I’m proud to say that the second Man Bites Dog trailer is now open, and the spot at 2101 Manor Road is awesome. Yesterday was day one and we got a very warm welcome.  The guys from Thunderbird Coffee, thunderbirdcoffee.com, and Chet from The Austin Day Tripper, theaustindaytripper.com, stopped by to welcome us to the neighborhood. There was also a good amount of people who stopped by to say hi and check out the menu, and then of course all the folks who partook in a delicious hot dog.

It was a great day in Man Bites Dog history.

That’s right folks, Man Bites Dog is expanding. Our second trailer will open at 2101 Manor Road in early March. Too soon? Well we’ve been open four months, how long do you want me to wait?!

We’ve been battling the cold and rain for the past few months and are still doing well, which leads me to believe our customers are like postal employees – neither rain, sleet, nor snow can keep them away.  This can only mean spring and summer will bring a plethora of new hot dogs eaters, so many so that we will need another trailer to feed them all. And so — cue heroic theme music and a powerful breeze — I bought one!

The new spot on Manor is near a crowd of popular Austin restaurants — El Chile, Hoover’s Cooking, Red House Pizzeria, El Chilito — so our dogs should fit right in.  All this activity reminds me of the old days when I opened the first trailer.  Thanksgiving — it seems so long ago; I can barely remember what we ate. (Turkey? Borscht? Crepes? Who can possibly think back that far?)  All kidding aside, it’s a very exciting and stressful time, but I’m loving every minute of it.  You all have made the first four months fantastic, and I really appreciate the loyalty — here’s to an even more memorable remainder of the year.

Click the link below to check out our new spot on youtube.

Man Bites Dog – The Choice

You can’t see it, but it’s sleeting in this picture, and these brave people are here to try the Greek Dog and the Bird Dog.

Check out our latest write up in the Austin American Statesman

http://www.austin360.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/dining/entries/2010/02/03/hot_dog_digest_man_bites_dog.html

For last week’s BCS championship game Man Bites Dog catered events at Annie’s West and Kung Fu Saloon (http://annieswest.com/ and http://www.kungfusaloon.com/), our first real catering gigs! We outfitted both bars with 120 dogs a piece — along with enough chili, cheese, and condiments to stuff a linebacker — and Ben and Nick (the owners of these fine establishments) said the dogs were a big hit, despite the game’s outcome. We laughed, we cried, we filled our faces with cased meat. Ah, memories.

Everyone raved about how good the dogs were, especially the bread (which we’ve come to expect), and speaking of our delicious buns — I’ve mentioned before they’re baked by the Kolache Shoppe on North Burnet. Well last week our pal, shop owner Robert, told me he finally bought some franks and sausages to try the buns he’d been making us for two months now. And what do you know — he couldn’t stop talking about how great they work as hot dog buns! “I know,” I said, “that’s why people keep coming back!”

Back to the catering, though. Despite how well the events went at Annie’s and KFS, the only problem I have is that it somewhat limits our dynamite menu. If the layout requires me to set out chaffing dishes, I can only equip a place with basic dogs and chili. I can’t set out the ingredients for the Cuban, the Italian Stallion, or any of our new specials. (Can you say the Zorba, Billy Club or Brunch Dog? Come back soon to test them out!) And for those of you who know how tasty our other dawgs are, that’s a bit like taking me to a party and only asking me to chat — I can sing like an angel and have moves that would make the cast of Electric Boogaloo break into tears. Cmon!

For example, one of the things that makes the Buffalo Hottie so tasty is that we butterfly the dog and fill the crease with blue cheese and hot sauce while it’s still on the grill, which melts the cheese and blends the flavors. And our Bird Dog — I bring each of those sausages to temperature by sitting on them like a hen, caring for them like little chicks. You’re not going to get that on a buffet.

But I digress. Even with the limited options, you’re still in for a better night than you’d have if our paths didn’t cross. (I mean, it is chili, sausages, and beer — what are you, the Sultan of Brunei?!) The choice is yours — I can put out the basic dog buffet for bars, games, Johnny’s 7th birthday, and save the specials for full blown catering events where we set up a grill cook on the spot. The point is, people are tasting the dogs and liking them, and you could too. Just stop on by to see us, or call and we’ll come feed you and your friends!

Cold and wet. Despite the growing consensus about the sheer deliciousness of our dawgs, the weather the last couple of weeks has been less than ideal for concession trailer operations. Apparently, people don’t like standing around in the rain and cold waiting for a hot dog, even if they know a tasty Cuban (the hot dog — I’m Irish) is waiting as their reward. I can understand that.

Even with the bad weather, though, we’re still breaking sales records — if you can even say that since we’ve only been open for a month. (I know, it’s a bit like saying you’re the coolest mathlete, but cmon — this is exciting!) We finally caught a break last Sunday when the sun came out and we wound up having our best day yet — even cherry LeBaron came back for a couple Italian Stallions!

All in all, people are still raving about the dogs — good, bad, or fair weather besides — and I really appreciate it.  In order to keep our growing army dry, I built an awning over the front of the trailer for the rain, but for the cold I’ve got nothing right now. (Other than a wink and a grin, which my mother has always said could warm the coldest heart.)  A fully loaded chili dog always hit the spot for me on days like that, though.

Tuesday I walked up and down South Congress handing out menus to the businesses and the response was great. People seemed really into the menu and by the time I got back to the trailer we already had a couple of sizable pickup orders for Allens Boots and Eric and the gang at Wet Salon. Thanks a lot, to you guys — I hope you liked the grub!  (If not, it’s not my fault — blame Tim…)

It already seems like longer, but Man Bites Dog is almost a week old!  We’ve gotten tons of feedback thus far — from friends, critics, and that chatty guy in the bathrobe with the cherry LeBaron — and almost everyone we’ve talked to has really enjoyed the dogs. When planning the menu I assumed a few of the specials would become fan favorites, but to my surprise all the specials have been selling really well. So far the Buffalo Hottie has been the front runner, but the chicken sausage specials have really been knocking people’s socks off.  A week ago I thought Brie was just a girl’s name, now it’s the key to one of our top sellers!

I’m joking, but spirits are high right now and I’m really proud of what we’ve accomplished.  I say “we” because my staff has been awesome — Shane, you’re the best. Any reviews touting how perfectly the dogs are cooked are due to your skills on the grill.

Here’s a bit in the Austin Statesman/Austin 360 about our opening. More of a announcement than a review, but still exciting.  They know where we are, so they’ll know where to go once they hear everyone raving about the dogs:

http://www.austin360.com/dining/content/food_drink/stories/2009/11/1118open.html

Here’s our first Yelp review. A great review — and by a vegetarian! Who’d have thought?!:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/man-bites-dog-austin

Overall, I’m thrilled about what we’ve done this week. We’ve made a bunch of tasty hot dogs, people are hearing about us and coming back for seconds, and I finally fixed that stupid water leak under the sink. All in all, an opening week for the books — who knows what next week will bring!