This place is pretty awesome and the location is super convenient, as it is literally across the street from the Kimball brown line station. I have been here twice now and both times my burgers (and fries) have been excellent. Another plus? Super friendly employees. The sweet woman who took my order on my first visit could not have been any nicer. She even offer my boyfriend and I some water while we waited for our to-go order.
The first time I got the bacon cheeseburger, which was a good size and had plenty of bacon on it. The second time I tried the double cheeseburger since I was feeling ravenous. That was a bit of a mistake since it was MASSIVE. I was barely able to eat it all, so beware that the double is ridiculous. The fries both times were good...hot, crispy, of the french variety. On the second visit I ended up getting a coke and it tasted a bit funny, but that just might have been me and the fact that I'm not much a soda drinker.
All in all, definitely a place I'd go back to.
This place is great and is perfect for a quick lunch or dinner. Â The Maxwell Street Polish is soooooooo tasty. Â It's clean, the decor is super cool, and the service is friendly. Â The lady behind the counter offered me a glass of water while I waited for my take out order, which was a nice touch
I heard a rumor that they were going to add some local coffee to the menu, which would be AWESOME!
This place rocks! By far the best new place in Albany Park. I came here for dinner on the way home from work ordered a hamburger meal came with fries and a drink(NO PEPSI ONLY COCA COLA).The burger was out of the world,and so were the fries.The burger was premium quality.I also ordered a huge  Maxwell Street Polish with mustard,onions, and sport peppers.The polish was charred perfectly,that would put the other places to shame.The poppyseed bun was perfectly steamed .This place was perfect in every way.The staff was super friendly and very clean.The decor inside was super cool and retro.The music they played completed my experience here.Look out Portillos ,this place is gaining on you.
Enjoy!!!!!!
Finally stopped in here after reading all the good reviews. The hot dogs were great, the fries were absolutely fantastic, the service was quick and super friendly, and I have no idea how they keep the place so clean, but it's sparkly... We'll absolutely be back. It's great for the neighborhood -- lets all make sure they stay busy and stay here!
Review Source:While doing laundry over at the Big Coin Laundry with my fiancé, and decided to get lunch here.  We got two hot dogs, Chicago style, and we were quite happy with them.  They were perfect, right down to the poppy seed bun!  The fries weren't bad either! Â
A welcome edition to the Albany Park neighborhood! Â Happy to get a good Chicago hot dog joint in the neighborhood.
I will be heading back here to try other yum yums!
Just carried out a cheeseburger for Hot Dog Station. Â It was yummy even after my 15 minute walk home. Â
The place was clean, the service helpful and I look forward to going back.
My only complaint was the volume of the Doo Wop music they play. Â It was too loud. Even if you are a fan of the genre - it's too loud. Â
See you soon Hot Dog Station. Â Can't wait to try the chili!
This place is wonderful. Everything thing is very clean - unlike most fast food places - and the atmosphere is pleasant. There's memorabilia on the walls and 60's music pumping from the speakers. And the food is good too! I'd highly recommend it for anyone interested in a good, Chicago-style hot dog.
Review Source:How can you beat 1$ dogs from 3pm to 6pm? I walked out paying less than $5 and was impressed. Went back for lunch the next week and had a cheeseburger with onion rings. For a hot dog stand they make a ridiculous burger. Onion rings were surprising, seasoned well and the best part is the onion doesn't fall out after taking a bite.
Place is well kept, clean floors and tables as well as restroom. Will definitely be headed back for more burgers!
got a couple veggie dogs here tonight (lightlife - vegan jumbo dogs i think). the guy who took my order was super friendly and made coming here really pleasant. i had previously stopped in to ask about vegan options, he told me they also have dr praeger's veggie burgers and are updating the menu. they cook the fries in separate oil from the meat, and have a special meat-free area on the grill.
the fries were pretty good but there weren't that many of them. i have to say that they need to work a little bit on the fine art of cooking veggie dogs (could have used more sizzle to get the skin a little wrinkly) but it was totally worth it for $2.50 a dog. i'm giving 5 stars for being vegan friendly so close to my neighborhood of mayfair, which is a vegan food dessert aside from falafel.
Love it. Â My favorite is the chorizo dog; the chicken sandwich is a second. I probably eat there too often. :-) But the fried...ah, the fries are IMO are better than McDonalds! . Â The owners are warm and staff always a pleasure to deal with. I love the fact that the owners care about the neighbhood they do business in. Â All neighborhoods should have such businesses and business owners.
Review Source:Yes it's a hot dog joint, but for what they do they do it all extremely well, right down to the doo-wop soundtrack. Â Nicely-decororated and clean little space, super-friendly service and great hot dogs. Â I don't normally care much about fries but theirs are particularly good. Â Went there with a friend and didn't know that from 3 to 6 pm you can get a hot dog for $1 if you buy fries or a drink. Â So for a little over five bucks we got 3 hot dogs and an order of fries. Saw some great looking burgers coming out and will try one of those next time. Lots of parking outside.
