Choose the Very Best Wonderville Hot Dog of 2023

For the past three years, I’ve been serving hot dogs at Wonderville, a Bushwick bar and indie game arcade. It all started with Mama O’s Kimchipalooza back in 2021. My friend Kheedim asked me to grill up kimchi burgers and hot dogs for the all-day event. We had so many Brooklyn Cured hot dogs left that I asked my friends at Wonderville if I could try to see the rest. What started as a pop-up on a whim turned into a fully-fledged hot dog menu with rotating choices every month. Mark and Steph, the owners of Wonderville, also surprised me with an official neon sign in the window! If you ever stop by, please take a photo with the sign (and/or your hot dog) and tag @randwiches on Instagram. It’d make me so happy!

On February 5, 2024, I’m hosting my second-ever Hot Dog Appreciation Night where I’ll give out certificates and prizes to the people who have helped me name every hot dog menu item with a video game or pop culture pun. We need your help to determine the best named and best tasting hot dogs.

VOTING HAS CLOSED! Thanks for participating. The winner will be announced (and served) at the Hot Dog Appreciation Night on 2/5/24.

Every Single Way You Can Help Support My Creative Journey

When I first started this blog in 2012, I wanted to do it right. That meant not selling out! I tried to navigate the food world without working with brands or using affiliate links. Traditional marketing wasn’t appealing to me in the age of social media. I learned a hard lesson. Social media wasn’t going to pay my bills. I had to find other ways to exist in the culinary world that did not include working a restaurant line or going into retail. There is respect in that work, but I knew it wasn’t for me. After COVID and the tumult of media platform death, I decided to evaluate my presence online. How can people get in touch with me and what is the best way to let you know what I am up to? It’s going to change again and again, I’m sure, but I’ve decided to revive this blog to tell you about the fun catering projects I’ve done in the past and to engage with brands that I care about.

This ongoing list is a collection of things you can do to support my creative journey (and catering business!). These days, it’s not enough to be a chef. You’ve got know how to edit videos, write well, record podcasts, live stream, speak with authority, and take gorgeous photos. Without my partnerships, I would not be able to afford most of the premium ingredients and tools you see in my kitchen. I do not take my partnerships lightly, either. The products and services I recommend are what I use in my real life. As you can see, I’m also not just a chef, but I have lots of fun side projects that help color my unique culinary practice.

Best Ways to Support

• Hire me for catering or craft services. I’m only catering weddings for friends and by client referral only. Otherwise, I’m open to all birthdays, showers, office celebrations, and random sandwich bulk orders of 8 or more in New York State. For craft, I am willing to travel, but also available for NYC area pick-up, drop-off, or attended service.

• Join my Patreon recipe subscription. You’ll get weekly recipes for $2/month or $21.60/year. Get my newsletter of recent thoughts, recipe roundups, entertainment recommendations, and links at $5/month or $54/year.

• Buy my cookbook Showdown directly from me. When you buy from other vendors, the money will go toward my book advance (which will make its way to me eventually).

Higher-Cost Ways to Support (up to $150)

• Try out Butcher Box, a meat subscription service. For every new member that signs up, I get a commission and you get a bonus. For example, you can get free steaks for a year. The offers change often but I believe are worth it.

• If you use Jetblue and have spare points, you can transfer them to me. Flight costs are a huge barrier for doing events out of New York City. So if we can pool enough points together, I can make plans in other states (or countries?!).

Moderate-Cost Ways to Support (up to $50)

Below, I use affiliate links. What does that mean? I’ve partnered with businesses to provide tracking links and I get commission from each sale. On Amazon, click my book link or visit my shop during your session and I will get credit for anything you buy when you navigate to other categories.

• Buy or gift merch from my Fourthwall shop! I worked with pixel artist Dr!p to design stickers, hats, and clothing.

• Purchase books from my library on Bookshop. It’s an alternative to Amazon that supports independent bookstores.

• When you shop at Burlap & Barrel, add a Robusta peppercorn grinder to your cart and use my code RANDWICHES to get it for free if you spend more than $15.

• If you like my podcast Fun City, join our Patreon for $5/month or up to $15/month.

• Represent Fun City on the streets! Buy our shirt of sweatshirt on Cotton Bureau.

Low-Cost Ways to Support ($5 or less)

• Rent and watch my episode of Guy’s Grocery Games (or send it to a friend or family member for funsies). Use my link so I’ll get credit! It’s season 10, episode 5, “The Cheesy Special.”

• Rent my live shows at Caveat with Fun City for $5! In Escape to Little Island, we are tasked with ruining a hoity toity party. In Upstate Getwaway, we need to break into a high-security facility to steal art.

