The Most Beautiful Hot Dog Hall in the Country

A Visit to George’s Coney Island in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Every vintage hot dog joint has its edge. Most commonly, it is the quality of the food that makes the place special. In other instances, it’s the service, the presentation, the ownership, the unique signage or the exterior architecture. Rarely, is it the beauty of the interior.

As a rule, hot dog joints that established themselves in the first half of the 20th century spent their money on outward appearance. This makes perfect business sense. Humble hot dog sellers had to attract the attention of the public. A huge painted or neon sign performed that trick neatly. So did a brightly colored facade or a huge image of a giant hot dog or even a hot dog statue.

Once the vendor caught its quarry, the only job was to deliver a satisfying meal at a reasonable price. To provide a fancy dining area was beside the point. Most frankfurter feasters grab and go. They eat on the run or standing up. A sit-down hot dog stand is almost an oxymoron.

Moreover, many of the most famous hot dog places in the nation (Tommy’s Italian Sausage and Jerry’s Famous Frankfurters in Elizabeth, NJ; and Walter’s in Mamaroneck, for example) don’t even have an interior that the public can enter. The food is passed through a window. Those that do have an inside tend to go for classic lunch-counter architecture—a long counter with stools; maybe a few fast-food style tables set side by side; booths if you’re lucky. This style of dining hall can be very attractive in its retro way. Coney Island Lunch in Scranton; Lafayette Coney Island in Detroit; and Famous Lunch in Troy are excellent examples of this. But there is nothing extra about it.