If anyone knows hot dogs and Brats it is Brewers fans. They live smack dab in the middle of the encased meat capital of the world. Their Miller Park tailgate grill parties are legendary, and fans like that demand a meat monster worthy of living in Milwaukee. Last year the Brewers answered with “The Beast.” This year, the new meat missle on the block is the “Down Wisconsin Avenue” brat. The moniker comes from a call from famed Brewer broadcaster, and former MLB player, Bob Uecker’s call when a pitch is thrown right down the middle of the plate, which the Uecker claims is right “down wisconsin avenue.”
When you replace a dog called “The Beast,” you had better be impressive. And this brat will make fans forget The Beast ever existed. It is an 18-inch Klement’s spicy brat topped with beef gravy, shoe string fries, frizzled sauerkraut, two types of cheese curds, cheese sauce, sour cream, fried jalapenos and fresh chives. Zoinks! (as Shaggy would say when encountering a monster), that is a whole lot of food. First, I didn’t know there was more than one type of cheese curd, and second, this conglomeration of ingredients is placed not in a large hot dog bun, but a gonnella bread bun (which is like a hoagie bun). It is large, soft, tasty and daunting.
Appeal-anything that is supposedly better than “The Beast” is a dog I want to meet. 5
Ingredients-all first class and fresh, and Klement’s makes world class brats. 5
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| WARNING: It is larger in real life |
Uniqueness-the only entry I know of named after a broadcaster’s signature call. Plus the name alone makes you curious. 5
Monstrosity Factor-you did read the part about it being an 18-inch brat yes? Throw in all those toppings in that huge, soft bun and you have dog evan Pac-Man can’t devour. There was no way I could eat a whole one. 5
Value-this is a two-person brat, and those two fans are going to be full. Sure, it’s $20, but that is $10 a fan for a meat lover’s fantasy in a bun. And it will be the ONLY thing you eat that night. Get a regular dog and some peanuts and you are already over $10 per eater. 5
Overall Taste-spicy but not overpowering, top-notch ingredients and the best bun/roll in baseball. I was tempted to purge just so I could make room for another. I figured I could tell fans Bob Uecker’s play-by-play was making me ill. 5
| APPEAL | 5 |
| INGREDIENTS | 5 |
| UNIQUENESS | 5 |
| MONSTROSITY FACTOR | 5 |
| VALUE | 5 |
| OVERALL TASTE | 5 |
| TOTAL | 30 |
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| The Sausage Rope |
Finally, after a few entries getting close, a dog with a perfect score. It all comes together for the “Down Wisconsin Avenue” Dog. But wait...there’s more! The Brewers also offer a sausage rope (see photo), and they will whack off 6 or 12 inches to suit your taste. Place it on a gonnella bun with sauteed peppers and onions. Can’t handle the the “Down Wisconsin Avenue” First of all: wimp. Secondly: the rope sausage is for you.
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| Service With a Smile |
I also got to meet Chef Pastor Jimenez who was at Target Field last year and part of the team that designed another brat that received high marks, “The Brat Dog.” The concessions team (Delaware North Company) is led by Eric Babcock. You may remember I ran into Eric during Spring Training in Arizona. He ran the concessions at Scottsdale Stadium, which ended up winning the Cactus League best ballpark/hot dog experience. Now he captains the team that has the first dog with a perfect score. My hot dog instincts tell me personnel is just as important as ingredients when putting out the perfect dog.
Brewers fans love baseball and have a dog they can be proud of. But if you go to more than a few games a year, and tackle the Downtown Wisconsin Avenue Dog; make sure to renew your gym membership.
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