Why This Company Refuses To Make Bun-Length Hot Dogs

The question of why not all hot dogs are bun-length has been floating around the internet for some time. While most store-bought hot dog buns come in a similar shape and size, hot dogs range from tiny 2 to 3-inch cocktail wieners to classic 6-inch dogs, all the way up to 12 inches (better known as a footlong). Most buns stick to the classic 6-inch standard length, but one hot dog manufacturer in Brooklyn, New York, absolutely will not make its dog to fit that bun size, and some are asking why.

That manufacturer is The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company. Its refusal to make hot dogs that fit the bun is so solid that it has become a point of pride in the company's advertising. Try asking where you can find a bun long enough for its hot dogs, and The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company will quickly tell you that you can't.

The reason is simple. "We purposely produce our hot dogs longer than most, so they can hang off the bun. We want your first and last bite to be meat." The typical length for a dog from The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company is about 7 inches. Due to how they are produced, the hot dogs aren't always the exact same size, but they're always longer than your average hot dog bun.

The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company opened for business in 2012. Since the beginning, founders Tony Fragogiannis and Justin Neiser have been sticklers for manufacturing hot dogs with fresh, natural ingredients. Its classic beef dog is made from smoked, uncured, grass-fed beef and sealed in sheep casing that gives a snap when you take a bite. The company also sells a beef & pork dog, a gyro dog, a pepperoni dog, and a Buffalo chicken dog. 

Aside from their all-natural casing, The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company's hot dogs have no added nitrates, hormones, or antibiotics. All of the beef is grass-fed, and the pork is pasture-raised. There are no preservatives or other artificial ingredients in these hot dogs — plus, they're gluten-free! Fragogiannis and Neiser purposefully worked to build a tastier, healthier hot dog, superior to any cheap, store-bought dogs.

In 2017, The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company was featured in a New York Times hot dogs taste-test, where Julia Moskin called them, "The smokiest of the bunch, with good beef flavor." The dogs were also named in Brooklyn Magazine's "Ten of the Very Best Hot Dogs in Brooklyn" by Sarah Zorn, in collaboration with Brooklyn eatery The Hop Shop. If you'd like to try them yourself and simply must have a longer bun, you can find oversized buns at Kroger, Costco, or Amazon. You could also try upgrading your hot dog toppings like these celebrity chefs!