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National News / Food

Wednesday, 6 April, 2011 3:09 AM

Pink's Hot Dogs to open new restaurant at Cedar Point on May 14

Historic restaurant to open first location east of the Mississippi River

PHOTO BY JASON RZUCIDLO / ©AMERICAJR.com

Owners Gloria Pink and Richard Pink hold up a tray with three hot dogs that read, "Pink's Loves Cedar Point."

by Jason Rzucidlo

americajr@americajr.com

WATCH: Interview with Richard Pink, Owner of Pink's Hot Dogs in Hollywood

WATCH: Interviews with two customers dining at Pink's Hot Dogs

LOS ANGELES -- Hollywood hotspot Pink's Famous Chili Dogs will open a new location at the Cedar Point amusement park and resort in Sandusky, Ohio. The ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, May 14 at 11 a.m., the same day that Cedar Point opens for the season. It will be the first Pink's location east of the Mississippi River. The new restaurant will be on the main midway right next to Toft's Ice Cream Parlor. Guests will place their orders inside and will have a choice to eat inside or outside.

"Pink's Hot Dogs was established in 1939 by Paul and Betty Pink," said Richard Pink, owner of the restaurant. "It was established with just a little pushcart. My parents were out of work at the time and they were looking for employment. They ran across an ad for a pushcart. It cost $50. My parents did not even have the $50. They had to borrow it from my grandmother. The pushcart was available about two miles away from here. My mother went down to where it was located and wheeled it all the way up Melrose Avenue and put it right here on the site of La Brea and Melrose."

He added: "She rented that site for $15 a month at that time. Hot dogs were 10 cents and Cokes were a nickel. Believe it or not, there wasn't even electricity on the site. They had to buy about a 100-yard extension cord to plug into a neighboring hardware store. That's how they fired up Pink's in 1939. For the next two years, they just had the hot dog cart. Then in '41, they built a smaller version of the building you see today. In 1946, the very hot dog stand you see is what it looked like back then. We haven't changed a thing since then."

Hundreds of celebrities have ate at Pink's since it opened. Visitors to the restaurant will see photos of the celebrities on the walls with their signatures on them. So many movie stars and musicians have dined there that the owners have to switch out the photos every few months.

"First of all, we're surrounded by all of the studios," the owner explained. "Hollywood is world-famous for celebrities and entertainment. We've got Paramount Studios, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, they're all in and around here. All of the production offices are here. When celebrities came out from whatever city they were from in order to get discovered, they didn't have any money and the time and they could afford a hot dog. Then, they started their putting pictures up on our wall. Today, we have over 200 celebrities on our wall. They were hoping that directors and producers would discover them."

Pink's has named several of its hot dogs after some of its famous celebrity guests. For example, the Martha Stewart Dog, the Ozzy Spice Dog, and the Rosie O'Donnell Dog, among others.

"Martha Stewart actually waited in line for 45 minutes and created her own hot dog," Pink said. "We've got a number of celebrities that have come in. But also the movie Mulholland Drive was filmed here so we've got a Mulholland Drive dog. We've got a Harry Potter dog, a Lord of the Rings dog. We've got a lot of exciting dogs. It turned out that people wanted to order a hot dog by name rather than just a chili cheese dog."

The chili cheese dog is the most popular type of hot dog at Pink's.

"It's probably 40 percent [of our orders]," he added. "There's people that come in from all over the country. That's all they'll order. We've got 25 kinds of hot dogs. But the chili cheese dog, that's what made us famous."

The original Pink's Hot Dogs restaurant is located at 709 N. La Brea Ave, just north of Melrose Avenue in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. Richard Pink has been expanding the concept with new locations at Knott's Berry Farm, the LAX airport, the Hollywood Park Casino, Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas and Harrah's Casino in San Diego.

"People are always looking for something new to market their property," the owner explained. "Whether it's an amusement park or even the airport for that matter. They came to us and said, 'You're world famous. We really need something here that's very special, very unique.' That's how really, we came to Cedar Point. They had tried us out at Knott's Berry Farm, which is probably the most famous amusement park in all of southern California, maybe all of California. The owners said I know you're selling so well, I know you're going to do well at Cedar Point. We want to bring your brand, the concept, the image, the whole celebrity connection back to Ohio. We said fine."

The new location at Cedar Point will look identical to the current restaurant at Knott's Berry Farm.

"The design will be similar, the seating, the open-air atmosphere," Pink said. "It's going to be great, I love the design. Cedar Point has been the number one amusement park in the world for 12 years running. What an honor it is to be part of the Cedar Point family. Cedar Point has a history over 100 years. Pink's has been around 70 years. We felt that was a perfect marriage. We're a historical landmark here in Los Angeles. They're an historical landmark in the middle of America. We know we're going to be successful. I know they're going to come to Cedar Point and say those are great hot dogs."

What is the a possibility of a future location in the Motor City?

"I would love to go to Detroit," he added. "I think Detroit is a great city. Right now, our focus is on Cedar Point."

Customers really love dining at the original Pink's Hot Dogs in Hollywood

Jane Kutepova, a resident of West Hollywood, Calif., was enjoying a vegan dog at Pink's last Friday. It was her first visit to the original location at Melrose and N. La Brea.

"There was a very short line and we were very hungry," she said. "We just went hiking. I ordered the Baja Veggie Dog. Definitely, I'd come back if there's no line. The line is always miles long so that's probably why. It's just a great, family-owned business."

Burbank, Calif. resident Inesa Rchtouni was eating the Ozzy Dog at Pink's in Hollywood. It was her second time dining at the restaurant.

"I was maybe 12 when I came here first, so I don't really remember what I had," she explained. "The Ozzy Osbourne dog has guacamole, cheese, onions and tomatoes, I believe. I'll come back, yes, if the line is short. It's a great place."

For more information about Pink's Famous Chili Dogs, go to www.pinkshollywood.com.

The original Pink's Hot Dogs location opened at the corner of Melrose and N. La Brea in Los Angeles in 1939.

Pink's Hot Dog sign at Knott's Berry Farm

Pink's opened at the theme park in Buena Park, Calif. on Feb. 28, 2010. The new location at Cedar Point will look similar to this one.

The new Pink's Hot Dog restaurant opened inside the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on July 22, 2010.

The main entrance gates to Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio.

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