them. However, the whole meat topped with meat is still a plus in my mind.

BEST post drinking decision I’ve ever made! I know, you’re thinking that’s not saying much, because we mostly make stupid decisions after drinking, but trust me Dapper Dog is amazing! So much better than the alternative pizza places nearby. My friend was having his birthday at nearby The Lookout… yep Sunday day drinking. I stayed for a few hours, but then my stomach started to hurt; I knew I should have eaten beforehand!
So we knew we were going to hit up Dapper Dog afterwards. We decided on getting an order of the potato croquettes ($ 5 for 4), The Wake Me Up ($ 8) for me and the Philly Cheesesteak ($ 8) for him. I asked for to go since I didn’t know if I’d finish my hot dog. They charge 15 cents per box (his and mine) just an FYI. I don’t think they charged for the box for the croquettes since they best fit in there vs the hot dog dish thingy. They let you choose from a veggie dog, chicken dog, or a beef dog. After a few minutes are dogs were ready to devour. My Wake Me Up, looked slightly different than Cherylynn’s pic. Hers was a whole over easy egg, while mine was scrambled egg chopped up, and topped with bacon pieces, and grilled onion, and shredded cheese. A lot of the cheese hadn’t melted all the way though. Nonetheless it was delicious and totally settled my stomach! The hot dog though filled with fat filled ingredients actually wasn’t that greasy. His Philly Dog was pretty awesome too, beef hot dog topped with lots of sirloin beef pieces, melted provolone and onions and jalapenos. A few minutes after we got our dogs our potato croquettes were ready. These were like fried mash potato balls with diced up bacon and chives and filled with cheese. They were piping hot and golden brown. The cheese oozed out when we bit into them. Overall, a very solid and satisfying affordable meal! These guys are friendly too.
4 stars for some delicious weiners! Possibly my favorite place to get a dog in the Bay. And of course they’re open late, so Super Duper, they’ve got that on you.

I guess I’ve always been blinded by Hot Cookie, because I seem to have missed Dapper Dog until now. It’s one or two doors down… it’s unassuming, and the interior is very minimal — even a little barren. I do wish they’d spruce it up a bit with decorations and maybe some chairs. Currently it’s standing room only, and kind of feels like a good «outdoor» hot dog vendor that happens to have a roof over it.
But let’s talk more about hot dogs.
I’m not a «hot dog person.» But the menu of different varieties (topping combinations) and types of meat (pork, chicken, vegetarian, maybe 1 – 2 more…) caught my attention. I had a hard time deciding, but settled on the buffalo dog done up with chicken. It’s SO interesting because you can’t really even tell the frank is made of chicken — which could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on what you’re hoping for. I liked that it seemed to taste and feel like a true hot dog. Texture was right on the money — it had a very pleasant ‘snap’ when I bit into it. The toppings and the quality of the bun gave it a gourmet feel, and the size and flavor make it a very good value for the money ($ 5-​$ 8 per dog).
The folks here were very nice and helpful, and service was speedy. I wish there was some seating, and more variety of sides. But would I come here again? In a heartbeat.

There’s something highly contrived about this hot dog stand. And since it’s the Castro, it’s not really a stand but probably a placeholder for some failed leather strap-​on shop which blows someone’s theory that there can never be enough leather strap-​on shops in the Castro. But wait, this is the gentrified Castro, so it was probably going to be a baby yoga studio. Instead, it’s a compact spot where you can choose from a dozen specialty dogs, all just a little bit more excessive than at least what I want a hot dog to be. Two guys appear to run the spot. They are attentive to the orders but not very personable beyond that.
Not that I was looking for a little chit-​chat but even the battery-​operated women at Saigon Sandwich say more than these guys. It was not as challenging to decide on which ones I wanted to try. I immediately discounted the Napa Dog which sounds like a cosmic joke with arugula, crumbled blue cheese, diced dried apricots and a house apricot sauce. Say what? The Philly Dog doesn’t even sound like a dog. It’s a cheesesteak sandwich shaped like a dog, right? And if I wanted a Classic Dog, I would have gone to Top Dog and eaten it off the top of a garbage can like I did back in my Cal Bear days. That pretty much left my order.
The first was the $ 6 Chicago Dog. That was quite an extravaganza with a Niman Ranch beef frank topped with chopped onions, tomatoes, yellow mustard, sport peppers, pickle spear, celery salt and a strange neon-​green relish, all on a poppy seed bun (photo:
). Quite a glowing mess to eat but decent enough. I just had a weird feeling the florescent relish was making me look like an Austin Powers fem-​bot extra. I rather liked the $ 6 Banh Mi Dog, a paean to the classic Vietnamese sandwich with a frank nestled with sliced cucumber, pickled carrot, jalapeño, cilantro, chopped peanuts and a splooge of sriracha mayo (photo:
).
I liked the crunch of the ingredients although again, I have to say it was kind of a mess to eat. You’d think two topping-​heavy dogs would be enough, but I decided to order a $ 3 side order of French Fries, and there were quite a few (photo:
). The net result was that I ended up getting three little boxes of food with no offer of a bag, but I managed to snag one of the two stand-​up sidewalk tables available to gorge. That was my good fortune since the 17^th Street Plaza has reverted back to derelict central with the unexplained disappearance of the red chairs and tables. On crowded sing-​along nights at the Castro Theater, you may want to carry your own folding stool if you want to have a seat.
FOOD — 3 stars… big topping-​heavy dogs in the Castro… so what’s new?
AMBIANCE — 2.5 stars… it’s a stand
SERVICE — 3 stars… not much for small talk but gets the orders right
TOTAL — 3 stars… the distance between Chicago and Saigon is a whole lot shorter with these dogs on parade

