Hot dog wars in Dewey

Hot dog wars in Dewey

While celebrating our independence this holiday weekend, it's nearly impossible not to encounter a simple summertime staple: the hot dog.

On Saturday alone, Americans will eat 150 million hot dogs, enough to stretch from Washington to Los Angeles more than five times, according to the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council.

Considering those numbers and the seemingly endless demand for quick, takeout food from Dewey Beach's bar crowd, it was odd that there wasn't a single hot dog shop in town just a few summers ago.

Well, that changed last summer when Deerhead Hot Dogs (1905 Del. 1), a 74-year Delaware tradition, opened just south of The Starboard.

But just when you thought Dewey's dog desires had been met, a second shop opened on this past Memorial Day weekend: Dewey Dogs (1707 Del. 1), just south of the Bottle & Cork.

Suddenly, Dewey is a two-dog town, with specialty shops sitting less than two blocks from each other -- and owners of both spots are relishing the competition.