Starting out as a popular pop-up at the Coachella music festival, Sumo Dog, a spot known for its hot dogs with a Japanese bent, opened its first brick-and-mortar location in Koreatown in 2017. Eight years later, the eatery just opened its first Orange County space at the Anaheim Packing District.
Founded by chef Jeffrey Lunak of Morimoto’s Restaurant Group, the menu is full of creative takes on the classic American hot dog. You can find the signature Sumo Dog ($10) with wasabi relish, picked peppers, spicy mayo, teriyaki sauce, furikake, minced onions and nori. Other standouts include the Bacon Banh Mi ($11), a nod to the Vietnamese sandwich featuring a bacon-wrapped dog with pickled daikon radish and carrot slaw, and the Godzilla ($12.50), a footlong hot dog loaded with beef chili, togarashi cheese sauce, wasabi relish, pickled peppers, spicy mayo, teriyaki sauce, furikake, minced onion, jalapeño and nori. The menu also offers a Sumo Corn Dog ($9), a tempura-battered hot dog on a stick.
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For purists, you can also get such American staples as a Plain Dog ($8), a New York Dog ($9.50) with sauerkraut, spicy brown mustard and onions, a Chili and Cheese Dog ($9.50), and a Chicago Dog ($9.50) with yellow mustard, relish, chopped onions and celery salt.
Weenies come in angus beef, pork-sausage and vegan iterations. Sumo Dog’s menu also features seven burgers ($9-$11), sides (french fries, tater tots, sushi rice tots) and mochi.
Sumo Dog officially opened on Aug. 22.
In related wiener news, Jim’s Original, a Chicago street-food staple since 1939, plans on opening its first-ever location outside of the Windy City in Orange. It’s slated to open at some point later this year.
Find it: 440 S Anaheim Blvd., Anaheim