Relish: Hot dogs that are made of real meat

By Siegfried Bilstein and Dan Nelson     1/27/11 6:00pm

Haters gonna hate. But not on Moon Tower Inn, an exotic meat hot dog establishment that looks like someone's huge-ass backyard. Featuring a fantastic, affordable beer selection and incredible hot dogs made of exotic meats such as pheasant, elk and duck, Moon Tower Inn is totally worth a trip out to the second ward.We parked a few blocks away from the restaurant (for no particular reason), and watched the neighborhood slowly gentrify as we walked between row houses and trendy condos. We know Rice kids get super sketched-out by words like "ward," "second" and "trendy," but don't worry; we overcame our middle-class backgrounds to buy hot dogs from hipsters. Our least favorite former Thresher arts and entertainment editor was so scared, he decided to stay in the car while crying on the shoulders of a certain Wiess College president and listening to the Smashing Pumpkins (that suck) on his Zune.

One of the first things that you'll notice outside of Moon Tower Inn is the total lack of any sign that says "Moon Tower Inn." Instead, the two signs out front read "Damn Good Food" and "Cold Ass Beer." Also, they have no indoor seating - or indoors, for that matter - just several picnic tables scattered about a very large lot. More exciting than the tables, however, are the two fire pits, the two horseshoe pits and the two basketball courts. Actually, there is only one basketball court, but today's column is brought to you by the number two. If you've ever been to West Alabama Icehouse, this place has a similar vibe, albeit a younger crowd and much less country feel. We've heard there is live music regularly, but their website, www.damngoodfoodcoldassbeer.com, simply says, "If you see people we're open, if you don't we're not." Open until 3 a.m. most nights, we see a post-bars dinner there in our ?immediate future.

The menu looks like a ransom note and features such cleverly named hot dogs as "Piggie Smalls" (boar and cranberry) and "The Bambi" (venison, red wine and blueberries). Moon Tower Inn only features hot dogs, so if you don't like hot dogs, you should probably grow up. They do have a vegetarian option, "Lazy Hippy," which we can only assume is delicious because we are, in fact, too lazy to order it.

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Dan got the Piggie Smalls and the "Talilamb" (lamb and spices). He has no idea what boar is supposed to taste like, but he feels like the adjectives smoky and savory apply. The lamb was very well-seasoned and tasted like the kind of lamb you would expect to find at a super classy restaurant, such as a Chili's, if it weren't wrapped in a hot dog bun. Speaking of which, the pretzel buns here are superb - almost as delightful as the hot dogs themselves.

Siegfried ordered The Bambi and the "Tatonka" (buffalo with smoked pepper). At this point, he completely gave up on even pretending to keep kosher. While not being particularly familiar with either meat, they were both very different from a beef hot dog, with the venison being a little gamey and tough. The hot dogs were excellently seasoned and paired well with black pepper ketchup and a St. Arnold's root beer.

Siegfried ordered root beer because he sucks. Dan, on the other hand, is super awesome and got a $2 Bombshell Blonde Ale. The Moon Tower Inn has a diverse beer selection which will placate even the douchiest of beer snobs, and they're all pretty cheap.

We're definitely going to visit Moon Tower Inn again, and soon. It's well on its way to becoming a Houston late-night staple, like Little Big's or Tacos A Go-Go. We realize that some of you might be scared by meats that aren't beef or chicken, but come on: Considering most supermarket hot dogs are made out of dead people or old print issues of the Rice Standard or something, the meat at Moon Tower is of a much higher quality. You should probably stop reading this review and go get one or two. Like right now. We're out of crap to say anyway.

Siegfried Bilstein and Dan Nelson are Wiess College seniors.

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