Michael Y.
Yelp
Looking for a bite to eat before visiting the Statue of Liberty, I was looking around the vicinity of the ferry terminal and found The View at The Battery Beer Garden just a few steps away. With no other places to eat in sight, I figured I'd take a look and see what kind of food they had to offer. From reviewing their options, they seemed to have general New York favorites like burgers and hot dogs which was good enough at the time.
Entering the patio, there were an array of tables with umbrellas for sunny weather as well as a stand in the rear with the kitchen and an ordering booth. Walking up, I decided on two Giant Hot Dogs which were each $7 at the time of this review. I was given a buzzer and waited for about 5 minutes until my food was ready.
Being an outdoor quick service type of eatery, I set my expectations low in order to not disappoint myself. But when I received my hot dogs, I was pleasantly surprised. Each hot dog was about double the length of the bun which really appealed to the price to portion perspective. Each link was thick and was fulfilling after eating two hot dogs. This fact really made the expenditure worth it. Each bun was of a good size too and held each hot dog without being too small or too large. At the $7 price tag, many might say that this is way too expensive for a hot dog. But when comparing to the $3 or $4 hot dogs found in many street carts in New York, I didn't mind paying more for double the size and for it to be from a brick and mortar establishment. In all, price to portion was good.
The taste of the hot dog was also much better than I initially anticipated it to be. Although very simple, the exterior of the hot dog needed a bit of force before I was able to bite into it. But when I was able to bite in, the flavors of the meat came out and made for a juicy experience. Because there were slits cut into the hotdog, the inside was just as cooked as the outside which prevented the hot dog from being too soft inside. As for the bun, the bread was fresh and just a tad sweet which paired well with the sweet flavor of the meat. I would 100% get the Giant Hot Dog again.
A hot dog in Manhattan is one of the more cliche food items to pick up from a visit to big city. But based on The View's take on a hot dog, I simply do not care. The meat quality made for a delicious lunch, the bun was fresh, I received my food rather quickly, and the price wasn't too bad. That being said, there are still many other choices in this area of New York that would give you more bang for your buck. But otherwise, not bad!
