Mouthing Off | Anthony Bourdain and Matt Damon said a hot dog is not a sandwich. Let’s be frank, as long as it tastes good, who cares?
- A hot dog is not a sandwich, according to celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain and The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council in the United States
- This argument, which could include the ‘what makes a pie a pie?’ question, is often hotly debated
There’s a long-running argument in the food world, splitting opinions and turning a small partisan valley into a wide canyon of a schism. The question: is a hot dog a sandwich?
Everyone who’s downed a late-night post-boozing bratwurst or noshed on a frankfurter seems to have strong views on the matter. Even the Merriam-Webster Dictionary has come down with a verdict. Its vote is yes!
“The definition of sandwich is ‘two or more slices of bread or a split roll having a filling in between’. Hence, a hot dog fits the definition,” the dictionary website posted a while ago.
Frankly though, lots of people disagree even if they accept the textbook sandwich characterisation. Hot dog enthusiasts contend a wiener in an oblong bun is so iconic, it transcends such a limiting pigeon-hole. The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council in the United States – of course there is one – agrees.
“A hot dog is not a sandwich,” the organisation said in a 2015 press release. “Limiting the hot dog’s significance by saying it’s ‘just a sandwich’ is like calling the Dalai Lama ‘just a guy’.”