Wemay be the last people in Western New York to realize that Hot Dog Heaven is much, much more than just hot dogs. The menu includes breakfast all day (with truly astonishing prices of $1.80 to $3.10 for specials until 11 a. m. daily), omelettes, sandwiches, melts, salads, burgers and souvlaki, as well as soup, milkshakes and all the sides your heart could desire. Plus, a large whiteboard near the door lists the day’s specials, which seem to be basically some selections picked off the menu and reduced in price.

Take the hot meat loaf sandwich, which we did. On the menu, it’s listed at $6.39. On the daily specials board, it went for a mere $4.99. Same thick slice of nicely made meat loaf; same two slices of soft white bread; same dark, slightly too salty canned-type gravy; same two scoops of smooth whipped potatoes. It’s possible that the special could have been a little smaller than the menu sandwich, but it was plenty big enough.

Ditto for the mac and cheese special, a mound of blaze-orange elbows lavished with an extra layer of melted cheese.

Served with a buttered slice of fresh rye, it was just $3.99. The P and P Special was ordered one-third for the name (funny), one-third for the price ($4.99) and one-third for the components (diced Polish sausage cooked in a three-egg scramble and two potato pancakes). The Polish sausage was excellent—a sign says their meats are Sahlen’s, and we believed it. The potato pancakes, although not the largest we’ve ever seen, were soft in the middle and crunchy on the outside, just delicious.

Of course, we also had to try the hot dogs. The charbroiled one was the selection, served with all the trimmings for $2.09. The dogs themselves were excellent, charbroiled to perfection, served on fresh rolls. Of course, if you can buy five dogs, you get one free, an excellent deal if you’re feeding a family or just extra-hungry. Although Hot Dog Heaven’s slogan is “The Secret’s in the Sauce,” we missed sampling it this time. Previous visitors agree with the slogan and say the mixture includes such deeply flavored spices as cinnamon and cumin.

We saw thick milkshakes going to neighboring tables, and some darned good-looking rice puddings, served in parfait glasses with fancy whipped cream designs on the top.

More research may be needed at Hot Dog Heaven! —Anne Neville

Hot Dog Heaven in Cheektowaga opens at 6:30 a. m. and closes at 11 p. m., except Friday and Saturday, when it closes at midnight. A smaller sister shop at 2449 Seneca St. is open 24 hours a day.

Hot Dog Heaven Family Restaurant