It’s been deemed “The Most Famous Hot Dog in Korea” and now it’s here in Houston for you to enjoy. And in true Houston Rodeo-style fashion, it’s eaten on a stick. 

Known for their deep-fried hot dogs all over the world, Myungrand Hot Dog recently opened a shop by a different, more American-sounding name, Two Hands Seoul Fresh Dogs, at Bellaire Food Street, the popular food hall in the Southwest District. 

Located at 9393 Bellaire Blvd., the bright and cheery eatery serves up the Korean-style hot dogs deep-fried to a crispy golden brown. The sign outside still proclaims “soft opening,” but they appear to have their act together in terms of quality, service and, of course, safety, which is something we all should be concerned about during these times.  

Now, let’s talk about the food options. There are three basic categories at Two Hands: dogs, tots and drinks.

Choose from the “Classic Dog,” which is just a simple dog with a drizzle (if you want) of ketchup and mustard. We decided to forego the classic on our trip and go for some more unique variations, including the Two Hands Dog, which features a “sprinkle” of their signature seasoning and sweet ranch sauce. We also added the Spicy Dog to our order. Spoiler alert: It’s not really spicy, but it was tasty, with a combination of what they call a “Nashville-style seasoning” and Two Hands spicy sauce. 

We also tried the Potato Dog, a corn dog wrapped with potato cubes with Two Hands “dirty sauce,” as well as the Crispy Rice Dog, which is rolled in rice puffs and also can be rolled in a little sugar for extra sweetness. 

The inside of your corn dog can be just as varied as the outside, as you can order it stuffed with a full 100% beef sausage, half sausage and half mozzarella, all mozzarella or half mozzarella and half cheddar. We decided to do half sausage and half mozzarella for almost all of the dogs we ordered, with the exception of the Potato Dog, which we decided to order with a full hot dog. We were happy with all those choices and also particularly happy to have added Dirty Fries, which aren’t really fries but tater tots (they actually call them tater puffs on the menu) sprinkled with Two Hands Dirty Sauce and Cheetos powder. The “fries” were the first things eaten, as they were so tasty and truly addictive. I would return just for those. 

For a drink, the horchata slush was also quite good, albeit slightly sweet, but nice with all the other flavor combos. 

The best part of Two Hands is how fresh the food tastes. The dogs are rolled, dressed and deep-fried right in front of you. The restaurant has more than 700 locations in Korea, and has opened 15 locations in the United States since they first launched here in 2018. We are sure the Southwest District location has the best service. Our server was incredibly helpful, making suggestions and double-checking how we wanted our dogs dressed and, despite orders piling up on a random Wednesday night, the dogs came out promptly and the presentation was top-notch.

Two Hands isn’t the first and likely won’t be the last Korean-style hot dog joint in the Southwest District. Sul Bing Su / Chung Chun, 9798 Bellaire Blvd., hosted a grand opening earlier this year for its husband-and-wife owned Korean hot dog operation, where the dogs are made with rice batter and served in a variety of flavors, even topped with crispy ramen. Vegetarians can indulge in options like the sweet potato mozzarella, essentially batter-dipped cheese sticks topped with sweet potatoes and coated in sugar or drizzled in ketchup or mustard.

Read more about Sul Bing Su / Chung Chun: https://southwestmanagementdistrict.org/2020/05/05/decidedly-different-chung-chun-rice-dogs-surprise-and-delight/

Like me, you may wonder why we don’t see these delicious Korean-style dogs on a stick at the Houston Rodeo. Maybe someday soon, when we can safely hold a rodeo, we will! As delicious and portable as they are, we can’t imagine a better addition to Houston’s food scene, and we are particularly happy to have this yummy food trend for everyone to enjoy here in the Southwest District. 

 

Two Hands Seoul Fresh Dogs
Bellaire Food Street
9393 Bellaire Blvd., Suite F
Houston, TX 77036
https://www.twohandsus.com

 

— by Dorothy Puch Lillig