Who's Your Daddy?

It was an epic Father's Day in Fat Mike's world.  That's right, for those of you who are reading this and didn't already know... Fat Mike is a dad.  Rule #1 in the house, though, is the boy is not allowed to call Daddy "fat", and Daddy is NOT allowed to jokingly (and lovingly) call the boy "fat". Nevertheless, on certain occasions I AM allowed to let the boy tag along for a wondrous and enthusiastic food adventure.  In this case, we took a journey to try the new...

 PIZZA HUT HOT DOG CRUST PIZZA

This, my friends, did NOT disappoint.

We went ALL out.  I gotta tell ya.  I haven't been to a "brick and mortar" Pizza Hut since I went to celebrate a win in pee-wee soccer back in 1988.  However, the Pizza Hut in NJ that we used to go to was still standing and that's where "the boy" (I'm protecting his anonymity) and I went to enjoy in this delicious indulgence.

I wish I was able to take more pictures of the process, but anyone who's reading this who has kids knows that you only have so many hands when you're hanging out and I was only able to grab the "money shot" shown above.  I'll have to use the magic of the blogging keys to accurately describe how this went down.

This is a masterfully crafted pizza.  My primary worry was that the dogs were going to overshadow the pizza, or that the pizza was going to suffer in order to accommodate the dogs.  Neither was the case.  It was impressive how the dogs simply "popped" off the pizza if you wanted to separate the dogs and enjoy them on their own.  As an initial test run, the first thing I did was grab a dog (thinking that the tearing of the pig out of its designated blanked would mangle the slice that the dog was attached to and render the entire slice inedible).  Nothing could have been farther from the truth.  If the eater wishes to enjoy the pizza and the dog independently "The Hut" accommodates that wish.  What's even more impressive is that if you choose to eat the slice from "top to tails", the weight of the "swaddled piggies" doesn't overwhelm the slice and make for a frantic eating experience.  I would've expected the slice to fall apart in my hands, or start to droop since the crust carried such heavy weight, but that never happened.  The eating experience was pleasant from start to finish.  In fairness, it's a lofty expectation for anyone to go into this thinking that all of the hot dogs are going to be evenly cooked.  Admittedly, some were overdone, but I'd say there was a good 65/35 ratio of perfect dogs to overcooked dogs.  "The boy" and I were both impressed with how this entire event transpired, and it made for a FANTASTIC father-son experience.  There were smiles all around the table.  The boy is 2.5 yrs old and he took down his dinner like a champ.

*as a disclaimer, my son is NOT overweight and has a very balanced diet of fruits and vegetables on a regular basis.  I will NOT be lumped into that group of parents who has a satisfied child only when they are eating "kid friendly" foods.  I like to think that this experience was as enjoyable for him as it was for me because we have a balance of food we "need" to eat and food we "want" to eat.* 

Proof of happy faces

I HIGHLY recommend the Pizza Hut Hot Dog Crusted Pizza.  Pizza Hut is displaying the ingenuity and innovation that is crucial in diversifying the American food market and they're executing it with forethought and attention to quality.  I appreciated the experience they provided for me and my family, and I look forward to seeing what they decide to do next to make the pizza world a bigger and better place.

Thanks, Hut. (if you haven't already, please click above)