My collaboration with Zenner’s — Bill Oakley’s Signature Summer Dog — launched at a pop-up event last Saturday in Portland’s excellent Wellspent Market. Yes, the dog was designed to my (very rough) specifications — it’s essentially a hot dog sized weisswurst — but I am pretty sure it was the best hot dog I ever ate.

Now, prior to the development of this hot dog, I had been a huge fan of frankfurters with lots of toppings: the Chicago Dog, the Carolina Slaw Dog, and my usual which is a Hebrew National (used to be A&H but I cannot find them anymore!) with ketchup, mustard, and relish. (I am NOT opposed to ketchup on hot dogs, for the record!) However, after Zenner’s delivered me the test batches of my Summer Dog, I experimented with all sorts of cooking methods and toppings and determined this dog — with its subtle umami — tasted best with only mustard and grilled onions. The mustard was a Steamie Award winner years ago, the spectacular Bavarian Sweet & Spicy Mustard from NYC’s Schaller & Weber. Wellspent Market ordered a gallon of it for the event and it was a smash hit. Here’s how the perfect dog looked:

TWO (!) DIFFERENT CURIOSITY DINNERS in San Diego!

Last week, I had two different dinners at two different venues in San Diego and both were awesome, delicious, and very fun. First was at Ponyboy — our first outdoor venue for this event — and both the food and the setting were excellent. It was exciting to see these crazy items projected on a huge screen over a beautifully-lit swimming pool!

The (surprise, as always) Ponyboy Menu consisted of:

• Mississippi Koolickles Crudite

• Hawaii Spam Fries with Huli Huli Sauce

• Charleston She Crab Soup with Local Rock Crab from Tunaville Market

• Altoona Style Pizza with Dough from Tribute Pizza and New School American

• New England Grape Sorbet

• Kentucky Hot Brown with Nueske Bacon and Companion Bread Co. Blue Masa Sourdough

• St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake

The next night, the sold-out event took place in a banquet room at the fantastic Ballast Point Brewing in Miramar. This was definitely one of our fanciest events!

The menu at Ballast Point consisted of:

• Cincinnati Sauerkrauts Balls

• Rhode Island Style Clam Chowder

• Mini North Short Roast Beef Sandwiches

• Altoona Style Pizza

• Deep Fried Beech Mushrooms with Tomato Vinaigrette Dipping Sauce and Ginger (the chef’s homage to the local Asian Convoy District)

• Chicken a la Maryland

• St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake

Both venues pulled off the event flawlessly. As I write this, I’m in Atlanta for the event tomorrow night at Southern Belle (two seatings), the first Michelin-recommended restaurant (!) I’ve worked with, with James Beard-nominated (!) Joey Ward.

Tickets are NOW ON SALE for all the August Culinary Curiosity Events!

GREENSBORO NC - TWO NIGHTS - AUG 9 & 10 - CURRENTLY SOLD OUT

CAMBRIDGE, MASS - AUGUST 17 - STATE PARK

BOSTON, MASS - AUGUST 18 - JM CURLEY

UPCOMING: WILMINGTON/CAROLINA BEACH, NC - OCTOBER 10

If you know of, or are, a chef or restaurant that might like to collaborate on this event, let me know on the contact page of BillOakley.com please!

This Week’s All-Timer

This is a recurring feature of this newsletter in which I highlight one of my all-time favorite foods or food products which I haven’t talked or posted about in a while.

This week it’s Urban Pie Company’s Uncured Pepperoni with Creamy Rosa Sauce Pizza. This company makes good, fancier-than-the-norm, frozen pizzas across the board and you can often find them at slightly fancier grocery stores, a la Portland’s New Seasons and I think Whole Foods, as well as the usual sources.

Though I usually go almost exclusively for Supreme frozen pizzas, this is a notable exception. I’d never heard of Rosa sauce before buying this — and its blend of Alfredo AND Marinara sauces — and it’s great and gives this thing a full-bodied and rich flavor. It’s one of my all-time favorite go-to pizzas. Give it a try!

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