Restaurants
Fusia Dog
Fusia Dog has set up shop on Duncan and Queen promising a new type of haute dog -- a multicultural one. A distinct change from the usual pizza, shawarma and street meat that the Club District offers to their weekend warriors. Fusion food is nothing new - neither is marrying haute and street cuisines. But if the various cultural elements would've been separated and served as a dish unto itself; would I still enjoy it? Or more importantly, would I eat this at 2AM when I stumble home and begin my drunk grazing?
Where Fusia Dog differs from Vancouver's JapaDog or Wvrst are the cacophony of multi-cultural influences. You're not just served a German or Japanese styled hot dog but one that's globe trotting like it's been on gap year.
Take for example the actual Fusia Dog ($8.95): partha wrapped (similar to naan), topped with kimchi and wasabi mayo. India, Korea with a layover in Japan, all represented exhibited jet-lagged flavours that weren't harmonizing nor actually executed well. I love kimchi but I couldn't taste the fermented tartness, probably from the mayo which cleared my sinuses and seared my tongue.
The Chop Suey Dog ($6.95 - top photo) consisted of hoisin 'ketchup', stir fry veggies and topped with hickory sticks. This fared better, but then again, in my eyes anything topped with hickory sticks would - I love 'em. The dish actually had a balanced base between the sweetness of the hoisin and caramelized veggies against the savory dog and hickory sticks. A win but nothing out of the ordinary. It's worth mentioning that the dog didn't differ from each dish. All start with a Rowe Farms kosher dog (chicken or beef) or a veggie option - a solid foundation to build from.
A small side is included with each dog so we tried the chipotle potato salad and the power slaw, as they were the only options. With the first I only tasted red and that was more of a visual cue than olfactory. Bland. It needed salt and actual chipotles.
Meanwhile the power slaw was not aptly named. At first glance I took the dish for a carrot salad with its over abundance of orange hued juliennes with the occasional raisin. My mistake. It was actually shredded cheese coupled with a few wilted veggies. I surrendered and laid my weapon down.
Perhaps I ordered wrong. Perhaps I was too sober. After eating here though, is this still a trend or perhaps a gimmick to have me pay 8.95 for a four dollar dog?
Photos by Peter Henderson. Exterior shot by Jesse Milns.
Discussion
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Hmmmmmm...
The 'hotdog' demographic is a tight one; not too many people (who aren't drunk) will eat a hot dog. Unless they're going to pay their bills with the 2am crowd, I haven't a clue how they'll survive.
Pay $9 post club for an overly done 'hotdog', or pay $2 for a slice of pizza. Not really a hard decision!
I can see the competing street carts offering the same options (naan, condiments, etc)
The one in the second pic looks prettttty fantastic, though.
That Fusia dog looks yummy, but for $8.95? Really good burgers are usually around that price range, not hot dogs.
If they want to offer gourmet hot dogs, they should consider lowering their prices by a few bucks. I would pay maybe max $6 for a fusia. Maybe.
A dog from a cart is more honest and oddball toppings do not justify a high price tag, Dinah Koo-koo or what ever your name is.
Agree with the website. The logo is beyond horrifying. People at Fusia Dog, if you see this, do something about it.
If a website is your criteria for whether or not you try something, you must be a very unadventurous person.
By the way, San Francesco Foods near Little Italy doesn't even have a website and the veal sammies are killer.
Do some history, learn a little and you'll find out she is the first person to create Asian Fusion long before there was a Japadog. Long before there was a California roll.
I'm pretty sure, that after some adjustments this place will do fine. The wieners are not just the average run of the mill Ass and Lips as one person called it. They're from Rowe farms http://www.rowefarms.ca/
Maybe the price is a bit steep, but considering the quality of the ingredients you get with it, the cost undserstandable. I'd pay for it, because it has ingredients that I would trust more than what's in the wieners in your everyday run of the mill hot dog cart.
I eat here 2-3 times a week. The food is always fresh and has a very unique and wonderful mix of flavours. The staff is always helpful. The power slaw is out of this world!!