We don’t really have very many fancy shmancy gourmet type of hot dog places in SF so I was excited to give Dapper Dog a try. I’m not really a big hot dog fan, but always down to try new places. This place is a grab and go type place. There isn’t much space inside to eat or scarf down your hotdog. Their location is pretty ideal. Right in the Castro near Bart where people could stop by if they were hungry.
We decided to try the Banh Mi Dog and the Philly Dog. The Banh Mi Dog was packed with flavor and had a siracha mayo sauce on top. The Philly Dog was a hot dog with meat and cheese on top. Both hot dogs were delicious, but again since I’m not a big hot dog fan… I didn’t find it amazing. Their open late which is a plus and you can see them making each and every hot dog with love — as in they’re not just thrown together. We also tried the potato croquettes which were tasty and worth the try.

Quick, affordable and delicious.
Located in a space smaller than my bedroom a few doors down from the Castro Theater is a late not hot dog spot that is worth stepping into. Actually there is a lot of great little spots around here, but hard to beat grabbing a dog before or after a show at the Castro Theater.
The menu has a variety of great sounding dogs, with a lot of variety. Sure, you can stick with something simple, or classic like a chili dog, or you could go all out and get a Banh Mi Dog, a Wake Up Dog, or Reuben.
My buddy and I went with the Philly Dog and damn was it good. The thick all beef hot dog was cooked perfectly, but wow was the philly cheese and meat perfect. Like I wouldn’t be adverse to them making a philly cheesesteak it was that good. Now not going to lie, trying to get a bite with equal amounts cheesesteak and dog was tough, but in the end it turned into two delicious things between a bun.
Lot of options to chose from, and I will definitely be coming back for the Banh Mi, Cubano, and I just realized I could have added bacon to my Philly. Meat topped with meat topped with meat is usually the way to go.
Note — there is no seating, but you can eat at the very tiny counter, or enjoy your street meat.

Long schlongs and oozy balls.
The Castro, how I love thee!
Don’t worry, no protection needed.
I saw Dapper Dog under hot new businesses on Unilocal and immediately bookmarked it! A Unilocaler saw my bookmark, paid a visit to Dapper Dog, and pre-​paid for my Banh Mi Hot Dog (exactly what I would have ordered). Such a rare, random act of kindness. Thank you, Albertino M.
Dapper Dog is a closet sized shop selling creative twists on the classic schlong… hot dogs taken to the next level to be exact. They’re open every day until 11 pm and until 2:30 am on weekends. On the menu are 10 hot dogs, from a Classic dog, Chicago dog, to a Philly dog (w/​cheese steak), and even a Breakfast dog (w/​eggs, bacon & cheese). You get a choice of a Niman ranch beef, chicken, or veggie hot dog. Hot dogs are $ 5-​$ 8 which is reasonable considering Niman ranch beef hotdogs go for over $ 4 apiece. There’s also two sides available; savory side: Loaded Potato Croquettes ($ 5) and a sweet side: Cinnamon Roll Waffle ($ 3). CC’s accepted.
My Banh Mi Dog ($ 6) was incredibly delicious with all the authentic layers of a legit banh mi: salty, sour, spicy, and sweet:
. The toasted sesame bun nicely cradled the beefy schlong (good snap) and all its toppings. Loved the satisfying crunch from the fresh veggies (pickled carrots, cucumber) and the sprinkling of crunchy peanuts. A generous drizzle of sriracha mayo gave it a spicy creamy finish that had me licking all the corners of my mouth.
You can’t have a good schlong without balls. The Loaded Potato Croquettes (4 for $ 5) were unlike anything I’ve ever had:
. Fried to a golden brown, the hot balls of bacon and chive mash potatoes had a cheesy center that oozed out like lava upon biting into. Even though they have a different filling than Porto’s infamous balls, they may have them beat!
Mr. NSS also got into the schlong action with the Wake Up Hot Dog w/​bacon, fried egg, and cheese except he held the cheese ($ 8):
. He loved it. I didn’t taste it but I could tell it would be bomb with the oozy egg yolk lacquering the schlong like lube.
It’s a two man show and service was very friendly and efficient.
There’s no seating but I think if they moved their condiment bar to the counter top in the kitchen, at least there will be a small standing area to wolf down that schlong.
Parking is very difficult but we got lucky. Next time, I would have someone drop me off while I get the schlongs and balls.
Again, thank you to Albertino M. for the yummy Banh Mi Hot Dog. Since I enjoyed it so much, the right and only thing to do was to pay it forward. I hope the next person enjoyed their free schlong as much I did. And, I’m hoping they paid it forward as well. Because the world needs good schlongs in their life…