Kaisereck Deli

One of the best bangs for your buck at Granville island is Kaisereck Deli.  For about the same price you'd pay at a hot dog stand, you get some quality food at GI for a lot less than it's neighboring food vendors.  For about $4.00, I sometimes just get a European smokie and load up on the sauerkraut. 

 

There's no smell of pan-friend onions to draw you in, but the sight alone will do.  It's hard to just walk by the shop without wondering how awesome one of those shiny gourmet sausages would taste.  If you're looking for a quick and cheap bite to eat, give it a try.  You'll find the staff there pretty friendly, and the food delicious.

Frankie's Barbeque - Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal

After fighting a bout of stomach flu, I hadn't eaten anything for two and a half days.  Naturally, the first thing one should eat right after recovering from stomach flu, is hot dogs, first thing in the morning.  On the way to Nanaimo, I stopped in the Tsawwassen (yeah, try to pronounce that properly) Market Quay to find the source of the wonderfull aroma wafting our way in the car line up.  I thought it was toast, and it could have been toast, but the closest thing to breakfast was the hot dogs. 

The deal was two jumbo hot dogs for $6.00.  Not bad considering everything else in the stupid market was way overpriced (imagine movie theatre pricing on steroids).

Well, I was a little disappointed to say the least.  For about $3.00 per dog, I was expecting something close to what you get at Costco (which actually have really good hot dogs/smokies).  I was wrong.  What you have here, is something more like Ikea, bigger, but pretty much of the same quality (or lack of quality).  The sign Frankie's Barbeque should really be changed to Frankie's Steamer....because these dogs never saw the grill.  They were essentially raw and thrown into a pressure steamer which in turn made the buns soggy.  These meatsicles were jumbo alright, but they were not smokies, not even hot dogs....just your run of the mill nitratesicle in a soggy bun.  Suffice it to say, I ate them both (Hey, when you're hungry, even dog food looks good). 

Japadog

There are about 20-30 people lined up at Japadog at any given time. It's a strange phenomenon that as far as I know, has happened only in Vancouver. The first time I had a hot dog from Japadog a few years ago, I thought it tasted great, and it was an interesting concept - Japanese condiments on a hot dog. Little did I realize that the word would spread like wildfire and the popularity of this little hotdog stand, run by a mom (with a baby strapped to her back as if it was still edo period) and pop would swell to epic proportions.
This is a shot of the line at night.
Among some of the famous people that have frequented Japadog are Anthony Bourdain, host of No Reservations, who actually featured Japadog on his episode on Vancouver!


You could probably get most of the special ingredients at a Fujiya or Izumiya, Konbiniya, or even T & T, but to be honest, the price of these hot dogs don't cost (much) more than any other hot dog stand in Vancouver.






The hardest working people I've ever seen at a hot dog stand, and for that, I think this company will succeed. Actually, they are already seeing plenty of success, so much so, that they've opened up at least two other hot dog stands as well as a permanent location on Robson, close to Beard Papa's (a shop that sells Japanese cream puffs).
Myself and one of the staff of Japadog.

This picture does not do it justice, I took it with my work phone and it's pretty low resolution. I'll repost a better picture as soon as I find one. This is the Kurobuta Terimayo.

If you happen to see a Japadog stand with little or no line up, definitely seize the opportunity to grab a Japadog, it will be a glorious experience.