Gourmet Dog Japon

Matsuri-​dog all the way! I’m a fan of fusion cuisine and it’s great when places get it right… even better when it’s cheap street food! Hot dogs have never really been my thing because I find them super plain, but the seaweed, Japanese mayo, carrots, and caramelized onions in the Matsuri-​dog gives it great texture and flavors. So delish, and the guys who work this stand are just fabulously chill and efficient with their service. I was really starting to worry that I would never get to order one again after construction took over the parking lot that the stand used to be at. So relieved to have found it again!

Comparable to other «Japadog» food stands that you can find in VancouSeaPortland.
Also, owner rejected my Groupon for literally no reason.
Conversation:
me: Here’s my groupon code.
him: we don’t take groupon.
me: … this is a groupon for your business that I bought from groupon.
him: I wont take it, go ask groupon yourself.
Thanks guy… real helpful.

One of my favorite spots whenever I’m in the city. I’m not a hot dog girl and I love these, which says a lot.
Constructions is currently ongoing so the stand has moved to the opposite side of the street. If you’re in the area, definitely stop by!
Expect to pay $ 7 or more dollars for a dog and drink.

I had just found parking in Seattle and needed some quick food. I pulled up Unilocal,saw the listing for the Gourmet Dog Japon just a block down the street from me and took off to find it. I quickly found it at the posted address and looked over the menu.
I can’t remember the name of the dog I got… but I basically just asked for what I wanted on it. I had some cheese, some chili, some spicy mayo, and had him put on some other spicy things Basically I wanted a spicy dog. When he handed it to me he looked at me like I was crazy, saying, «This is going to be hella spicy». The guy was really nice and fun to talk to. He gave me a few good first time Seattle visitor tips and was really helpful.
I paid and walked off with my hella spicy dog, taking bites along my walk. It was good. Really, really good. $ 5 for a unique, filling, spicy hot dog was perfect. The friendly service was awesome as well. I’ll certainly be back next time I’m in Seattle.

Veggie dogs are awesome! We had chili Mary cheese dog, original Seattle dog and kimchi dog with vegetarian sausages replaced. This place is moved just opposite to the old location but still at 2^nd ave and pike st.

Loved the variety and all the different twists and flavors on my regular hot dog. Enjoyed the seaweed hot dog with the sauce! However, more of a novelty though and the hotdogs become really big and difficult to eat standing on the street.

The business has moved to the area under the Target sign (1500 block of Pike st.) due to construction at its site on 2^nd and Pike. Samurai dog is great!

Small disclaimer: I was a little buzzed when I got this. So I’m assuming this was like the JAPADOG up in Vancouver, and I thought that it was pretty good. Not too bad; it was a little expensive, but you’re paying for the novelty. The guy was pretty nice and I think he charges extra if you pay with card under a certain amount.
It’s definitely good to try it out once. Though I still prefer my Seattle Dogs (they sell them here too!) over the other unique hotdogs.

FOOD:
I got the #1 Hot dog and it was pretty good. I really like the combination of the Japanese flavors-​specifically, the japanese mayo, carrots, green pickles and the american hot dog taste. I don’t even like hot dogs so it was pretty surprising that I liked it. I would highly recommend #1 if you like Japanese flavors. Come here late at night if you need «drunk food» because it’s open late!
SERVICE:
Really nice guy helped us out.
WOULD I RECOMMEND IT? Yes!

This hot dog stand deserves more stars. I ordered the Matsuri against my better judgement, as I went in pretty confident that I wouldn’t like carrots and nori as hot dog toppings. Otherwise, the hot dog was plump and flavorful, and the Japanese mayo and teriyaki sauce added a great Asian flavor. I definitely want to go back and try the Samurai and hopefully leave a better review. My brother gave me a few bites of his deep-​fried Seattle dog, which was very heavy but delicious. The price was great, we got our dogs and a drink for $ 13.

What’s better than one hotdog? Two!
I got the Samurai and the regular Seattle.
Since I’m from LA, I wanted to see what all the fuss is about with Seattle hot dogs — cream cheese on the bun, melted onions, and jalapenos? Best combination ever! That hot dog seriously changed my life. I’m very close to opening my own hot dog stand in LA and smearing cream cheese all over the bun. Why don’t people do that here?
The SAmurai was good too. I got it mainly for the wasabi mayo which adds an excellent kick to the hot dog — the radish kind of blunts the spiciness so for those who likes the wasabi taste without the spicness (kinda of a weird combination), this is the hot dog to get.

Wow. This absolutely hit the spot after a night out. Got the Matsuri and it was amazinggggggg! So cheap and so good.
#protip: don’t be too drunk and rude otherwise grandpa won’t serve you. OR he will serve you but curse at you in japanese –_​_​–

OK, 5 stars you say, for a hot dog stand? Well, in the hot dog stand world, this place is 5 stars. I needed a food fix at 10PM and I didn’t want to spend a fortune. $ 5 for a teriyaki onion, cheese dog. It was YUMMY. They have a variety of «japanese» themed dogs, put a few «american» options. Service was really fast. I think I got my dog in under a minute.
Note: this place is literally a hot dog stand, so when looking for it, just go the corner and look around for a trailer with a counter in front of it; don’t look for a storefront.