At No Cost To You

Look, I’ve been there. Money is tight and your subscriptions are limited (if any!). There are still lots of things you can do to help me. If you have a friend who is also in a creative field, these tips will definitely help them as well.

• Share my articles online or with someone who might need it.

• Recommend my catering or craft services to a friend who might need them.

• Listen to my podcasts Fun City, Culinary Word of the Day, and REPLAY. It also helps to rate and review on whatever platform you use.

• Follow @Randwiches on Instagram, Facebook, and Tumblr.

• Interact with my posts on social media. A comment, like and re-share help boost the posts to other people who don’t know me yet.

• Review my cookbook Showdown on Amazon or Goodreads.

• Make a social media post about my cookbook Showdown (especially if you made a dish from it!) and tag @Randwiches to let me know. I’ll happily share it.

• Ask your local library to carry my cookbook Showdown.

It really takes a village, so I thank you in advance! I hope to keep making cookbooks, developing recipes, and catering cool events around the world. If you’ve got an idea for collaboration, I’d love to talk.

Anna & Dan's Wedding in Upstate New York

Catering Client: Anna and Dan

Event: Wedding dinner for 75 guests

For Anna and Dan’s wedding, we put together an extravagant cocktail hour that was part family recipe, Spanish tapas, and grill-out. After the ceremony, we passed around cups of warm vegan potato leek soup to help stave off the fall chill in the mountains. We could not have accomplished this big menu without help from Despana to source all of our Spanish cheeses: Mahon curado, mini manchego, and tetilla. We flew in oysters from Island Creek as well as a case of Fox Family Chips, which are some of the best potato chips I’ve ever had. On the day of the wedding, we had drivers transport sheet cakes from Yellow Rose and vegan cupcakes from Erin McKenna—all the way from Manhattan up to where we were.

On a personal note, I’m grateful for these intimate events and for the flexibility we have as chefs with real lives. We were able to accommodate my sous chef Kate’s whole family, including her 5-month-old, who provided lots of welcome entertainment between chopping food.

ButcherBox Makes My Biggest Cooking Dreams Complete - AD

This is a sponsored post and contains affiliate links. TL:DR When you use my link to try ButcherBox, I receive a commission.

After a long hiatus away from making random sandwiches (for which this website is named!), I walked every aisle of the grocery store and local farmer’s market for inspiration. Coming up with ideas is so fun for me, but even I hit a wall sometimes. I’ve always been an advocate for meal kits and grocery delivery services for folks who are new to the kitchen. I like to try out new services around the holidays or surrounding my birthday because I need a break from coming up with meals, too.

ButcherBox has been the exception. I look forward to my big box of high-quality meats every month! Each package is a welcome cooking challenge. When you sign up, there is almost always a generous bonus. I lucked out and got 3 months of free salmon! Around Thanksgiving, you can get a free turkey (if you order fast). And before that, new subscribers got free ground beef for life.

SO, WHAT IS BUTCHERBOX?

ButcherBox is a meat and seafood delivery service where you can adjust the timing, size, and make-up of the contents. It’s all been hits, from filet mignon to pork loin, chops, chicken, ground beef, and even lobster. I haven’t been disappointed! It’s great for households that have ample freezer space and mouths to feed. I have a friend who tried it and said it was too much meat for her, but, thankfully, you can delay or pause shipments if that is the case for you. Everything arrives frozen in a nicely insulated box. Per food safety guidelines, it’s best to get the products right into the freezer or in the fridge on a lipped sheet pan if you’re going to defrost them for that day.

WHAT DO I DO WITH ALL OF THIS MEAT?

If you want to try it out and get free stuff when you sign up, use my affiliate link. Not sure what you’re going to do with all of that meat? Don’t worry, I made this post to round up what I’ve made so far (and will keep adding as I make more dishes).

Sansho pepper pork chops with shiso leaves

Replace your ground black pepper with Japanese sansho pepper, which in small amounts, provides a buzzy, citrusy flavor with every bite. I also marinated it overnight with crushed yellow plums. Prepare your pork chops as you normally do on the grill, in the oven, or on the stove. Then slice it all up and serve it with shiso leaves, a habit I picked up from Korean BBQ restaurants.

Beef chuck roast with capers and mustard

I tied up this beef chuck roast so it would cook evenly. Then I marinated it with lots of coriander, pepper, salt, and fennel seeds. It went into a sous vide bath for 6 hours (I wish I had longer!). Then I sliced it really thinly, resting the pieces in their juices, whisked with mustard and chopped capers.

Filet mignon with Christmas beans and mustard greens

I simply seasoned the filet mignon with salt and pepper before pan-frying it to medium doneness. I really don’t like to overwhelm such high quality meat! It’s so good that you don’t need to add much to it. When I was growing up I typically ate steak with rice and boiled veggies. These days I’ll throw on some warm beans tossed with salsa and fresh farmer’s market produce like mustard greens pictured here.

