Rocco's Dog House

Happy National Hot Dog Day! As hot dog bloggers, Rachel and I were happy to discover that such a day exists - as if we needed an excuse to eat more hot dogs. A quick Google search indicates that this is a day not taken lightly in some parts of the United States. Some towns have hot dog festivals and the capitol lawn in Washington, DC becomes the nation’s largest hot dog picnic. Nothing of the sort was happening in Provo so we simply decided to grab some dogs at another local establishment.

We went to Rocco’s Dog House located on Center Street in Provo. We had tried to come here a couple times before but it was always closed. For the summer they set up a temporary stand with outdoor seating in the neighboring parking lot, but this wasn’t open (probably cause they were operating without a permit) so we had to go into their actual restaurant which is combined with Gandolfo’s Delicatessen. This was actually quite fun because it’s located in the basement of the historic Knight Block building. Walking down some old wooden stairs in the back of a long hallway leads you directly into their eclectic seating area. The walls are adorned with metal signs and New York memorabilia. My favorite art piece was a large mural on one wall of Mike Piazza standing at home plate with a long sub instead of a bat. If I were a Mets fan I would want that in my house.

The menu at Rocco’s/Gandolfo’s is quite confusing. It seemed like every available spot on the wall was filled with menu items for the two brands. Fortunately Rachel and I had decided what we wanted during our two previous attempts to eat here. I ordered the delicious sounding Hound Dog which consisted of a Polish sausage topped with a fried egg, a bacon strip, and Rocco’s secret barbeque-like hot dog sauce. Rachel ordered the Deputy dog, an all-beef dog topped with cole slaw and the secret sauce. Both dogs were served on hoagie rolls. For a dog which sounds gross and way fatty, the Hound dog was actually quite good. Nothing in it felt out of place and all the ingredients complemented each other. If the idea sounds weird just think of it as a breakfast sandwich; you’ll feel less guilty thinking this too.

The Deputy Dog

The Hound Dog

It was great to finally visit Rocco’s and their hot dogs were worth the long wait. I can see myself going back here in the future to try some of their other menu items. It’s a fun and modest establishment that feels very authentic. The atmosphere and dogs were great. Being there with Rachel was pretty good too.


Rocco's Dog House is located in the basement of the Knight Block Building at 18 N University Ave. in Provo.