The Dogfather: Mob Dogging 7/7/14

As the Hot Dog Adventure continues, Chris and I are finding and remembering joints way off our beaten path. The Dogfather, located in Bartlett was a place Chris knew from his family. Deciding to zip over there before I had work one day proved to be more than worth it.


As one could guess, the interior of The Dogfather has a very mob like atmosphere. Black and white photos of historical mobsters, as well as from mob related movies, line the walls of the restaurant. On the far side of the kitchen, hangs Frank Sinatra's classic mug shot.

Every Tuesday all hot dogs are $.99. Unfortunately, we went on Monday. However, the Hot Dog Gods smiled upon us as everyday from 2-4pm hot dogs are $.99. So, a Chicago-style hot dog, a chili cheese dog, fries, and a drink came to total of around $3.50. I'm not sure if we will be able to find a better deal anywhere else.

However, one cannot base a meal on the deal alone. Starting out with the Chicago-style dog all the toppings were present except celery salt. Also, for the first time, we were served poppy seed buns! It amazes me that it took this long to have one. A nice meaty and juicy dog and all the flavors were present. I do not think I would rank this in my top dogs of this adventure but, there is nothing wrong with it at all.

Of particular note, the sport pepper was fantastic. That is right, there was one sport pepper. I never knew that there was such a variety in sport peppers. It almost seems as though each place has a different variant. Although The Dogfather serves up just one, it was a rather large one but it had enough flavor and heat to cover the entire dog.

Next up was the Chili Dog. When we ate at Fradillio's, both the Chicago-style and Chili dogs were served in Styrofoam containers. We believe this led to soggy buns. Here at The Dogfather, only the Chili Dog was served in Styrofoam. The bun was maybe only a touch soggy. Further research on Styrofoam containers are needed. The chili dog itself was decent. The beans stole the show and the meat was hardly noticeable.

The french fries were unremarkable and very
standard. They were the standard crinkle cut. However, they were served in the classic fry wrapper. I am very forgiving to fries if they are in that wrapper

The Dogfather was a delicious stop on our Hot Dog Adventure. What really will always stand out to me was the price. Anyplace that offers specials like that are always worth repeat visits. I only wish it was closer to my home.

 The Dogfather

957 South Route 59 Bartlett, Illinois 60103

630-540-7500