Spring has sprung and with it comes the newest restaurant to the Longwood Landings. Right next to Chick-Fil-A is The Hot Dog Bar, co-owned by father and daughter duo Louis Anderson and Ashley Campbell, locals of Amelia County.
The Hot Dog Bar features specialty and build your own hot dogs, as well as a popular dessert called the Lollywaffle, a waffle on a stick that comes in varieties such as Red Velvet with cream cheese drizzle; Belgian with strawberry sauce, Nutella or whipped cream; Pizza and the wildly popular Cinnamon Bun with cream cheese drizzle.
The "Top Shelf" menu features the Coney Island, which comes with the house chili, chopped onions and cheddar cheese; the Bacon BBQ Blue, with chopped bacon, crumbled blue cheese and barbecue sauce; the Rueben, topped with warm sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and Thousand Island dressing; the Hawaiian, with chopped bacon, pineapple salsa and your choice of teriyaki sauce or teriyaki mayo; the Chicago Dog, topped with pickle slices, tomatoes, relish, chopped onions and mustard and rounding out the specialty menu is the Waffle Dog, which is a hot dog wrapped in the house waffle with the sauce of your choice.
Recently added to the menu are the Chili Slaw Dog, which is, true to its name, topped with chili and coleslaw, and the Lancer Dog, which comes with crispy onions, cheddar cheese and your choice of sauce.
Campbell noted, "The Waffle Dog is a healthier alternative to a corn dog that students can conveniently take on the go."
The Hot Dog Bar proudly uses all beef hot dogs in both the skinned and skinless varieties. Hot dogs with skin, as Anderson stated, "have more of a snap and remind you of the ballpark franks that you get on the streets of New York," whereas the skinless hot dogs are the "nostalgic hot dogs that your mom used to make when you were little."
Vegetarians and vegans, fear not, for the Hot Dog Bar offers a meatless, vegan hotdog.
Anderson is a fourth generation small business owner and Campbell is the fifth generation business owner in her family. Originally from Brooklyn, New York, they quit their jobs as a digital media project manager and as a contractor, respectively in hopes of opening a small business close to their family's home. After reaching out to the small business committee, they came to the conclusion that a hot dog restaurant is what the town needed and students would want for their convenience. They chose the location because of Chick-Fil-a's popularity and the amount of foot traffic coming from the proximity to Longwood.
Customer Eric Simmons commented, “I like that I can eat for cheap and the food is really good. I’ve already been twice and I plan on going back again.”
Campbell strongly advocated that they "cater to their customers and all suggestions are welcome. We're looking to mold our business to what the customers want to eat."
In the future, the Hot Dog Bar looks to add ice cream to the menu. The restaurant is currently open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and accepts Lancer Cash.
The Hot Dog Bar is ready to open and serve the residents of Farmville.
