"American Taco"?

[Rick Castello]

     I think of "hot dog" as a culinary dish the same way, but since
     the vacuum-sealed packages in the packaged meat section of the
     supermarket often bear the label "All-Beef Hot Dogs", with no
     bun to be found for aisles and aisles around, I opted for greater
     precision in this esteemed company.  *grin*

     Thanks for replies regarding "common foods of a culture".

     Being a fan of sci-fi programming, I'm reminded of a bit in the
     futuristic space-drama TV show Babylon 5, where a character muses
     that nearly every "alien" race has a dish analogous to Swedish
     Meatballs...

     -Rick


On Wed, May 2, 2007 8:13 am, Charles Doyle wrote:
> I know that Barry and others have touched on this point, but Rick's phrase "hot dog
> on a bun" mementarily unsettled me. To me, "hot dog" is the name of the sandwich
> itself, not the principal internal component--so I found myself envisioning a
> sausage (I'd call it a wiener or weenie) inside a bun inside a bun, a compound
> sandwich!
>
> Isoglosses have probably been identified for
> wiener/weenie/frankfurter/frank/hotdog, but I wonder if they are current? Among
> 20-year-olds in Georgia, notwithstanding the Oscar Meyer jingle, the word "wiener"
> seems to be generally regarded as obscene, while "weenie" refers only to a dorkish
> person.
>
> --Charlie
> _____________________________________________________________
>
>
> ---- Original message ----
>>Date: Tue, 1 May 2007 22:07:37 -0700
>>From: Rick Castello <rick at PUNK.NET>
>>Subject: "American Taco"?
>>
>>     My wife just shared with me the term "American Taco", as used to describe a
>> hot dog on a bun.  Anyone else seen or heard this?
>>
>>     -Rick
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
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>

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org