Hot Dogs on Ice(National Post, 22 Apr 2003)
by Liz Clayton
For all the times Toronto seems downright provincial, 3:00am at the corner of Yonge and Bloor is not one of them.
Where else in the world can you buy a hot dog off the street 24 hours a day in a harsh frozen winter?
In front of the darkened Hudson’s Bay Centre, cabs and double-parked cars empty their hungry, their glassy-eyed onto Bloor Street in front of two hot dog stands. Propane-heated, and mostly — mostly — protected from harsh winds, these are downtown’s main sentries, and the only businesses open all night at the crossroads of Toronto. The night-shifters speak little English — not much more than “hot dog” —but for most, this is all that’s necessary.
Hot dog season isn’t just beginning — it never ends in this town.
While the hot dog stand is quintessentially Torontonian, it’s the hot dog stand customer that’s even more of an icon. Not just for tourists, these carts are a year-round source of delight — and nitrites — for city-dwellers.
Vendors agree that though business is slower in winter, there are still plenty of people hungry for hot dogs.
Toronto is famous for its street-vended dogs. Yonge and Bloor vendor Najla Azizyer insists that no matter what the season, “people from New York City come here just for the hot dogs!” Though according to most vendors, tourists make up only a small part of the clientele. More often than not the customers are locals.
Shahzad Hameed, who works at various carts in the downtown area, says his wintertime customers are usually students, people getting off of work, or club-goers. “Some taxi drivers, when they feel hunger, they pull over and buy,” says Hameed. “And some rich people.”
Robert Webb, who mans “Max’s Hot Dogs”, a 24-hour cart at Queen and Spadina, insists winter hot dog vending is good business. “A lot of people come in the wintertime. We did pretty good this winter, sometimes $100 or $200 a day.” Webb will concede that Monday nights are slow no matter what the season.
Business may slow down in winter, but for many, it’s hard to resist the tempting smell of hot, charred meat no matter what the wind chill. A customer named Dave admitted he gets a street dog “at least once a month” — and that includes all the months with “r” in their name.
At Queen and Spadina, a man named Adrian professed to getting a hot dog “whenever I feel like one — especially on a cold day”.
Eating all these hot dogs is surely fun, but isn’t it sheer hell to stand outside in subzero temperatures and wait for the occasional winter hot dog buyer?
“When I started ten days ago, it was really cold. My legs froze!” said Hameed, whose small cart on College Street near Borden doesn’t have room for a propane heater.
“If it’s just snow it’s okay. I have heaters. If it’s -30 outside it’s not okay. But work is work,” concedes Azizyer, whose cart outside the Hudson’s Bay Centre is more of an elaborate tent than a cart.
Sima Mohammad, whose cart sits next to Azizyer’s, says “This business is usually April through November. If it’s very cold and windy, nobody comes. I have to be nice, smile always.” But Mohammad, who found the job through an Iranian magazine, doesn’t let the deep freeze get her down. “The heater and the spicy customers keep me warm.”
Whether borne from sheer sausage demand or the persuasive powers of a good smell, Toronto has become, for better or worse, a 24-hour, 365-day-a-year hot dog town. For many, the street dog is as much a symbol of the city as the streetcar. And why shouldn’t it be? It’s still cheaper than a ride on the TTC — and it usually smells better.