Clash of the Dives! All City Coney Invades Chris' Hotdog Territory

[Ed. Note 11/26/2013: Gone the way of the DoDo Bird.]

The LITG Gang is a pretty tough crowd. The other day I invited them to join me at the new "All-City Coney Island Eatery" for a review of this "new" eatery (which opened Oct. 26) and the first response I received was: "Where is that greasy spoon?" Well, it is located at the corner of Madison and N. Union in the building here that former "sh*t hole" "Tokyo" was located. Tokyo was not favorably reviewed by this crowd previously. See prior review here. Why the new proprietors list "formerly Tokyo" on their menus is unclear. The interior of the place certainly has not changed much:

Statey's wait for their Coney Island dogs.

I was originally attracted to this place in order to defend the turf of our beloved Gump icon: Chris' Hot dogs. Loyal readers are familiar with our affinity for that good ol' reliable dive by our past posting and our April Fool's Day spoof about its closing. I was fully prepared to rant about this "interloper" who dares to upset the hot dog balance of power in Gump City with an array of Coney Island dogs and burgers. Alas, my two "Coney's" took the wind out of my negative sails. The service was quick, pleasant and the No. 1 special (which includes two Coney's, fries and a drink for about $6) "to go" was actually pretty good.

The No. 1 includes 2 Coneys (shown here without optional kraut)

I would never suggest that the dogs are better than Chris' and I cannot comment on the burgers, wings or breakfast options because I did not try any of them. However, knowing as I do that normal digestive systems do not allow one to lunch at Chris' more than once a month and in light of the demise of Doyle B when a Chris' dog ate through the lining of his immense stomach, I guess I would have to admit that it might be a good thing to have a choice of dogs in downtown. Competition is usually good, isn't it? Maybe? Is this Gump big enough for two excellent hot dog joints (not including the "Hot Dog Guy" on the corner of Tallapoosa and Commerce)?

So, if your stomach still hurts from your last Chris' hot dog but your body yearns for more tube steak, you might give the All-City Coney a try. Let me know what you think and we shall see if we, in the future, go off on the formerly Tokyo sh*t hole. So far so good?

Biscuits and Brats for Lunch? Oh my!

A beautiful day to watch a game and lunch in the Gump at the same time.

There are many fine places to each lunch in the Gump as we have shown. But there are few to match the ambiance of a fresh Bratwurst and cool beverage on a sunny mild day amidst the friendly confines of Riverwalk Stadium while watching a close Montgomery Biscuits' game. I know what you are thinking: The games are at night! Not even the Shadow Pup eats lunch at night!

Not so fast, onion breath. Every year the Biscuits entertain school children from all over Alabama during day games they call Grand Slam School Days. I attended today's event. The next will be May 5th at 10:35 a.m. On the days of such games, around noon you can saunter over to the stadium and get in without a ticket and see the rest of the game from about the 6th inning on. Of course, you will be in the midst of thousands of elementary and junior high brats...errr...students....on hyper-sugar highs who sing and dance to every "bumper" song played between innings, but after you get used to their frenetic energy, the joy of being at the game becomes contagious and everything tastes even better. Today, I went with my usual Bratwurst, shown below

Never point a loaded brat at anyone!

The owners of the Biscuits are famous among minor league circles as serving up some of the best ballpark food around: cheese steaks, half-pound grilled burgers, brats, Italian sausage dogs, and tacos (just to name a few). In fact, I believe Riverwalk may be the only place in the Gump you can get a grilled brat or Italian sausage dog. Anyone who has every had one will never go back to a plain wiener dog if they have an option. Add grilled onions and you are in Gump heaven--especially if you love baseball. Or perhaps, even if you just love Civil War history. I note the stadium is on the site of a former Confederate prison/hospital.

Apparently, the food was not the strong point prior to the Biscuits.

Most that attend Biscuits games come for the baseball, beer and food all at reasonable prices. Today they were serving the brats (err...students) hot-dogs at $1 a pop. Even at that price they were not as popular as anything with sugar. But you just cannot top having lunch in the shade behind home plate while you watch a young Biscuits phenom go into the 8th inning with a shutout. It's good food plus good baseball and there is no other place in town that offers both for lunch.
Go Biscuits!

A rare lull in the dancing and singing when a baseball game broke out.

Gumpage on the Go--Hot Dog Guy

Sometimes, you can't always sit down with your fellow parolees to enjoy a solid meat and three. Time is short and you need Gumpage fast. Our new feature "Gumpage on the Go" reviews those locales where time is of the essence and silverware is optional--Eds.

Gumpage on the Go: HOT DOG GUY!

Location: Corner of Talapoosa and Commerce

Confession, I love hot dogs. They are cheap, delicious, and as American as hamburgers. My patriotism doesn't mean I discriminate--Polish and Italian sausage on a bun is okay by me. I love hot dogs so much, I asked for and received "The World's Greatest Hot Dog Maker" for Christmas two years ago. Yes, I WASTED A CHRISTMAS PRESENT ON A HOT DOG TOASTER!

Needless to say, expectations were high when I dropped in on the Hot Dog Guy at the corner of Talapoosa and Commerce streets for some Gumpage on the Go.

Menu is short and sweet, dogs (regular, brat, polish), chips, and drinks. A combo of all three runs you around $5.00. Was the service fast? This is Gumpage on the Go, son! I ordered a combo with chili and cheese (no extra charge), and had that processed meat goodness in my hand in less than a minute. Extra points to hot dog guy for having a (maybe) twelve year old to run around and grab my Lay's potato chips and Dr. Pepper.

Was the food good? Again, Gumpage on the Go is not about words like "quality" and "distinguishable meat and dairy products." The dog was bland. The Chili was canned. And the cheese was an orangy-yellow liquid. This was no Varsity chili cheese dog with a frosted orange:

Lucky Bastard...

By Lunch in the Gump's usual standards Hot Dog Guy would amount to one or two chili-dogs, tops. However, at Gumpage on the Go we're concerned more with speed and value than "taste." I went from Office (hungry) to hot dog guy to Office (not hungry) in less than fifteen minutes: 3.0 chili-dogs with a Dr. Pepper.