Tommy's Burger

This week’s stop was Tommy’s Burger near downtown Provo. Tommy’s is known for their burgers topped with homemade chili that's made with carrots instead of beans. It’s located inside a tiny shack that opened originally as an ice cream shop, then was used as a car dealership and insurance office before Tommy’s opened up in 1987. I got a good tip that they had a mean Chicago dog, so Rachel and I headed over there with much excitement.

The menu at Tommy’s is pretty basic; they give you four dogs to choose from and we knew we needed to try their Chicago hot dog, but for the second choice we decided to get something that was unique to Tommy’s, so we got the chili covered “power dog”. All their dogs are made from 7 inch Vienna Beef hot dogs. Vienna Beef dogs are made in Chicago and are the dog of choice for Chicago’s many independent hot dog stands. It’s a real treat to find these in Utah.

Chicago dogs are made of all beef frankfurters that are steamed or boiled and topped with neon green relish, onions, a pickle slice, tomato slices, peppers, celery salt and mustard served in a poppy seed bun. Tommy’s version is served on a bun that lacks poppy seeds but is way tasty cause it comes from a local bakery. The only other difference is that the tomatoes come diced. Owing to the Vienna Beef, this was a great hot dog. Tomato slices would have given it a more authentic feel.

The Power dog is served on the same delicious bun, but the dog is sliced and grilled instead of boiled. The cook at Tommy’s threw some onions on the grill then added kraut and a couple slices of cheese and let it all combine before adding it to the dog, adding tomatoes and then topping it with their signature chili and a generous portion of Dijon mustard. We didn’t dare try eating this with our hands. There was so much on this dog we had to use a fork first! The chili was fantastic. It’s consistency was very sauce like but I would not mind just eating it in a bowl. It was pretty spicy and the carrots really make this a great topping for a hot dog. Once we ate most of the chili we dug into the dog which at this point basically consisted of kraut, onions, cheese, and tomatoes. The little bit of chili that was still there brought everything together very nicely. I’m not usually a fan of chili dogs, but this was by far the best one I’ve ever had and quite possibly my favorite dog I’ve had so far this summer.

Tommy's Chicago Dog

Power Dog

HOT dog

You should definitely check out Tommy’s Burger at 400 West and 100 North in Provo. The fact that they use Vienna Beef brand franks automatically makes this one of the best hot dog joints in Utah Valley, but their burgers also look pretty amazing.