Sonic Drive-Thru for Wiener Wednesday

Ok, so we may have celebrated Wiener Wednesday on a Thursday, but calendar-shmalendar. We had a duty to fulfill, even if it was 24 hours past due. It just so happens that Sonic has also decided 'tis the season of hotdogs, just like us (view the multi-cultural commercial above).

We sped over to the closest Sonic and fulfilled our craving at noon. We hopped out of the car, leapt across the parking lot, and walked straight over to the order station. We each got to press the little red "order now" button, and speak to the tiny ladies that live inside the machines who kindly take our order. Within 2 minutes, 3 waitresses on wheels came out with our fresh dogs, chili cheese fries, tator tots, and cherry limeades. I totally forgot that Sonic has a limeade happy hour... I'm pretty excited to get back into that routine.

As for the "who ate what" part of the blog... drum roll please:

Amy & Sara: a corndog. For Amy, this is a gut instinct/natural choice, as it's pretty much her fav thing to order regardless of where we are eating our dogs. For Sara, she unfortunately made the mistake of reading the calorie content first, and therefore made the selection of the 220-calorie corn dog prior to pressing that little red "order now" button. It was a wise decision.. for her waistline, and her taste buds. It was delicious. Mmm.

Zach: Chili Cheese Coney

Renee: NY Dog, a premium beef hotdog with golden mustard, grilled onions, without sauerkraut (I know what you are thinking - why take out sauerkraut? Oh well, her body her choice).

Speaking of bodies & poor choices.... let's review Zachs lunch. Chili Cheese Coney- check. Chili Cheese Fries- check. His Tour de Wiener has a very high probability of turning into a Tour de Potty sometime today. Lets just hope its not at the office. Toodles!

Tour de Wiener - Sonic= 8/10



Just four individuals, conquering the world one hot dog at a time!

"About Us" Section

• Amy LeBlanc: Plain Jane-dog "3 pumps please"
• Renee Brown: Chode-dog "Chompin' the chode"
• Zach Alter: Wiener Woofer "I love me some wiener"
• Sara Gendreau: Queener (Queen Wiener)"This isn't my first tour de wiener"



Viva le Wiener!!!

Hot Dog Stop gets a Green Light!



 Today is a day that will live in infamy. We added a fourth member to our Tour de Wiener... Miss Amy LeBlanc. She was full steam ahead with the Tour de Wiener idea, and came with us for our lunch time escapade to Hot Dog Stop.

Upon entering Hot Dog Stop, our jaws dropped and we began to drool all over their countertop as we stared at the menu posted on the wall. There are dozens of hot dog concoctions to select from, or you can make your own. The options were limitless, and so was our hunger. They even have great sides to go with your hot dog: onion rings, sweet potato fries, steak fries, regular fries, mozzarella sticks, jalapeno poppers, oh the list could go on.

It was at this notorious lunch that the idea of a blog was born. It was also where the WIENER WEEK spectacular was conceived. We are going to dedicate a solid week in the month of July to wieners, and wieners only. Our Tour de Wiener and blogging will still be strong as we continue to travel the state for the best hot dogs, but we wanted to shake it up a bit and make it even more special, by organizing a wiener week. Details forthcoming.

Today, we over-indulged at The Hot Dog Spot. We decided that this is a location that will become a frequently visited spot on our list, due to the quantity of choices & quality of their food! We started off lunch by sharing sweet potato fries, regular fries & onion rings... as well as ordering:

Zach: Gagosh Dog (Special of the day- hotdog slathered w/melted mozzarella & pepperonis)

Sara: Phoenix Dog (bacon wrapped all beef dog with grilled onions, bell peppers, tomato, jalapenos, mustard, mayo & ketchup.

Amy: Corn Dog

Renee: Chili Dog



Zachs Order - looked amazing, he didnt share!



A mustard stain = a small price to pay.