Review Source:Hot Dog Station is my new "go-to", "default" neighborhood hotdog shop, the place I will refer friends to and bring out of town guests. I refrain from a rating of 5 stars as I've only visited once, but my experience was top shelf!
Driving by, I found easy parking, so went in for a late lunch.
The restaurant is bright and clean, with lots of interesting CTA and  bygone era restaurant decor to gaze at while waiting for your order.
Service was fast, courteous and attentive to my questions and tastes.
I ordered the Chicago Style meal (fries & soda for add'l $2.50) to go.
The fries were skin-on (hand cut? I dunno) and arrived to me HOT and crispy, perfectly cooked.
The hotdog was the same, a presentation that made me say "OMG" in a world where many "Chicago Style" dog details are neglected. Â
A Chicago Red Hot bun length wiener in a poppyseed bun, green relish, onions, tomato, pickle spear, sport peppers, mustard and celery salt smartly assembled, generous but not sloppy. Normally, I seek out a double hotdog meal "deal" but in this instance it was not necessary. I ate and returned to thank the cooks for such an exceptional hotdog & fries.
Where many neighborhood hotdog stands often let details slide and are comfortable with a "gently-to-well loved" appearance, Hot Dog Station rises above. I pray they hold fast to there current level of quality because I can hardly wait to return to try the other menu items, but those idyllic fries... Â Go, now.
So I wanted to give them more stars based on my first two trips, but my third trip downgrades the star.
THE GOOD: Very polite, and professional staff. The young latin kid who is at the register is always very good. I had a Chi dog, asked for it grilled and it was a perfectly good Chicago Dog.
Second time I went, I got a Maxwell Polish and that too was decent. I like that its ALL BEEF here, coz that usually means Better quality.
THE BAD: The third time i went, the consistency went really down. I ordered a couple of Chicago Dogs and one San Fran for my wife. Took the order home to find that there was hardly any mustard, one very pathetic Pickle spear per HotDog. No Celery Salt on the Chi Dog, and the meat looked very small. Needless to say my wife was unimpressed, especially after I had been raving about the place.
Consistency is the key to repeat customers. One bad experience makes you not want to go back. I live in the neighborhood and pass by everyday....several times a day. Hopefully they can sort out the consistency issue because I really want them to succeed.
Finally had an opportunity to try out this new addition to our neighbourhood on our way home this evening.
First off I love the decor, they've clearly put some time and money into the design and it looks great. I especially love the local flavour, not just Chicago but Albany Park/Ravenswood area pictures lining the walls.
The menu is well thought out too, and we had trouble deciding which dogs to try because they all sounded so good. In the end I went for a classic Chicago Style and a Big Easy while my husband went to the opposite end of the list and tried the Motown and Maxwell Street Polish. We agreed that we made good choices but are looking forward to go back soon and trying some of the other dogs.
My only concern in their ability to maintain business is that they currently close at 9pm and this seems like a perfect stop off for the late night crowd on their way home from the bar. Perhaps if they get enough business around their 9pm closing time they'll consider later hours?
Finally decided to roll in and try this place tonight with the family. It was a nice place to walk into, clean, well lit, nice decore and friendly service.
They had a great menu, tho I agree with the reviewer above who suggested adding milk shakes, that would be great. I personally would recommend adding a more craft style root beer in place of Barqs, but I'm a root beer snob.
I had the MoTown and the Maxwell St Polish. The polish was exactly what you would expect, no surprises there, very tasty. The MoTown was a new experiance for me, but a very good one. Next on the list for me to try is the Diablo.
Definatly coming back here again, it's a great addition to the strip of good food joints along Kimball here. May want to consider extending the hours past 9 tho.
Clean, easy, and tasty. A really great addition to the neighborhood. We've tried the Maxwell polish, the Chicago dog and the fries. All were really good. The service was outstanding and the owners were very attentive. Sorry to gush, but I'm really glad to have something like this in Albany Park.
Review Source:I'd actually give this 4.5 stars, but Hot Dog Station earns an extra half-star for providing Albany Park a really nice place to get encased meats and beef products. On a soggy Saturday, my wife, my niece and I went there for dinner tonight and really liked it. My wife had a polish, my niece had a bacon cheeseburger and I had a double cheeseburger. They split cheese fries and I had regular fries. Everyone was happy. The food was fresh -- the polish looked great, and my burger was terrific, not too far away from Portillo's in quality. The fries were also terrific. As others have mentioned, the service is good and the place is clean. My only tip for the owners would be to add shakes, since it would be a natural with the rest of the line up.
Review Source:The bread of their combo Italian Beef/Sausage sandwich is very reminiscent of those amazingly delicious fresh baked French baguettes that they churn out daily at Harvestime. I'm not saying it's the same. I didn't ask. And, I don't think they'd tell me. But I think it is the same. At least, my taste buds happily tell me so.
