Why The Flint Coney Is Wrong

Ever since I have lived in Michigan there has only been one style of coney dog. Only one that matters.

Detroit style.

I visited Detroit when I was a kid during the summer in the 70s to see and stay with my dad.

He introduced me to all things Detroit. Better Made Chips, Faygo (Redpop, Grape, Rock & Rye), Vernors, and Coney Islands.

Specifically Detroit Coney Island hot dogs.

He used to take me to Lafayette in Downtown Detroit.

As I got older and developed my own identity, I chose American. There were memories there of when I grew up in Detroit by myself after college that made it my favorite. And there was something about sitting in that far corner table looking out and seeing three streets connect (Lafayette, Griswold, and Michigan Ave.) on any given night that was just magical.

Maybe it's all the memories and history of Detroit that refuse to let me think there is any other coney that matters.

I lived in Indiana for a hot minute. They had a coney.

No. Just no.

Not even a chili dog really. It was a hot dog with sloppy joe sauce on it.

No. Just...no.

And trust me, in Detroit you can get your coney several ways.

Deluxe, loose burger, loose burger special, the list goes on and on.

But in Detroit, I have never been to a place that had a Flint Coney.

Preposterous.

And outside of Detroit is the only place where I found that such a thing exists.

My friend Monica and I go at it hard about which one is better.

Clearly I tell her that it's Detroit because the Flint knockoff wouldn't exist without it.

Flint is always trying to one up The D.

And this monstrosity is just a thicker meatier chilly. For those of you that can't handle the original coney SAUCE.

The video up top has a lady describing Detroit coney sauce as...

"A soup chili...it has beans in it."

WRONG. No it doesn't sister.

And at its base, yeah...Koegel skinless frank, onions, mustard, bun...yup almost there.

But Flint had to go and change the chili. The texture. More firm. Drier really. Less juice. More like a solid sloppy joe sauce.

Just like Indiana.

And as I told you before.

No.