DC's defining sausage: a coarse-ground, lightly-smoked half-pork, half-beef link, split lengthwise on the griddle and tucked into a steamed bun under chili, mustard and onions.
Where to eat it: 3 restaurants across 1 city.
The half-smoke was born on U Street. Ben Ali and his wife Virginia opened Ben's Chili Bowl at 1213 U Street NW in August 1958, in a former silent-movie house, and built the chili half-smoke into the city's defining sandwich. The link itself, larger and coarser than a hot dog and lightly smoked before being grilled, has been made for Ben's by Manger Packing in Maryland for decades. The U Street riots of April 1968 left Ben's as one of the few neighbourhood businesses standing; the room fed protestors, fire crews and reporters around the clock. Anthony Bourdain, Barack Obama and most US senators have eaten one. Weenie Beenie in Arlington has its own claim to predating Ben's by a few years, but the chili-half-smoke template at Ben's is the canonical DC dish.
Common allergens: Gluten
Tip from the editors. Real half-smokes are coarser than a hot dog; if you can't find one, ask a butcher for a coarse-ground beef-and-pork smoked sausage rather than a fine emulsion frank.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Ben's Chili Bowl in Washington DC is the U Street half-smoke counter since 1958, the city's defining cheap-eat with the chili half-smoke at $7.95 and a fountain drink for $4 more.
Try: Chili half-smoke ($7.95)
Tip: Pair a chili half-smoke with the chili cheese fries to share; $20 covers two people including drinks.
Weenie Beenie is the Arlington half-smoke counter at 2680 South Shirlington Road, a 1950s walk-up window that claims a Northern Virginia hold on the half-smoke that predates Ben's Chili Bowl.
Try: Half-smoke chili dog (Arlington)
Tip: The Weenie Beenie half-smoke is leaner than Ben's; the chili-and-cheese order is the editorial point of comparison.
Ben's Next Door in Washington DC is the sit-down sister of Ben's Chili Bowl at 1211 U Street, a soul-American kitchen with a cocktail list and the half-smoke from the original menu.
Signature: Buttermilk fried chicken, Half-smoke platter
Order: The buttermilk fried chicken with mac and collards; the room's most-ordered single dish.
Tip: The bar runs late on weekends and is the better seat for a single diner; brunch fills up by 11:30.
More cities are in research. Want half-smoke covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.