Hot Dog with a bolt of lightning, anyone?
For “The Flash,” the most anticipated premiere of the fall television season, JJ’s Red Hots and the promotions and sales team at WCCB Charlotte have created a world-class hot dog, aptly named The Flash Dog. It will be featured beginning today as part of JJ’s increasingly popular “Dog of the Week” promotion.
The Flash Dog features grated cheese and JJ’s house-made chili and Rocket Sauce. It is topped with a sliced-by-hand then fried onion ring and topped with a streak of mustard to resemble a lightning bolt, a key component of the The Flash’s logo and uniform. The bolt on the Hot Dog was the brainchild of Richard Groves, a web designer and developer at WCCB who joined 10 of his associates last week at JJ’s in Ballantyne to bring The Flash Dog to life.
“When you’re designing a hot dog around the world’s fastest man, it needs a kick, so we went with Rocket Sauce on top of our favorite items like chili and cheese,” said Groves. “It tasted great but was missing something, so we topped it with one of JJ’s great onion rings and finished it off with a lightning bolt of mustard. We feel it’s the perfect Hot Dog.”
WCCB Charlotte is the Queen City’s local source for the latest news, sports, weather and entertainment and Charlotte’s new home for The CW. Several of the team’s associates visit JJ’s regularly and wanted to design a dog for its upcoming show The Flash, which premieres on October 7 at 8 pm on WCCB. The Hot Dog will be sold today through Sunday at Charlotte’s both locations, in Dilworth and Ballantyne. Guests with receive a free The Flash headband with each purchase of The Flash Dog.
“We always have fun designing great Hot Dogs with our fans and this one was a blast,” said Brandy Newton, JJ’s director of marketing and brand development. “WCCB did their homework, knew what they wanted and the lightning bolt at the end was just perfect. It really is an ideal Hot Dog for this great show that we’re all excited about.”
JJ’s is on an unprecedented and undeniable roll, having been recently honored by Fast Casual as one of 2014’s Top 50 restaurants in addition to cleaning house on all Charlotte lists as the city’s best Hot Dog. It was the smallest chain in the Fast Casual list and the only Hot Dog/Sausage concept to receive the honor. JJ’s recently opened its third location, its first on a college campus, at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. Their Dog of the Week program, which features collaborations with local businesses, brand fans and celebrities, was also featured in USA Today.
“We’ve built this great brand by listening to our fans.” said Jonathan Luther, founder and owner of JJ’s Red Hots. “And we love challenges. The Flash Dog is the product of great ingredients and great ideas. It is sure to hit at JJ’s this week as we await this great show.”
JJ’s Red Hots is the premier purveyor of “hand-crafted” char-grilled hot dogs and sausages in the Charlotte metropolitan area and the campus of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. The restaurant concept is built on solid, hardworking values and is modeled after venerable establishments like Ted’s in Buffalo, NY, Gene and Jude’s in Chicago, and many others. Still, JJ’s is a true American original featuring house-made, scratch prepared sides and toppings served alongside time tested, revered American brands like Tabasco, Weber’s Mustard, Martin’s Rolls, Coca-Cola and Mt. Olive Pickles. Perhaps most proudly, JJ’s Red Hots serves smokehouse hot dogs from Sahlen’s Meat Packing Company in Buffalo, NY. Sahlen’s is a 143 year-old company that remains family owned and operated, and makes, in our opinion, the best hot dogs in the world.