Big Apple Hot Dogs: My Kind of Sausage

Anyone who’s been following me on Twitter for a bit might have noticed that I seem to have a thing for a certain brand of hot dog. You could even call me a sausage stalker.

As his star continues to rise, in the interests of full disclosure – and frankly my dear readers, because I want to sing it from the rooftops – I thought it was time to post about Big Apple Hot Dogs.

After all, he is the unofficial head of Babes HQ.

Or now, officially, my wurst half.

If you swing by his pitch on Old Street, you’ll spot photos of our two mini munchers pinned to the cart along with a symbolic picture of an office worker kicking over his desk.

That’s my guy, always bucking the system.

Big Apple Hot Dogs started out as a Plan B business when he couldn’t get backing for his grand idea (soon come, baby). But it’s turned into a genuine passion and a breakaway hit driven by Abiye’s all-weather resilience, charisma, self-belief and ingenuity (I can’t believe I’m saying all this in print, I’m eating my words as I type!).

Since he set up less than a year ago, he’s grown a devoted following of dog aficionados, been wholeheartedly embraced by Dario Cecchini the ‘world’s most famous butcher’, been welcomed into the Eat.Street collective of street food revolutionaries and got food bloggers buzzing.

Big Apple Hot Dogs has crafted bespoke sausages for one of London’s top steakhouses, dished out dogs at the Qype Summer Party, shelled out hundreds of hot ones at the Flaming Lips gig at Ally Pally (promoted by All Tomorrow’s Parties), and pretty much stolen the show at the Beck’s Green Box Project launch at Protein. And the gigs keep pouring in.

It’s been a whirlwind journey so far and through it all, he’s maintained his pig cool head and long-term vision. There are big plans ahead but no matter what, Abiye will always be indie at the core and BAHD to the bone.

I’m beyond proud of this man and did I mention that the hot dogs are gobsmacking? Hats off to the Sausage-meister, the secret guru behind BAHD’s success!

Here are some of the reviews so far:
‘His are the real deal: The sausages are far enough removed from typical street eats to be an entirely different species.’
Feature on London’s Best Street Food by top food writer Marina O’Loughlin in Metro newspaper

‘And there I was. Grinning and swallowing the joy of meat. It all brought out the kid in me. Loved it. Loved it. And loved it.’
Amazing write-up and mouthwatering pics on The Skinny Bib

‘His hot dogs are honestly the best I’ve ever tried – Nathan’s, Gray’s Papaya, Papaya King and Crif Dogs in NYC – BAHD is easily better than all of those.’
Fab review and photos on Will Eat for Money

‘I tried a Big Apple Dog, a polish sausage that had been double smoked but didn’t overpower. It had that satisfying pop of the skin (natural casings) and a decent fat content making a great juicy sausage.’
Review by Matthew Grant from the Society of Culinary Arts and Letters forum

In his own words:
‘I would say that BAHD’s ethos is to try to offer incredible pleasure to as many people as possible, at amazing value.’

Guest post on Hot and Chilli
More reviews
Tuck & Vine
Hand to Mouth
My Bloody Food Blog, Yah?
Simon Kimber
Sensation

Where to find Big Apple Hot Dogs

Daily
239 Old St (by Shoreditch Fire Station), EC2 – Tue-Fri, 12-6pm

Weekends
Red Lion & Sun, 25 North Rd, Highgate Village, N6 – Sat,12-6pm (dates tbc)
Red Market, 288-299 Old St, EC2 – Sat & Sun, 4pm until close (midnight)
Chatsworth Rd Market, between Dunlace & Blurton Rds, Hackney E5 – Sun, 12-4pm

Upcoming Gigs
Tweat Up @PittCueCo. at Festival pier, Southbank, SE1 – Sun Jul 10, 1-10pm
Latitude Festival, Henham Park, Southwold, Suffolk – Jul 14-17
I’ll Be Your Mirror Festival (curated by Portishead & All Tomorrow’s Parties), Alexandra Palace, N22 – Jul 23-24

Follow @BigAppleHotDogs on Twitter for the latest updates.

This is the launch post for Foodie Friday, a weekly spotlight on all things edible on Babes about Town. Come back for more tasty features and a chance to share your own foodie posts!