These hot dogs can cut the mustard
In this ‘hot dog economy,’ paws-itively great ‘dogs’ at new Wyndmoor eatery
by LEN LEAR

Chestnut Hill resident Joanna Hoffman prepares a milk shake in her brand new business at 1014 E. Willow Grove Ave. in Wyndmoor. (Photos by Len Lear)

Some pundits have referred to the current deep recession in the U.S. as a “hot dog economy,” with millions of hard-hit families scaling down their lifestyle — from SUVs to compact cars, from downtown restaurants to neighborhood BYOBs, from steaks to hot dogs.

So you might say that Chestnut Hill resident Joanna Hoffman’s new business, “Yo Dogs,” which opened April 23 at 1014 E. Willow Grove Ave. in Wyndmoor (next to Groomingdale’s dog groomers, appropriately enough), is perfectly positioned to meet the needs of diners trying to make do with less.

“The reaction from the community has really exceeded our expectations,” said Hoffman, 36, a lifelong area resident.  (There was a steady stream of customers during our recent Thursday night visit.) “You can’t beat a lunch for about $5 with high-quality ingredients or a dinner under $10. We have some customers coming in for two meals in the same day and four times a week.”

While all-beef, grilled hot dogs are getting the most bite from customers at the new Wyndmoor operation, it also offers turkey dogs, chicken sausage, hamburgers, fries, milkshakes and salads with a wide variety of toppings such as bacon, avocado, mushrooms, chili and blue cheddar, as well as vegetarian and gluten-free dishes.

While Hoffman’s Yo Dogs is a new concept that she hopes to expand, she is no food business neophyte. She has been in the catering business for years and in 2003 and 2004 co-owned a restaurant, Pianta, at 8513 Germantown Ave., where A Taste of Philly has been ever since.

Joanna was pregnant during much of Pianta’s existence. When she finally did take time off to give birth, she returned to work only to find that her former partner had closed the business. “He later explained to me that the electricity had gone off, and all the food was spoiled. He had to throw out a few thousand dollars worth of food, and he said that was the last straw. There had been some other problems before that.”

Joanna’s mother, Sandy Seifert, grew up in Wyndmoor, just a few blocks from the current Yo Dogs location. Sandy attended the Stevens School in Chestnut Hill, where Crefeld School is now. Joanna left home after high school to major in communications at the University of New Hampshire, and after graduation she moved to Los Angeles “for a change of scenery.”

After four years in L.A. as a headhunter and restaurant worker (“not an actress!”), she came back to Philly and married a University of Pennsylvania Medical School student. They both moved to Atlanta, where he served a medical residency, and then moved back to Philly.

Joanna now lives in Chestnut Hill with her 91-year-old grandmother, Bobbi, who lived in Wyndmoor for more than 50 years; Joanna’s husband, Seth Hoffman, a pulmonary and cardiac care physician; and children, Isaac, 5, and Jed, 3.

If Yo Dogs ever does expand and become the “McDonald’s of hot dogs,” Joanna will become the second celebrity in her family. Her uncle, Ray Benson, is the founder and lead singer of Asleep at the Wheel, a country music band that has sold millions of records.

The 6-foot-7 Benson, who may be the nation’s only Jewish country music star, is currently on tour with Willie Nelson. And in a remarkable coincidence, Benson recently opened a hot dog place of his own in the Austin, Texas, airport. (Benson and Hoffman had decided independently of one another to open hot dog joints. When they were in the planning stages, each one did not even know the other was doing it.)

Joanna runs Yo Dogs with her brother, Jesse, 32, who came up with the idea for the name “because ‘Yo’ is such a Philadelphia thing.” When you walk into Yo Dogs, you see t-shirts, sweatshirts and hats with the Yo Dogs logo as well as signs and clever paintings on the wall, created by artist Harry Lowe of Glenside. The overall look is more like a franchise than an independently owned operation.

“At least once a day someone asks me if this is a franchise operation,” said Joanna. “Maybe someday, if everything goes right, who knows?” Prior to being home to Yo Dogs, the property at 1014 E. Willow Grove Ave. was the site of a hairdressing salon for 35 years.

When Joanna found out that the owner was ready to retire, a deal was worked out, and Joanna took possession in May of 2008. Almost an entire year was spent renovating the property, securing the proper permits, etc. “Entire civilizations have been built in less time than it took us to finally open this hot dog place,” said Joanna.

Joanna sells mostly all-beef Sabratt’s hot dogs from New York, but she also offers nitrate and hormone-free, grain-fed beef hot dogs from the Niman Ranch in California as an option. She gets her Prime burger meat and Kobe beef from a butcher in South Jersey. Her cupcakes are made from scratch by Marita Lux Stelacio of Glenside.”We taste-tested every single hot dog that’s out there,” said Joanna, “and these were the best. Our goal was to get the best possible ingredients and charge the lowest price possible.”

Some of the names for their offerings are quite clever. For example, there is the “Spa Treatment,” a hot dog with chopped tomato and avocado ($3.95); the “Double Dog Dare,” two dogs and two toppings on one bun ($5.50); the “Hustler,” a hamburger with caramelized onions, Swiss cheese and sautèed mushrooms ($5.75); the “Skinny Beach,” a salad with lettuce, onion and tomato ($4.75); the “Soon-to-be-Famous garlic fries, which speak for themselves” ($2.75), etc.

We thoroughly enjoyed the garlic fries, the Rueben, a dog with sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and thousand island dressing ($3.65); the garlic fries and the El Diablo salad with lettuce, tomato, chili, cheddar cheese, peppers and avocado ($6.95). Old-fashioned milkshakes and other non-alcoholic beverages are also available.

Most customers order their food to take out because there are only three stools available for seating. Joanna desperately wants to have outdoor dining, as the nearby Rita’s Water Ice does have, but she has run into a bureaucratic brick wall with the township. She did put some tables and chairs outside (there is a considerable distance between the building and Willow Grove Avenue), and she had plenty of outdoor diners for four days, but she was then ordered by the township to remove the tables and chairs.

I contacted Township Commissioner Jeff Harbison and posed these questions: “Why is it that Mrs. Hoffman is not allowed to have outside dining for even a few customers when Rita’s Water Ice, which is very close to her business, has plenty of outside seating? Isn’t this a double standard?”

Harbison responded that township zoning regulations prohibit Joanna from having outdoor seating because she serves hot, prepared food, and Rita’s Water Ice does not. “As you know,” he said, “the Commissioners are not allowed to waive zoning requirements …

“During my years on the Board, we have only changed zoning once, and that was to facilitate the preservation of the Piszek Estate. Zoning laws were written decades ago and are designed to protect the community should every parcel develop to the maximum allowed. As Willow Grove Avenue was historically residential (including Joanna’s property), there probably was a bit of a bias to limit development.” Harbison added that upon Joanna’s request, the Township is looking into modifying the zoning for the block.

On another matter, Joanna said, “I would like to take this chance to thank the owners of Bhagya’s Kitchen, which is two doors down from here. They have been so supportive and helpful in many ways, and I love getting their delicious (Indian) food at the end of a long night.”

For more information, call 215-233-DOGS or visit www.EatYoDogs.com