Could life get any better than holding a glass of crisp bubbly champagne in one hand and a juicy hotdog dripping in BBQ sauce and bacon in the other? No, I didn’t think so. Welcome to Bubbledogs, a new concept restaurant in Fitzrovia, London. I use the term ‘restaurant’ lightly as it is more like a swanky champagne bar that just happens to serve immense hotdogs. I had heard a few horror stories about the length of the queue and so was pleasantly surprised to find I only had to wait 10 minutes for a table for two. I also use the term ‘table for two’ lightly as we were actually perched on the end of a table for four, where four people were already eating – not so great. But the bare brick walls and bubble-esque light fixtures are funky and atmospheric and although it is a small and crowded space, it is fun and casual and not uncomfortable at all. Our waiter was a very amusing French guy who delighted in recommending us the different glasses of fizz and sausages. He was extremely attentive in refilling our water and his smiley demeanour was infectious.
Now onto the hard stuff – deciding which dawg and drink to go for. The menu consists of page after page of different champagnes, none of which I have heard of because they source their entire champers selection from independent vineyards. Luckily there is only a small selection of champagnes you can buy by the glass so this limited our choice as for once we were not buying in bulk. For those of you who are not partial to bubbles, a variety of cocktails and beers are also available.
There are 13 lip smackingly different yet equally delicious sounding hotdogs on offer – all coming with a sausage filler of your choice – Pork, Beef or Veggie. The toppings are weird and wonderful and certainly not expected. Breakkie Dogs with egg and black pudding, Buffalo Dogs with blue cheese and pickled celery and plain old Naked Dogs with nothin’ but a bun. After much painful deliberation I opted for the Fourth of July Dog, a juicy beef sausage, wrapped in bacon and smothered in a tangy sweet barbecue sauce and topped with some of the creamiest coleslaw I have ever tasted. All nestled together in a plump white bun. My dinner pal chose the José Dog, a Mexican inspired mountain of tomato salsa, avocado, sour cream and jalapenos all camouflaging the hidden sausage beneath. Even the side orders of crunchy tater tots and sweet potato fries were enough to get me salivating like a St. Bernard.
We only had the table for 50 minutes but this proved to be no problem at all as the food and champagne was gone in a flash. It was so delicious and although slightly more expensive than a regular hotdog elsewhere, the surroundings and the quality of the ingredients do not go amiss. I love the pairing of something well-to-do like champagne with something comfortable and basic, like a hotdog. It appears to go really well together, and who on this earth doesn’t love both of these beautiful things? This theme was present throughout the restaurant, with typical greasy-spoon style ketchup and mustard bottles standing in an empty champagne box. Just great.
We left Bubbledogs at around 7pm and the queue was out the door and down the road (this was on a Wednesday!); predictions of at least an hour and a half wait were being passed down the line in Chinese whispers. But I will definitely be returning as I can’t carry on with life until I have sampled the other dogs. However I will always arrive as early as possible as waiting for more than an hour is outrageous, especially seeing as you can guzzle down your meal in less than 10 minutes.
Great job Bubbledogs, I can’t wait to return.
all the dinky details 