coney dog

About me:

..This profile was edited with The CricketSoda Myspace Editor

My relationship with Detroit began with Gust Keros, who immigrated to Detroit from Greece in 1903. He swept floors at Kelsey-Hayes Co., pushed a popcorn concession wagon around Belle Isle and ran a hat-cleaning and shoe shine shop at the corner of Lafayette and Griswold before opening the American Coney Island there in 1917.

Nickel coneys proved popular and profitable, so Gust brought his brother William over from Greece. William Keros learned the business at the American and, when the storefront next door became available, opened the Lafayette Coney Island. Other notable purveyors include Todoroff's of Jackson, Michigan (est. 1914), Leo's (which has seventeen locations) and the very successful National Coney Island chain.

Typically, I consist of a sausage cooked to perfection (my Koegel sausage casing has wonderful elasticity, creating a popping sound as you take a bite), mild beef chili (a.k.a. "coney sauce"), very very mild, but crunchy onions and american yellow mustard - all on a soft hot dog bun.

In Quebec, I am called a hot dog Michigan, or simply a Michigan. In Cincinnati, I am prepared with a local chili recipe; onions and mustard are typically added upon request. I can also be topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, and thereafter called a cheese coney.