Hot dogs and waffles. A winning combination of foodstuffs if ever there was one. At Stray Dogs, these are not any old hot dogs either but “haute” dogs, served from a street vending cart that can now be found inside The Bank of Stokes Croft every day between 11am and 10pm.

Following in the footsteps of Bagel Boy in the Elbow Rooms, Stray Dogs have a permanent presence in The Bank until it is returned to its usual usage as a bar.

The new business is the brainchild of the head chefs at the Robin Hood’s Retreat and Zazu’s Kitchen, so quite some calibre, and one that they say comes as a result of years talking about and searching for the perfect meal, “that holy grail of food that we still want to eat, even after a long day spent in the kitchen”.

Their take on the classic chilli cheese dog, at £6.50 the most expensive item on the menu, is made of a smoked beef sausage covered in chuck steak chilli, topped with cheese, grilled and finished with their own hot sauce.

The Mexican dog (£5.50) is a paprika sausage served with guacamole, sour cream, smoked tomato salsa, cheese and nachos; while another of the nine hot dogs on offer is the pig dog (£4.95), a jumbo frankfurter under a blanket of pulled pork, onion rings and barbecue sauce.

“For us this isn’t about guidebooks, reviewers or perfectly folded napkins,” say the chef pairing of Nathan and Chris. “It’s about big plates of delicious food that you can enjoy whilst out having fun with your friends.”

When I visited yesterday, it wasn’t with friends but with my 20-month-old daughter, who gleefully tucked into her first ever waffle, an extremely tasty concoction with caramelised bananas and gooey chocolate (£3.50).

Hot dogs and waffles. Most certainly a winning combination.

Stray Dogs @ The Bank, 84 Stokes Croft, Bristol, BS1 3QY

Website: www.eatstraydogs.com
Twitter: @eatstraydogs