Very interesting hot dog. Not really that expensive ($ 6 for Sukiyaki).
The link was perfectly heated over the grill. It was warm, not too hot, and juicy. But that’s not really the interesting part. It’s the topping. Sukiyaki has caramelized onion (!!!) and some ground meat that tasted like pork. The juices from the onion and ground meat drizzled over the hot dog and bread made it sensational.
Oh, it was one of those giant link that’s longer than the bun. So, very satisfying too.
I added a bit hot sauce, but that wouldn’t be necessary to enjoy this hot dog.
Why not 5 stars?
The bun was not toasted enough and was still cold. I like mine well toasted.
The wait was simply too long. Not that the line was long, but the operation was really slow. There were two grillers and one cashier. They sure take their time perfecting the heating of the links. Sigh, it is not like we are sheltered from the elements. It is a street hot dog stand, after all.
Still worth the wait.

Best dogs in town!
I’m addicted to the Matsuri! A hot dog topped with carrots, onions, nori/​seaweed and mayo! Amazing! By far my fav.
Samurai was an andrew Zimmern favorite so we tried it. Sausage, grated daikon, onions and a sauce. I thought it was a little bland for my taste.
Sukiyaki dog has sukiyaki onions and meat on top of the dog and sprinkled with sesame seeds. It was tasty but I think the sukiyaki meat over powers the flavor of the dog.
It’s really a pretty simple concept and something I know I can make at home. BUT there’s just something special about ordering a dog from a street vendor and eating on the street. It makes it taste better.

Decided to venture out to Seattle to try out this place for the first time. I heard wonderful things about this place, so I decided to give it a try.
The young man who worked there was very polite to us and chitchatted with us while making our food. We ordered the Matsuri Dog and the Spicy Pizza Dog, which both lived up their standards.
The food is affordable and delicious. Perfect for an afternoon snack on a sunny day in Seattle.

I’ll humbly admit that I’m nowhere close to being a hotdog expert. I know little of it and have often steered clear. I hurry away from hotdog stands despite all levels of hunger and have never been anywhere close to being enticed to defile my system with them. I’ve often blasphemously dubbed them a waste of calories and laughed off anyone who would even hint on getting a hotdog (or it’s relatives such as and not limited to bratwursts blah, bleh, meh).
So I *snottily* walked by more than fives times before I finally caved in and allowed hunger to somewhat dictate the need for some quick calories. It was raining quite a bit during my trip to Seattle and most «fast» spots were boasting significant wait times. Once again, I really didn’t know what to do with myself and finally opted-​in for something quick that a «food-​truck» (one that’s almost a permanent fixture here) can provide.
I’m REALLY hungry and I asked myself if I shove all these people aside in the relatively short line ahead of me? Should I like verbally abuse them so that they would leave and allow me to order sooner? Do I…
«What can I get for you sir?»
Wow. I forgot. Food-​trucks multi-​task like no other. In fact, I didn’t expect to have to order so soon that I just asked — by faith — to be given what was most popular at his stand. He gladly obliged without missing a heartbeat and said a «Matsuri» [
]was on its way.
I think the 5 minute wait while the hotdogs were cooking was probably the biggest struggle I’ve had in a while. I wanted those CALORIES sooooooo bad and I wanted to just CONSUME everything around me without restraint. Having to wait for it as the scent of glorious goodness was picked up by my nostrils was completely UNBEARABLE.
AND…because we’re talking about HOTDOGS. You know I must have become totally delusional. I must have become so STUPIDLY famished that I’m no longer thinking straight. I must be…
Surprisingly and absolutely SATISFIED by this «un”-traditional hotdog. It was a different spin on the traditional all American beef dog just by the simple use of Nori, julienned carrots, and mayonnaise. It was SUCH a subtle difference… yet, SUCH a *vast* difference in flavor. Who would have thought?
I guess that’s the same method some parents get their kids to eat broccoli. =P
15/​07LR

Excellent service and quality food… I just wasn’t a fan of my hot dog.
After looking at all the pictures, I ordered the matsuri dog… and it had an interesting taste. It was like a combination of sushi and a hot dog. Which was just a little bit odd to me.
Anyways, the french fries were awesome, and the guy working was really friendly. We’ll probably stop again sometime and just go with a traditional Seattle dog.

After a night of drinking, I ate here while walking back to my hotel.
Great drunk eats!
I had the,
Matsuri — $ 4.99 — Cannot beat sausage, onions, and seaweed in between a bun.
Good place to eat after drinking!

It’s close to midnight. We’re hungry. We can smell Dog Japon a block away. This is it. We’re getting ourselves a gourmet dog.
We ordered the kimchi dog & Seattle dog for $ 5 each. I really liked my kimchi dog but it was a bitch to eat. The kimchi is topped loosely on the Kielbasa dog so with each bite pieces of kimchi fell to the ground. Dammit, I love kimchi so it was unpleasant to watch some go to waste. Other than that it was a great dog.
Seth tried the Seattle dog & he thought the Kielbasa dog was tasteless. It was blanketed with cream cheese so that could be a reason why. When I tried a bite that’s all I could taste. He mentioned the bun is where it’s at (soft & warm) & if it weren’t for the sautéed onions & jalapeños added he probably would’ve been extremely disappointed.
This is no longer located at Pike Place Market according to Unilocal but rather 2^nd & Pike. There are over a dozen gourmet dogs to choose from & it doesn’t have to be a Kielbasa or beef either, there’s tofurkey. Cash & credit cards are accepted so there’s no excuse to not try this place at least once.