Tuesday, June 14, 2016

First Bite: Pink's Hot Dog Manila

I have been counting the days, weeks and months since I heard the news that the legendary Pink's Hot Dog is coming to Manila. I was ecstatic as I know that Pink's has never branched out outside (sounds redundant) Los Angeles. The well-loved hot dog joint has been patronized by foodies and celebrities alike. Heck, even Brad Pitt and Betty White love Pink's! Just knowing I ate the same dish as these A-listers make me feel like a celebrity. Forget the dirty tables and the long wait outside despite 3 degrees temperature. All for the love of hot dogs. 
And so when I found out that Pink's was opening on June 8, I planned out my schedule. I even bugged R's friend K to confirm the date and she said that it was indeed opening on Wednesday. There were also online news outlets claiming the same thing. It was just bizarre though that Pink's Hot Dog Manila's social media pages were not announcing any. I had to confirm as I do not want to waste my energy walking for 20 minutes to be greeted by a closed sign. I decided to message Pink's via its Facebook page. Seenzoned. 

Assertive and with burning desire to know the truth about Pink's opening date, I messaged one of the owners via Instagram. No reply. 
What annoys me is that despite the terrible online customer service, I would still go because it's new and I'm curious. There are times I hate the food blogger in me! 

Finally, it was confirmed that they will open on June 10, Friday. At 5 p.m..
I scheduled to go on Saturday (as I had to be in Quezon City during its opening day) but R got sick so I opted not to go. (It was also because I found out that the line was long and people had to wait for an HOUR to get their hot dogs. I refuse to wait that long.) 
And so I went a few hours ago after work. HELLO PINK'S HOT DOG!!! 
Guess what? There was no line. We managed to order right away and got a table. We ordered The Hollywood Legend (PHP280) and East LA Street Dog (PHP280). Drinks are steep so we just shared one Berry Yuzu (PHP160). 

Service was very quick and our hot dogs and beverage were served in less than 5 minutes. I was impressed. 
The Hollywood Legend which is made of hot dog topped with Pink's famous chili, cheddar cheese, mustard and chopped onions is pretty good. The sausage was juicy and indeed very meaty and the chili was delectable. It went well with the other toppings. 
East LA Street Dog was quite a mess to eat. I got curious with this one because it was described as hot dog wrapped in bacon and topped with ketchup, mustard, mayo, grilled onions and pepper and pico de gallo. Okay, it was the word bacon that caught my eye. But what was served was a naked hot dog. It was not wrapped in bacon but topped with bacon and the other ingredients. 
I didn't like this as much as The Hollywood Legend. It was just your usual hot dog with bacon and the works. 

I read some reviews raving and drooling over the soft buns but... it was pretty ordinary to me. It was nothing but your usual buns. In fact, it was "meh".
Our drink, Berry Yuzu, though was refreshing and probably our best purchase in Pink's. It was refreshing and had the right level of sweetness and tanginess. 

I hate to say it but Pink's Hot Dog Manila is overrated and overpriced. Don't expect too much from it to avoid being disappointed. 
(Oh! And I just remembered! During the time when I was still trying to confirm Pink's opening date, I called Wildflour and they asked for my number so that they could just message or call me for the details. And yes, you guessed it right, I didn't get any update.)

Pink's Hot Dog Manila is located at Ground Floor, Shangri-La at the Fort, 5th Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City.

Pink's Hot Dogs Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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