They must have read a prior Yelp review because I found my beef very flavorful. Glad I got the hot peppers on the side, because the sandwich was pretty spicy as is. I could handle it. But, your mileage may vary.
I can't comment on it being dry. I requested juice on the side, even going as far as requesting they pour the same quantity into a larger liquid to-go container, instead of those puny plastic cups they keep the peppers in. I like to dip it. So my sandwich was quite juicy and succulent.
The restaurant area was clean, busy (yes!) and staffed with very friendly and efficient people. The counter girl was very accommodating and had a positive "the customer is always right" attitude when I asked for a larger cup for the au jus.
I'll definitely be back to try their dogs and chili.
I just don't get the early-bird closing time. It would seem like common sense to stay open late, due to their next door proximity to a bar that does not serve food. Why on earth would they close so early? Taco Chino is open till 11pm. Makki Grill is open till 11pm. La Fogata is open till 11pm. Golden Crust is open till 1am. After 9pm all these places are taking potential Hot Dog Station customers.
As it's a new business, I would recommend staying open late for the first few months, keeping a record of the ticket times, finding the averages for when orders are placed the most, and then re-adjusting the store hours to reflect against their peak business times. Otherwise, it's self sabotage. It's sort of why Coffee Berry didn't make it in the neighborhood. They were a coffee shop that was open after 8am most days. Except, it takes about 45 minutes to ride the train to the loop from the Kimball stop. Which makes it impossible to stop at Coffee Berry for morning coffee because there'd be no way to get to work on time and have coffee. Had they been open consistently at 6am M-F, they'd brought in a lot more business, imo.
I won't say it's awesome YET. Â There is potential. Â My first thing is the place is clean. Â Either a woman is helping run the show or they have an amazing cleaning crew. Â It was an old Mexican place that was very run down. The new owners really changed it up and the look is great. Classy red and white with black diner feel, but clean and modern at the same time. Â I've been twice. Â First time; Italian Beef. Â Now, this is Chicago. Â Portillo's has the best Italian Beef and sets the bar high. Â I like Beef 'N Cheddar and that's what I ordered. Â I'm not a fan of the squirty cheese in a bottle. Â The beef was dry, thick and bland. Â Can't say I loved it. Â Second time, I got a hot dog and a breaded chicken sandwich. Â The hot dog was great, perfect snap to the dog on a good quality bun. All fresh ingredients. The chicken sandwich was awesome. I have no idea why. For all you know it's some frozen patty they deep fry.. but it was just so good. It didn't taste like a fast food chicken sandwich. Â The prices are right and the food is awesome. I hope now Huddle House next door closes. :D Â Welcome to the 'hood Hot Dog Station.. I hope you are around a long time. Fix that beef so I can up you one more star.
Update 7/24
There are over 6000 places to eat in the city and I find myself visiting this little station weekly.  The food is good.. and the owners are amazing. It's a rare find to find a place  that still offers customer service.  Also, I noticed tonight they keep the kitchen open.  You can see them cooking and preparing your food.  That says a lot to a customer.
So glad this place popped up! Â
I ordered the Chili Dog with a side of Onion Rings. Â Chili dog was perfect... super velvety steamed bun, chili was thick and tasty, and the dog on the inside was definitely quality. Â Â Bun was the best though. Â If you make the bun that good, I'll keep ordering Dogs.
Onion rings were lightly battered and very tasty. Â I asked, and they confirmed they fry with vegetable oil, so I can feel a little less guilty.
Aside from the food, the place is immaculately kept and has some really fun stuff on the walls etc. Â If only they were open past 9pm... I can see myself drunkenly wishing they were open after bartime some night. haha
Great stop to eat n go!!! Super fast service with high quality food. Loved loved loved their "Big Easy" hot dog and their fries are to die for! Very trendy decor, pleasant atmosphere and all their employees couldn't be any more friendlier. I would have lunch there every day if I could. Hot Dog Station Rocks!!!!
Review Source:Albany Park's newest hot dog restaurant, Hot Dog Station is located directly across the street from the Kimball CTA Brown Line station. Â Walking in, it is classic red with neon signs and big menu that's easy to read. On the menu you'll find dogs from all over the country, led by the almighty Chicago style hot dog with all of the fixin's. Â If you're looking for some burgers, chicken sandwiches, or Italian Beef, you can easily grab some of those too. Â Sides on the menu include fries, cheese fries, and onion rings.
Overall I had two good hot dogs with natural casing evidenced by the snap on the dog as I bit into it. Â The large order of fries did not seem very large to me but they were crispy and salty but could have used a little bit more cooking since I like my fries CRISP! Â The hot dog was proper, served on a poppy seed hot dog bun with celery salt, chili pepper, onions, relish, spear pickle, tomato, mustard and NO KETCHUP. Â
For $9.72 I got two hot dogs, large fries and a large drink. Â If they add a combo special it would make the price right, but the food is good and they serve fast. I will have to come back to test the burger and the BEEF.
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