Juicy dogs at Fancy Franks Gourmet Hot Dogs in Toronto

Website: http://www.fancyfranks.com/
Address:  326 College St, Toronto, ON
When I visited: February 2014
Rating: $, 4.5

Fancy Franks is what Toronto needs, a shop that has a diner feel serving classics such milkshakes, mini donuts, poutine and chilli, while giving us hip gourmet toppings on the hot dogs that we want today. As mentioned on Fancy Frank’s website, “Come taste the hot dog of tomorrow”.

I stopped by on a weekday afternoon and there was a constant flow of business. The location was amazing, close to Kensington market, Chinatown and the University of Toronto. It was nice to see that the restaurant was family friendly. I met a father and son who were reading some children books that were supplied by the restaurant, with all books related to hot dogs of course!

As it was my first time there, I had to get a sense of how fancy and tasty these gourmet dogs were and wanted to get a full range to sample. With the help of the friendly and knowledgeable servers, we narrowed down my selection.

My top 3 picks:

1. The Frankaphone, which had smoked gruyere cheese, horseradish cheddar, squeaky curds and a honey Dijon mayo. This dog definitely felt gourmet! The cheese melted so perfectly on the dog and provided the right amount of saltiness.

2. The FFGHD TX which had cajin spiced grilled onions, chedder cheese, BBQ sauce and chipotle mayo. It was a nice combination of sweetness with a nice tang from the sauces.

3. The Po-Boy Gets Fancy which had panko fried shrimp, lettuce, horseradish mayo, and hot sauce. Who doesn’t like a po-boy? It was delicious.

I also sampled some of Fancy Frank’s best sellers including Franks Coney Island (saucy chilli, mayo, mustard) and the Southern Fancy (BBQ pulled pork). Even with tons of meat on top of each dog, it was not overpowering.

I also ordered the Frankathenapolis which is essentially the Greek dog with toppings such as Greek feta, Kalamata olives and tomatoes. Although this dog was tasty with salad-like toppings, I definitely favoured the hot dogs with cheese or meat.

With all the hot dogs, I asked for slices of jalapeno peppers, but did not add additional condiments. There are TONS of toppings for customers to choose from to make their dog extra special. There was also a vegetarian Frank and sausages if requested.

Now, what made the hot dogs stand out for me?

It wasn’t the size of the dogs. They were regular sized dogs and not the jumbo one you see at the local fair in the summer.

It was the quality of the ingredients. The 100% beef dogs with natural lamb casing had a nice snap when biting into them. Even with toppings such as cheese and meat, the flavourings never overpowered the hot dog.  The hot dogs shined in each one. Even after eating so much, I felt great and energetic!

Of course, I couldn’t leave without trying the milkshakes and mini donuts. The mini donuts are a must. They are created fresh daily and are SO cute!

Next time, I need to try their poutine. Francy Franks also participated in the recent Poutine week (Feb 1-7, 2014) and regularly serves poutine in their menu.The good news is that Fancy Frank is expanding and opening up a second location at 940 Bloor St W. (Bloor and Ossington Area).

There is something for everyone. Come taste a great quality gourmet hot dog!

*The meal was complimentary but the opinions in the post are my own.