Join Waukesha resident Brien Lee and his blog, Sir Fido, as they explore the city and report on the interesting things they find.
There is a dingy little hole in the wall at 6th and National in the Walker's Point area of Milwaukee. It's called Coney Island Hotdogs and it's been there since July 1926. My dad used to take me there as a kid. I'd order burnt hotdogs with nothing on them and Dad would order their chili dog chili served in a bowl.
After working in the area for almost 20 years my curiosity finally got the best of me, so I struck up the courage a few years ago to find out if Coney Island was still in business. It was always dark and dirty on the outside, kind of reflecting the street it's on, and because I pack a lunch, I was in no hurry to try it again. But I found out it's still open, 10:30 to 2:00 Tuesday through Saturday, and THE SAME GUY IS RUNNING THE PLACE! Mike bought it in November of 1949 and is still selling hot dogs and hamburgers there -- 57 years now. My first dog I ordered plain and burnt and he didn't get it right, after 30 years, so now I just order with the "works" and they're delicious.
Coney Island is clean, not tidy - I swear some of the same appliances and furniture were around when my dad first brought me there. The menu is a handwritten piece of paper on the wall. You can have a hotdog, hamburger, cheeseburger, chili dog, fries and soda. They used to have floats but discontinued them. They have ketchup and mustard but no pickles.
There's been a lot of talk lately about a different gentleman still working at the age of 91. Mike turns 87 this month. He doesn't have a golden hotdog on the wall but he's as satisfied in his work as the people he feeds.
