Archived Article By Tom Fitzmorris Originally published July , 2007 Brennan Cousins Hot Dogging This Week About ten or fifteen years ago, the Brennan family was trying to devise an attraction to their restaurants during the slow week of the Fourth of July. Somebody suggested that they turn their chefs loose on the hot dog. What was probably meant as a joke at first evolved into a week-long (if not foot-long) promotion in all the Brennan family restaurants (except, of course, Brennan's on Royal Street, which stands alone). They asked me to be a judge of all the permutations of the hot dog their chefs could think of, as each restaurant ran a lunch special with a gourmet hot dog at its center. It really was fun, but one year every Brennan cousin thought one of the other ones was handling the hot dog deal, and it slipped off their collective calendar of events. It's back. And I have a feeling that, when I taste all nine hot dogs tomorrow afternoon (they brought me back, too), I will be introduced to some truly long stretches on the concept. The differences in the restaurants alone should do that: Bacco, Ralph's on the Park, Redfish Grill, Commander's Palace, Café Adelaide, Mr. B's Bistro, Bourbon House, Palace Café and Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse are all fielding entries. All of those restaurants will put forth their hot dog specials every day this week at lunchtime. For example, here's what Dickie's restaurants are offering: Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse. House-made Prime beef frank on a toasted Creole bun, topped with peppers, onions, and melted pepper jack cheese, served with prime chipped beef chili and tempura battered pickled green beans.   Bourbon House. Foot-long smoked barbecue shrimp hot dog topped with green tomato pickles, Abita molasses mustard and crispy fried Cajun onion rings on a house-made garlic bun. Served with Tanya's macaroni salad.   Palace Cafe. Combination of Chicago-style Vienna beef and New York-style veal "white hots" in a bacon-wrapped swirly dog. Served on top a griddled manchego poppy seed bun with pickled mirliton and green tomato relish, melted manchego cheese, mustard and Creole tomato ketchup. Accompanied by grilled, fried red onion rings and barbecue red beans. Yes, we are stretching, aren't we. But, despite the instant appeal of the hot dog, it's still pretty low down on the food taxonomy, and one must use imagination. If you want to observe the tasting, and perhaps share in it, it will be tomorrow afternoon at five-thirty at Cafe Adelaide. Come by and do the dogs. © 2007 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com