The foodie traveller: kimchi hot dogs

Hyper-hip Ryan Farr at 4505 Meats in San Francisco serves it with crunchy chicharrónes (fried pork rinds). At Vancouver and New York’s Japadog, it’s sprinkled with black sesame seeds and slathered over a turkey wiener.

Whether you scarf it from a food truck or nibble it with Dom Perignon at Dirty Bones in Kensington, these days your hot dog is little more than a dog’s breakfast if it’s not topped with trendy kimchi. But while the pickled vegetable originates from South Korea, it’s rare to see it served with franks over there – Solbin’s Superdog in Apgujeong, Seoul, being one exception. Sausage stalls abound, but the bangers – wrapped in bacon, smothered in curry, or deep fried in a weird-but-practical cornmeal and french-fry jacket –lack the spicy sidekick that has hot dog aficionados in the west barking for more.