Hot dog wars in Dewey

Hot dog wars in Dewey

Up two blocks, Courtney is the second owner of Dewey Beach's Deerhead Hot Dogs in as many years, taking over the shop known for its secret chili-type sauce, a favorite of upstate customers.

His frankfurters also come on a short hoagie-type roll, but his are split and fried on a grill. (An all-beef dog is $2.50, a standard meat hot dog is $2.25.)

Sure, Deerhead is a Delaware tradition dating back to 1935 and the brand sure pulls in plenty of Delawareans, but in Dewey Beach, the majority of the crowd are vacationers from nearby areas like Washington, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania -- and they don't know a Deerhead from a Dogfish.

Courtney, who has also expanded his menu to include items like mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers and fried shrimp, hopes that word-of-mouth helps spread the news about his unique dogs through the equally unique beach town.

Like Goldfarb, Courtney is fighting against not only the competition, but the economy, as well.

During the day, his business tends to come from families walking back to their rentals from the beach. "But guess what's happening. They are going to the beach full-tilt, with their own food," he says. "They can buy a pound of hot dogs and a bag of rolls for $5. You come in here and get one hot dog, it's $2.25."

It's been a slow summer for both Deerhead and Dewey Dogs so far, except for Memorial Day, which gave both a major boost.

At Deerhead, Courtney got a glimpse of what success would look like: On one night it was raining and all of his late-night customers were piled into the tiny shop. "I counted 75 heads in here -- all of them drunk and screaming," says Courtney, who keeps a piece of bamboo to playfully keep them in line if they misbehave.

So with thousands flooding Dewey Beach this weekend, cash registers should be ringing at both Dewey Dogs and Deerhead, with customers making the ultimate decision about who is Dewey's top dog.