Lucky Louie’s Beer & Wieners

I want to remind everyone that I will be picking a reader to join me for a meal on my summer food tour of local restaurants. To enter for a chance to eat with me, all you have to do is send an email with your name, address and telephone number to Akochirka@goerie.com.

I know I went to Eddie’s Footlong Hot Dogs last week, but the overwhelming number of votes this week led me to another hot dog stand. At 8238 Perry Highway , across from Presque Isle Downs and Casino, sits Lucky Louie’s Beer & Wieners. This small build-your-own 6-pack / hot dog shop has only been open for about six weeks, but I think they are here to stay. I picked up my friends Tom Welch and Amanda Knopf at 6 on Tuesday night and headed up to eat. With seating for about 20, the place isn’t the largest, however they have a 300+ beer selection to make up for it. Behind the counter is a large white board with all of the different hot dogs on it so the three of us took some time to look it over while Chris got our drinks. Chris gave us some suggestions based on which dogs were most popular. With 19 combinations to choose from as well as having the ability to mix any ingredients you want, the decision was tough. Tom went with the Hog Dog and Amanda ordered the Rueben Dog. I wanted to try more than one so I ordered the Franks ‘N’ Beans as well as the Neener Wiener.

Like most other places in the area, Smith’s Natural Casing Wieners are the hot dogs of choice here. The hot dogs are split down the middle and served open faced on a grilled bun. Tom’s Hog Dog was topped with pepperoni, four (yes, four) strips of bacon, and cheese sauce. Tom was quite hungry and was kind enough to finish this before I could have a bite. It looked and smelled delicious and would be something I order in the future. Amanda’s Reuben Dog was pretty delicious as well (and I actually got a bite of this one). The sauerkraut had that perfect sour bite and crunch. If rye buns could be found, that would be my only suggestion to make this one better.

I ate the Neener Wiener first which just so happens to be named after my friend, Nina Ferrare. This is the way she likes her dogs and I just had to try it. The hot dog was smothered in chili, diced onion and crushed potato chips and topped with mustard and cheese sauce. The chili had some great flavors, but I thought it overpowered the actual wiener too much. I would get it lighter next time. The chips and mustard/cheese combo, however was my favorite part of this one. The Franks ‘N’ Beans was my shining choice. It was a food trip back to childhood. The open-faced dog was topped with a slice of bacon, baked beans, diced onions, mustard and a dusting of brown sugar. The beans and bacon were awesome, the bite of the mustard was cut by the sweetness of the brown sugar and the crunch of the onions really made this fantastic.

While eating, Tom and I came up with some fantastic ideas for new additions to the menu. Tom’s was a variation of the Asian dog using lo-mein noodles, General Tso’s sauce and sesame seeds. My idea was a breakfast dog with scrambled/fried egg, bacon, hash browns and hot sauce. Think about it, maybe a Bearded Breakfast Dog could be on the menu.

Although the hot dogs are filling, there aren’t any sides to choose from so this is not the place to come if you are looking for a complete meal. However, if it’s hot dogs and beer you want, this is the place. There are plenty of other options on the menu that I want to try, so I will be returning for sure. Thank you, Chris, for the fantastic service.

Until next time,

Andrew – Beard vs. Food