Tour de Wiener - Hot Dog Stop= 9.25/10

Wiener = Winning

Lately, everyone's panties seem to be in a bunch. Especially Charlie Sheens. We're going to blame it on the weather, and how springtime is upon us and has, well, sprung.
Sara attended a local Spring Training came in Springs honor. There is no better place to enjoy a hot dog and an ice cold beer. Ballgame Wieners = Winning. Thank you, Charlie Sheen. And thank you ballgame wiener chefs, around the world! This ones for you....

Sara up close & personal with her winning Wiener.

Tour de Wiener - Spring Training Game= 8.5/10

Homemade Saus-eeg!!

Being on a hot dog kick, and being of an Italian nationality, Sara went home one night and made sweet sausages & peppers. MMM.... mangia! Of course, Tour de Wiener wouldn't be complete without bringing some in to share with the rest of the club.


Renee Brown taking a bite of her saus-eeg!!



Tour de Wiener - Sara's Sausage = 10/10



25 Degrees, Yes Please!

Within a few days of not only being a member, but also being presidents of Tour de Wiener, we were off to our 2nd stop along the way. We had a client dinner at 25 Degrees - a formal burger joint located in City North. By formal burger joint, we mean that they serve "gourmet" burgers. Their menu contains fancy appetizers titled "snacks to share" that consist of spicy tuna on crispy eggplant, chicken liver terrin, bacon wrapped dates, and a few others...  and of course burgers that cost you about $10-$18 each, depending on the number of extras and sacues you add.

Renee & I sat next to each other and splurged on one of each app. We then decided to split a gourmet burger, and their Sonoran Hot Dog. This $10.50 hot dog was worth every penny. It was a bacon wrapped dog, with carmelized onions, tomatos, pinto beans, hatch green chilis, queso fresco, onions, mustard, and garlic aioli. We cut the dog in half and were pleased, bite after bite. However, due to the mass amounts of appetizers & bites of both the burger and the dog - we couldnt even finish the 5lb delicacy. Plus, the overwhelming amounts of flavor on this dog started to upset our belly. This hot dog isn't for the faint of heart.



The Sonoran Hot Dog in all its glory!



Tour de Wiener - 25 Degrees= 7.5/10

Taste of Chicago Hot Dogs, Taste Mediocre

An original Taste of Chicago

Our first stop of the Tour de Wiener was to visit a local place named Taste of Chicago, located a few miles from our office. Our mouths were salvating at the thought of big juicy hotdogs! And Chicago dogs, what could be better? Upon arrival, it was a small little spot, with a few people in line, and a few more scattered around tables. We ordered fries to share, a few dt cokes and the following:

Renee: Regular Dog with mustard

Zach: Regular Dog with grilled onions

Sara: Regular Dog with ketchup & relish

The hot dogs came out fast, in small white cardboard boxes! We immediately opened up the box for a sneak peak, and were disappointed to see thin shriveled wieners staring back up at me. It was a plain as day hotdog, with no bells & whistles.

Tour de Wiener - Taste of Chicago Rating= 5/10

Tour de Wiener

It started out like any other day really. A mundane morning at the office... everyone spending the first few hours of the day with their head held low and their fingers frantically typing over their keyboards, as they diligently went about doing business. At approximately 11am, Zach Alter entered the office of Renee Brown & Sara Schnepp Gendreau. The girls were rocking out to whatever flavor Pandora station they had selected for the day... and looked up to ask Zach what he was interupting their hard-working dance party for..

"Hot dogs" said Zach.
"Hot dogs" murmed the girls as they nodded, while visions of footlongs, ball-park dogs, and costco dogs danced through their heads.

After a few minutes of taking the time to discuss their all-time fav hotdogs, an idea had been born. "VIVA LA WIENER" would be a club that would take lunch hours to tour all local hot dog spots. A plan was put into action, while the girls quickly grabbed their purses and Zach grabbed his keys and wallet.

Up first on the Tour di Wiener: Chicago Hotdogs.