Zab’s Footlong hotdogs

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

I saw the other thread on here re footlong hotdogs. It reminded me of “Zab’s Backyard Hots,” which was a big footlong hot dog chain in Rochester, NY back in the 80s.

 

I remember going to the location in east Rochester and loving their footlong white hots and signature hot sauce.
 

Anyone else remember this place? 
 

I looked it up, and it looks like it expanded too fast, which caused it to crater and file bankruptcy:

 

https://amp.democratandchronicle.com/amp/99035558

 

[Bad Things]

58 minutes ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

I saw the other thread on here re footlong hotdogs. It reminded me of “Zab’s Backyard Hots,” which was a big footlong hot dog chain in Rochester, NY back in the 80s.

 

I remember going to the location in east Rochester and loving their footlong white hots and signature hot sauce.
 

Anyone else remember this place? 
 

I looked it up, and it looks like it expanded too fast, which caused it to crater and file bankruptcy:

 

https://amp.democratandchronicle.com/amp/99035558

 

Yeah, I remember Zab's.  Good stuff.  I haven't thought about that place in decades!  (Moved away in 1990)

 

That said, if we're talking white hots, you gotta go with Zweigle's.

Man, now I want a white hot, but they're all on the other side of the planet!

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

13 hours ago, Bad Things said:

Yeah, I remember Zab's.  Good stuff.  I haven't thought about that place in decades!  (Moved away in 1990)

 

That said, if we're talking white hots, you gotta go with Zweigle's.

Man, now I want a white hot, but they're all on the other side of the planet!

Amen to Zweigles! 
 

a few years ago, I was back in rochester, and bought a cooler full of zweigle’s white hots, thinking it would last me at least a solid year. In the middle of winter, our fridge/freezer broke, and panic ensued in terms of preserving the white hots! I had to keep shifting them to coolers outside until we got a new fridge. 

[Johnny Hammersticks]

I thought it was Zeb’s.  There was one right around the corner from my mom’s house and the hot dogs were awesome.

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

I worked for a 'freezer plan' type of company back in the late 70s, delivering preordered frozen foods to customers' homes.  We had a good customer base in Rochester, and all the WNY stalwart brands didn't fly there.  At least once a month after doing deliveries in Rochester, it was over to Zwiegel's on Plymouth Ave to schlep back to Buffalo a supply of their four major types.

[Augie]

35 minutes ago, Johnny Hammersticks said:

I thought it was Zeb’s.  There was one right around the corner from my mom’s house and the hot dogs were awesome.

 

Not being a Rochester guy, I don’t know about Zeb’s/Zab’s. I do remember that in addition to Ted’s there was a Pat’s we would hit from time to time. Apparently seasonal so just vague memories. I do not remember Louie’s Foot Long Hot Dogs, but that may have been the birthplace of the foot long. 

 

There was a Ted’s knock off here in Atlanta complete with loganberry and “Crystal Beach” fries until a few years ago. Sad day when they closed.   😪

 

https://buffalonews.com/news/food-legend-enjoys-being-link-to-past/article_d38c520c-5bf1-53d0-9afd-7843746d7895.html

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

46 minutes ago, Johnny Hammersticks said:

I thought it was Zeb’s.  There was one right around the corner from my mom’s house and the hot dogs were awesome.

i also thought it was zeb’s, and that’s where my google search was focused until I came across that article above. 

[gdabillsfan]

2 hours ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

Amen to Zweigles! 
 

a few years ago, I was back in rochester, and bought a cooler full of zweigle’s white hots, thinking it would last me at least a solid year. In the middle of winter, our fridge/freezer broke, and panic ensued in terms of preserving the white hots! I had to keep shifting them to coolers outside until we got a new fridge. 

Funny story....

In the 70s and 80s Zweigles was owned by Bob Berl (the current owners grandfather). He was my grandmother's cousin, and he was also the "Bob" from Don and Bobs restaurants fame.

My Brother was a manager for Wegmans in the 90's, and they had come out with the Wegmans version of a natural casing hot dog. An older gentleman was at the hot dog case, and stopped my brother while he passed by,  and asked his opinion of the new Wegmans hots. My brother promptly told him that they were actually better tasting than Zweigles, and that he should know, (not because he was an authority on hot dogs), but because the people who own Zweigles are his grandmother's cousin.

The older man, his interest peaked, then asked my brother who was their cousin who ran Zweigles, and my brother proudly said Bob Berl. The old man looked at my brother and held out his hand and introduced himself "Hi, I'm Bob Berl"

He had also noticed my brothers last name on his name tag, and said "tell Bernie (our Dad) I said hi", and walked away with the most amusing grin on his face.

 

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

42 minutes ago, gdabillsfan said:

Funny story....

In the 70s and 80s Zweigles was owned by Bob Berl (the current owners grandfather). He was my grandmother's cousin, and he was also the "Bob" from Don and Bobs restaurants fame.

My Brother was a manager for Wegmans in the 90's, and they had come out with the Wegmans version of a natural casing hot dog. An older gentleman was at the hot dog case, and stopped my brother while he passed by,  and asked his opinion of the new Wegmans hots. My brother promptly told him that they were actually better tasting than Zweigles, and that he should know, (not because he was an authority on hot dogs), but because the people who own Zweigles are his grandmother's cousin.

The older man, his interest peaked, then asked my brother who was their cousin who ran Zweigles, and my brother proudly said Bob Berl. The old man looked at my brother and held out his hand and introduced himself "Hi, I'm Bob Berl"

He had also noticed my brothers last name on his name tag, and said "tell Bernie (our Dad) I said hi", and walked away with the most amusing grin on his face.

 

awesome story! 

[Bad Things]

God, I so miss upstate NY food.

To this day, I make my own homemade batches of Sal's Sauce (Rochester), which I put on just about everything.

 

It was only a couple years ago that Buffalo Wing sauce became available.  Up until then, we always made our own, which was hard to do without having Frank's.  (I'll pass on trying to make my own sausages though.)

[T&C]

19 hours ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

I saw the other thread on here re footlong hotdogs. It reminded me of “Zab’s Backyard Hots,” which was a big footlong hot dog chain in Rochester, NY back in the 80s.

 

I remember going to the location in east Rochester and loving their footlong white hots and signature hot sauce.
 

Anyone else remember this place? 
 

I looked it up, and it looks like it expanded too fast, which caused it to crater and file bankruptcy:

 

https://amp.democratandchronicle.com/amp/99035558

 

I'm gonna say that it was the French's mustard that did them in.

[Johnny Hammersticks]

19 hours ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

i also thought it was zeb’s, and that’s where my google search was focused until I came across that article above. 

Ah, yes.  Yeah, my mom had an apartment like 3 doors down from the Park Ave location back in the day.  I remember the building kind of looked like one of the houses from the Hobbit.