Food - Drink
What Makes Hawaiian Hot Dogs Unique?
By ELIAS NASH
Hawaiian cuisine is incredibly diverse, with influences from Europe, China, and Southeast Asian countries, but some dishes are uniquely Hawaiian. You might recognize the raw fish salad called poke, which has risen in popularity on the mainland, but you may not be familiar with Kauai’s Puka Dogs, Hawaii's own regional hot dog.
There’s only one place in the world that makes these hot dogs: a little shop named Puka Dog that is currently located in Poipu Beach Park. In Native Hawaiian, "puka" means "hole," and in this case, it refers to the big hole in Puka's hot dog buns, which is made by a heated metal rod that toasts the inside of the bread.
After poking a hole in the bread lengthwise, the staff at Puka stick a Polish sausage or veggie sausage through the hole to complete the dog. Puka Dogs are usually served with sauces made from local fruit, including banana relish and passionfruit mustard, or with the Puka Dog shop's signature lemon-garlic sauce.