Americans have strong opinions about hot dogs. In certain parts of New Jersey, the disagreements get intense. Ask 10 people to name the best hot dog in the state, and you may get 10 different answers. Some swear by “Rippers” from Rutt’s Hut in Clifton (hot dogs whose skins rip when they’re deep-fried), while others are devoted to Hiram’s chili cheese dogs in Fort Lee.
Along the Springsteen Corridor—the beachy hamlets that populate the Jersey shoreline—the most common answer up until very recently would be a Schickhaus dog, served for over a century at family owned boardwalk hot-dog joints. The Schickhaus name wasn’t widely known beyond the Jersey Shore, so it didn’t make national headlines when, earlier this year, the brand quietly disappeared.
