Time for another reheat, and it is 4th of July week. We did a new episode just a few days ago that was very hot dog-centric, and we're sticking with that theme this week. We're visiting two classic family-owned hot dog spots. The first one, Red Hots, Coney Island, and Highland Park, Michigan was in business for over 100 years, but they closed for good in 2021.

So I'm so glad we have this document of their incredible history.

Owner Rich Harlan, who you'll meet in this episode, told the Detroit Free Press when they closed down,

I've been doing this for 55 years.

My wife wants to retire.

Well, well deserved to the whole family.

The second hot dog spot you can hear about this episode is Rutz Hut and Clifton, New Jersey, still going strong and open seven days a week, which my parents will be very happy to hear. That's a classic Pashman family haunt with deep fried hot dogs. My grandfather went there. That's how old school that place is. Anyway, remember that if there's a reheat you want to hear, drop me a line at hello at sporkful.com.

Thanks and enjoy.

You got stuck all eight.

How you doing?

A few weeks ago, I went to a hot dog joint in Highland Park, Michigan, near Detroit.

It's called Red Hots.

They specialize in something called a Coney Island hot dog. Here's a customer named Doug. You just know when you get up, you want a Kony. So you roll out of bed and you're like, I'm going to Red Hots today. Exactly, yep. When you get in a mood for a Kony, that's the only thing that's going to cure it. And did you grow up eating conies? Oh, yeah. What are some of your memories of eating conies as a kid? Oh. My grandfather used to take me out and get conies all the time when I was a kid. Man, I guess just the messiness of them and, you know, with the onions and everything on it, it's just, I don't know if you can get anything better.

There we go. You're welcome. Thank you.

Aconi Island is a hot dog in a hot dog bun layered with a little mustard, chili, and then onions.

This is the owner of Red Hots, Rich Harlan. A lot of Coney Islands, they like to put the chili and then the mustard over there and

then the onions.

And it looks pretty that way.

I'm not here for a pretty hot dog.

I'm here for the taste.

The mustard is only supposed to enhance the chili is all it's for.

And so I do it the old-fashioned way where the mustard actually goes on

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