Brathaus

We sure have a lot of places to grab a burger in town.  From fast food joints to classy fine dining establishments, the choices seem endless.  However, when we talk about hot dogs, it is a totally different story.  No, we are not talking about Costco and Ikea here (although they are great values).  I'm talking about spots that specialize in hot dogs and preferably, the gourmet variety.  Can you think of any?  You see, it isn't very prevalent.  Well, there is one located on Abbott in Downtown Vancouver called Brathaus.  Jackie and I checked it out recently after already having dinner...  Second dinner!

We went straight for their featured monthly dog in the Speedy with green chorizo, pico de gallo, guac, pickled jalapenos, sour cream and chipotle aioli.  Yah, one look at these and no, they were not a "regular" hot dog.  The sausage in this was texturally appealing with a meatiness that was complimented by notable spiciness.  There was so much going on with this hot dog from the tangy jalapeños and onions that was tempered by the cool sour cream and gauc.

As for the Pete, it sported a Guinness beef sausage with guac, bacon, pickled onions, red jalapeno and lime aioli.  The sausage itself was the star of this hot dog as it had the unmistakable hit of Guinness.  Now if you have had this beer before you would know there are some rich chocolate notes, so that was completely evident here.  The acidity of the onions and aioli helped keep things light despite the meatiness of the sausage.

If you love cheese, then the Bosko would fit the bill.  This had a Texas bison sausage with gouda, mozzarella & cheddar cheese crust, onions and bell peppers.  There was so much cheese, you could barely see the sausage.  Hence, you'd better like cheese!  That I do and the texture of the cheese was different as there was some crispy portions to go with the melty gooey parts.  The bison sausage was a bit leaner as expected, but was not dry. 

Ultimately, my favourite hot dog was the basic Felix with beer bratwurst, sauerkraut, pickles, chives and horseradish mustard.  The brat in this was so juicy while the outer casing had a firm snap.  The tangy crunch from the sauerkraut gave this hot dog classic vibes and something I am very familiar with.  I found the horseradish mustard to add enough zip and tang to keep things from being one note.

They also have Pork Carnitas Tacos on the menu as well.  A bit random, but an option for those not wanting a hot dog.  These came with green sauce, pico de gallo and jalapenos. I thought they were pretty legit with tender pork that was meaty and natural-tasting.  The addition of the fresh and bright pico de gallo kept things light despite the amount of pork in each taco.  We added some of the available sauces including jalapeno mayo.  This was pretty mild, but added some creamy moisture.

They also have a selection of Monster Shakes and we had probably the most whimsical in the Om Nom Nom featuring a "Cookie Monster" theme with Cookie dough ice cream, milk, blue food colouring, Biscoff spread, crushed Chips Ahoy and chocolate chip cookie ice cream with blue sugar crystals and edible googly eyes.  This was topped with
chocolate syrup, whipped cream, sprinkles and cherry.  So yah, this was pretty sweet, but at the same time, fit with the theme of the milkshake.  Lots of nuttiness and cookie flavour that was everywhere including on the outside of the cup.  The kiddies would love this.  For me, it was all about the dawgs and they were indeed good with complimentary condiments.  Brats were high quality too.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:
- Love the brats/sausages, nice snap casing and juicy filling
- Complimentary condiments
- Tacos are good too

The Bad:
- Milkshakes were whimsical and pretty good, but too sweet for me