LIFESTYLE

Seattle Dog beats Chicago, New York styles for best hot dog in America

Jul 1, 2026, 6:57 AM | Updated: 3:01 pm

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Closeup of a Seattle-style hotdog. (Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)

(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)

With Fourth of July barbecues on tap, Seattle has been ranked the top city for hot dogs in America.

Seattle’s hot dog, also known as a Seattle Dog, has earned the title of America’s best regional hot dog in a New York Times Wirecutter taste-testing video.

A Seattle Dog is loaded with cream cheese, grilled onions, and sometimes jalapeños, beating out seven other regional styles from around the country. Chef José Andrés, founder of World Central Kitchen, helped the Wirecutter team make this decision.

“What the cream cheese does very well is navigate well into the sweetness of the onion, the mustard and the jalapeño,” Andrés said in the video. “Almost becomes a diplomat the brings everything together.”

The Seattle Dog topped a New York-style hot dog (served on a potato roll with onion sauce, sauerkraut, spicey brown mustard), a Chicago-style hot dog (served on a poppy seed bun with yellow mustard, Chicago-style relish, diced onions, tomatoes, pickle spears, sport peppers, celery salt) and Detroit’s, which comes with a potato roll, yellow mustard, diced onions, and coney sauce.

Other regional hot dogs considered were Cincinnati’s (which comes with yellow mustard, skyline chili, diced onions, and shredded cheddar cheese), West Virginia’s (served with yellow mustard, diced onions, chili sauce, and coleslaw), Kansas City’s (made up of sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, Thousand Island dressing, and caraway seeds), and Arizona’s (which is a bacon-wrapped hot dog with mayo, yellow mustard, beans, caramelized onions, diced tomatoes, sliced avocado, and jalapeño sauce).

In three rounds of voting in an elimination-style bracket, only one participant voted against the Seattle Dog.

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Seattle Dog beats Chicago, New York styles for best hot dog in America