Click here to take advantage of ButcherBox and sign up knowing I’m part of the community of folks who will help you figure out your next meal. If you ever have a cooking question, comment on my Instagram account or sign up for my Patreon for personal cooking advice.

FAQ

What is ButcherBox? ButcherBox is a delivery subscription service for grass-fed & grass-finished beef, free-range organic chicken, and heritage-breed pork.

What is a #ButcherboxPartner? I am disclosing my business relationship with ButcherBox. I am an affiliate partner who provides links and deals to my audience and ButcherBox compensates me for every person who participates.

Voyager Forever, 8th Anniversary Party Catering

Client: Andrew Hutcheson

Event: Cocktail party for 100 guests

Voyager is a production company based in East Williamsburg. They specialize in commissioned storytelling for brands, documentaries, and beyond. We met around the time of their founding, 8 years ago. In the same building, I would cater small events for the sound design studio One Thousand Birds. Since then, I’ve catered birthdays, concerts, and even a wedding from this social circle.

Fast forward to 2023, as Voyager celebrates its 8th anniversary in operation. If you look at the number 8 and turn it on its side, it looks like an infinity sign (∞). These symbols became the inspiration for our party menu. Handmade figure-8 soft pretzels, mahjong tile dumplings, and a big infinity chocolate snack cake anchored the offerings. I tried to create other items that were round or welcoming in nature, like individual wooden cheese and charcuterie platters (which were also a nod to the wedding mentioned above!). Check out the party highlights here.

Simone & Joe's Alien Organic Wedding

Client: Simone & Joe

Event: Wedding grazing table for 300 guests

Joe is a well-known event organizer for Silent Barn, DIY shows of the 2000's, and co-founder of WithFriends. He told me he and his fiancee Simone were planning a very large wedding for 300 guests at the Andrew Freedman House, an artist residency building in the Bronx that is currently going through a remodel. They wanted me to curate and create the cocktail hour while a family friend handled dinner. “Alien Organic” was Simone’s guiding theme. She explains,

"You know when you're on a hike, and you find this incredible sight that grabs your attention-- a mushroom, a fern, or maybe some lichen and the longer you stare it you realize how weird it is, but it's alive and totally exists in the same reality as you --- that's Alien organic. It's not extra terrestrial, but terrestrial that's extra."

Keeping with the theme, I constructed a 16-foot grazing table that resembled a forest floor. I ordered a wheel of sage derby, a surreal-looking cheddar cheese swirled with green sage. I made hundreds of painted teal bao buns in chicken ginger and Sichuan mushrooms. Piles of charcuterie chips, papadum, and freshly fried furikake rice paper created a shelf-like height. Mounds of mushroom pate were drizzled with truffle oil and more roasted mushrooms. I made beet-tinged long bean and bright pink daikon pickles. The whole scene was dotted with fairy lights, moss, and large jutting branches. Guests had fun pairing items from across the table. Someone told me it reminded me of the food fight scene in Hook.

Craft Services for GUSSY (2022)

Client: Breanne Thomas, Producer

Event: Craft Service for 12

In October of 2020, I provided craft service meals to a small film crew shooting 3 overnights in the Catskills. We drove from Brooklyn to set up camp (literally) at Hemlock Falls. I was able to create an outdoor kitchen and grill most of our meals. The challenge was to flip my sleep schedule so that our first meal of the day was dinner at 5pm, lunch at midnight, and breakfast at 4am.

GUSSY was an official selection of the Champs-Élysées Film Festival, Fantasia International Film Festival, Telluride Horror Show, and screened at The Museum of Modern Art (among many other honors). You can watch the trailer here.

Goodwill Ugly Sweater Party, 2019

Catering Client: Goodwill NY/NJ

Event: Nonprofit Fundraiser for 80 guests

In 2019, I got to work with the Goodwill store located in the Flatiron neighborhood on an Ugly Sweater holiday fundraiser. Guests were able to browse the store for ugly sweaters, snack on cheese, and grab a spiked hot chocolate from the bar.

Rachel's Hoppin' Baby Shower Tea Party, 2019

Client: Private Residence

Event: Baby Shower for 20 guests

I was incredibly touched to coordinate my high school best friend’s baby shower in Valencia, California with her mom Rebekah. On a sunny October day, we threw a Peter Rabbit-themed tea party for Rachel in the home of a family friend. Highlights were dozens of homemade scones with lemon curd from scratch as well as many finger sandwiches and crostini. Special thanks to my parents and early guests for helping me load up the car and assembling many little sandwiches! All of my produce was sourced from the Los Angeles Farmer’s Market.