My most recent visits have been Sunday mornings for either their Eggs Florentine or Greek Omelet. A word to the wise: Get there early on Sunday. Like before 10 if you can. If you show up much after then, you’ll be waiting in line for a table. I’m not talking a Pancake Pantry line, but still standing nevertheless. The line moves fairly quickly, but you could easily be waiting up to 15-20 minutes. Additionally, they close on Sundays at 2:00pm, so if you come on the later side of brunch, give yourself enough time to make it at least by then.

You only have to see the outside to know this place is not a fancy joint. The inside doesn’t help much either. Tables are tight, the furniture is a bit dingy (like the chair next to me that had no cushion, which, I’m assuming, could only be used to hold a baby carrier), and the kitchen is visible just beyond the cashier counter. You still pay at the counter here, but at least they do accept credit cards (god forbid!).

The quality of breakfast is not what I’d call “amazing” or much to write home about, but it does the trick on an early morning. Service is so-so, they do what they can with as busy as they are, but I wouldn’t go as far to say they are attentive and pro-active. You get coffee refills when they walk around with the coffee carafe and you may have to catch someone’s eye to get an additional napkin or silverware. However, the prices are on par with this level of service, like $7.60 for Eggs Florentine or 3 buttermilk pancakes with sausage for $6.55. They even have a selection of “Healthy Choices”, but, as someone who normally looks for that page in the menu, even I usually go to Athens to help recover from the night before.

I must admit I’ve never been during the times in which one would eat lunch or dinner, so I can’t speak to their Greek cuisine. Although, they have been otherwise praised for the quality, quantity and authenticity of that fare and I imagine it would behoove me to try it out sometime soon. Now, if I only had the desire to go there on a weeknight or at lunchtime….but that make take some convincing. For now, I’m sticking to breakfast.

The interior at “The Dog” is pretty plain, definitely not as festive as some of the other establishments on Belcourt Ave., but they do have a small patio for outdoor seating. Still, I can’t imagine they’ll have enough indoor space once the weather cools down just a little more.

The menu seemed varied enough, multiple types of hotdogs, a few bun selections, and a multitude of toppings.  They also have a few typical sides, like fries, onion rings, baked beans and cole slaw. The hotdogs themselves range from $2.75-$3.25, but then as soon as you add on anything other than the basic condiments, the price goes up in $0.25-$.0.50 increments depending on what you add. The sides are between $1.50-2.00, and then drinks are pretty cheap. My total came to over $8 for a turkey dog and 2 sides (the menu on the website has outdated pricing).

I was kinda expecting a hotdog that was out of the ordinary…I dunno, maybe larger than store-bought dogs, or plumper, or something. But, when it came out, it was basically just a regular ole’ hotdog on a regular size bun. I asked for ketchup, mustard, onions and mushrooms. I swear, there was one strip of ketchup and one strip of mustard and then a meager sprinkling of onions and mushrooms. I could understand the minimalism if the hotdog had been something extra tasty, but really, the condiments were the only hope of sprucing up an otherwise very boring dog.

The sides were completely unproportioned…a large cup (and I mean, 8oz styrofoam cup) of baked beans and then an itty bitty, maybe 3oz cup of cole slaw. I think if each could’ve been somewhere in between, it would’ve made more sense.

All in all, the place didn’t impress me much. I may go back sometime, but it was definitely nothing to howl about.

After ordering our meal, which was just the salad bar and soup, we noticed 2 customers who seemed dissatisfied with their food (soup, coincidentally).Throughout the course of our meal, we overheard two other customers complain about their food not being hot.

To enhance our queezy feeling, before we were given our plates for the salad bar, we walked passed the  prep line and noticed that one of the small soup dishes  ready for serving, had lipstick on it. Later on, we noticed that one of our forks was dirty, the bottom of one of our plates was greasy, and one of the small plates at the salad bar had food stuck on it, obviously hardened by the washing process.

The booth we sat in had food crumbles all over one of the seats.  The booth was empty when we arrived, which means they had plenty of time to clean the booth had they chose to.

Unfortunately for them, these small details make a distinct impression on this critical consumer. Although I enjoy their food, I will probably be less likely to return knowning these things. Their ownly saving grace is that they just opened, so I may give them another shot in a few months.