PORT TOWNSEND — When the Dogs-A-Foot hot dog cart wheeled into town earlier this month, it was under new ownership.
“As long as I’ve lived in or visited Port Townsend, I’ve always loved to stop here,” said Scott Rogers, 54, who along with his wife, Robin Rogers, 53, bought the business from Paul Flor, who owned it for five years.
“At the end of last season, I saw a for sale sign and said, ‘Why not?’”
Said his wife: “We were ready for our next venture and thought there was no better way to do that than to have a hotdog stand.”
On March 11, the popular hot dog stand began its 30th year of operation at the corner of Water and Madison streets.
It will stay open until October.
“People are very excited that we are open again,” Rogers said.
“This place is an icon that has a place in the heart of this community,” he continued.
“When it was for sale, a lot of people were concerned it would go away.”
During the slow season, the stand has drawn between 60 and 90 customers daily, which Rogers expects will increase as it gets warmer.
“It’s very weather dependent,” he said.
“When the weather is great, business is wonderful. When it’s nasty and cloudy, business is not so good.”
The menu isn’t fancy, ranging from a basic “ballpark” dog for $3 to a chili dog with everything for $6.75.
Rogers plans no changes to the menu, although the biggest selling item changes from day to day.
“This is Dogs-A-Foot. It is what it is, and it works,” he said.
“People like hot dogs because it’s American food. It’s easy to prepare and serve, and it tastes good.”
For more health-conscious eaters, there are veggie and turkey dogs as well as those made with higher-grade meat.
Many of the dogs are purchased from Key City Fish of Port Townsend.
“We are trying to keep this as local as we can,” Rogers said.
The Rogers have three grown daughters. They have lived in Port Townsend for four years, having moved from Bainbridge Island to an 8-acre “gentleman farm” in Discovery Bay.
Dogs-A-Foot is open every day except Tuesdays from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. It will extend hours to 6 p.m. after the Port Townsend Rhododendron Festival in May.
It will stay open late for special events, such as summertime Concerts on the Dock and September’s Wooden Boat Festival, Rogers said.
For more information or to order online, visit www.dogs-a-foot.com.
________
Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
