Savor NY: Hot Dog
Whether up at museum row or down at Coney Island, the hot dog has come to define city street food. Perhaps the most well-known dog is Nathan’s, so much so that they added the word to their brand, making them “Nathan’s Famous.” But the “Original Nathan’s” is not the original city hot dog. Before Nathan’s was famous, it was Feltman’s.
The New York City hot dog was created by a German baker named Charles Feltman in 1867, according to Michael Quinn, Coney Island historian and entrepreneur reviving the Feltman’s brand. Feltman used his baking skills to create the iconic elongated bun and placed in it the frankfurter from his native Germany. However, in 1867 what would later become the hot dog was coined as the “Coney Island Red Hot.” Feltman sold close to 4000 of them that summer.
With the success of that first summer, Feltman opened a resort at Coney Island. The aptly named “Feltman’s” was a giant, complete with a hotel and restaurant, as Coney Island grew as a vacation spot.
Meanwhile, Polish immigrant Nathan Handwerker was learning to prepare the hot dog at a place called Max’s Busy Bee, according to Lloyd Handwerker, grandson of Famous Nathan. The original Nathan needed a second job, leading him to Feltman’s on the weekend. Over time, Handwerker saw an opportunity to open his own stand. At five cents a dog compared to Feltman’s 10 cents, it was an economic hot dog.
Despite Handwerker’s decision to leave Feltman’s, there was never a rivalry between the two, according to both Quinn and Handwerker. They were two very different establishments that catered to different crowds.
“For Handwerker to leave Feltman’s would be like an employee leaving Disney World,” said Quinn.
Feltman’s would later close as Coney Island ceased to become a resort town, while Nathan’s would grow and change hands, eventually leaving the Handwerker family to become a public company.
Today, it seems the two businesses have switched places. Nathan’s Famous is a giant, like Feltman’s once was, while Feltman’s is a smaller reviving business under Quinn.
