The Roast Grill

Over a year ago I encountered a new television obsession on the Travel Channel. It was this little show called "Man vs. Food" where a round little guy travels around the country taking on eating challenges, you know, like giant pizzas and burgers, dozens of oysters, milkshakes and of course... hot dogs. The show brought Adam Richman to Raleigh's The Roast Grill, which is a speck of a place off West St. just between Morgan and Hillsborough, where he consumed 17 hotdogs in one sitting. Now that looked painful, but the dogs looked good, so I vowed to find this place and try a dog or two of my own. A year and a half later I made it.

We parked just in front of the building with a "Hot Weiners" sign as a beacon and a neon "The Roast Grill" in the window. The parking sign said 30 minutes and we debated how long it may take us to eat two hotdogs each, then decided we probably should be done in 30 minutes... probably. We walked into the place that looked tiny on TV and even tinier in person. There was a lunch counter style bar with 8 cushion topped stools covering the length of the skinny room and two, two-seater tables pressed up against the adjacent wall. Before we even had a chance to let our eyes adjust to the shade of the place we were asked what we wanted.... uh, hotdogs, yes, hotdogs please.

Well, of course, but how many and what do you want on it?
Everything but chili, please.
Blank stare.
Really? I worked on this chili all day. It is going to be the best that you have ever had.
Okay, then, chili too. (I knew this day would come for me. Better here than anywhere else)

In less than 10 seconds there was a fully loaded dog and a glass bottled coke in front of me. And in less than 13 minutes we were back in the car, with two of the most delicious hotdogs settling in our stomachs and a small chili colored stain appropriately settled in on my shorts. If only I had more cash, it would have been four, for sure.

And that is how it happened. I am now a chili dog kind of girl.