4 Things West Virginians Put on a Hot Dog That Confuse Everyone Else

Order a hot dog in West Virginia, and it might come topped with coleslaw.

That’s normal on one side of the “slaw line.”

Everywhere else, it gets a look.

Here’s what West Virginians put on a hot dog that confuses everyone else.

1. Chili Sauce

The state tourism guide describes the chili sauce you’ll find on a hot dog as all meat.

It’s chili without beans, and it runs thinner than the chili you’d ladle into a bowl.

Garden & Gun describes the classic slaw dog’s chili as more of a thin sauce than a stew.

That’s why it isn’t a chili dog, just a dog with chili-like sauce.

In Huntington, many people just call it sauce, so you might hear that word when you order.

Recipes differ from stand to stand, and the heat of the sauce can change the whole taste.

A 2017 Garden & Gun guide describes the classic slaw dog’s chili as spicy and finely grained.

Custard Stand chili is a well-known example, and it was featured on Shark Tank.

In 2017, the Custard Stand also packaged its hot dog chili and sold it in grocery stores.

2. Coleslaw

Coleslaw appears in a 1922 ad for the Stopette Drive-In, which promoted a hot dog with slaw.

The Southern Foodways Alliance’s Gravy journal cites the ad.

Cabbage was a common home garden crop, and slaw made a hot dog more filling.

Some out-of-staters raise an eyebrow at cabbage on a hot dog.

Where you find slaw, it goes directly on the hot dog.

It’s a topping, not a side, according to West Virginia Explorer’s history.

Slaw also helped set the state’s version apart from the hot dogs you’d get elsewhere.

West Virginia Explorer’s 2026 history says recipes vary, with some restaurants favoring sweeter slaws and others sharper, more vinegary ones.

The topping adds crunch, sweetness and texture to the chili underneath.

Spicy, hot chili against cool, sweet coleslaw makes the dog an exercise in balance.

In Marmet, Chum’s Hotdogs made a yellow slaw with mustard in place of mayonnaise, a micro-regional variant in a 2019 West Virginia Folklife Program record.

The tourism guide adds that Chum’s slaw is sweeter than most.

3. Mustard

Mustard is on the label of both West Virginia Folklife Program tour photos from 2016, one of a hot dog in Logan and one in Sissonville.

You can read the same four toppings on each label, from chili and slaw to mustard and onions.

That’s a short list.

The state tourism guide says yellow mustard holds your dog together.

Mustard and onions also gave a hot dog flavor at little extra cost.

In Charleston, though, Super Weenie put a spicy twist on the traditional mustard recipe.

A 2023 report from the TV station WOWK described a curry mustard there called super mustard.

4. Chopped Onions

Chopped onions add crunch to every bite of your hot dog, and a sprinkle of them completes it.

Louis’ Famous Hot Dogs in Wheeling opened in 1919, Weelunk reports.

By 1969, an anniversary ad for the stand described a fresh bun with tangy mustard, meat sauce and chopped onions.

A second Louis’ location opened in the Elm Terrace Shopping Center in 1981.

The downtown location closed in 1999, after 80 years.

The business closed in 2013.

At King Tut Drive-In in Beckley, ordering all the way in 2017 meant mustard, onion, chili and extra-creamy slaw.

Industrial Roots

The hot dog you order today has roots in the state’s industrial expansion in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Coal mines, railroads, steel mills, glass factories and timber operations drew workers who needed cheap, quick food for long shifts.

Vendors often added homemade chili to turn a hot dog into a bigger meal.

Several inexpensive toppings made it a more filling meal on a limited budget, so the hot dog itself didn’t have to be the finest cut of meat.

The toppings stuck.

Immigrant families founded many hot dog restaurants across the state, and Greek-owned lunch counters, diners and drive-ins became fixtures in many communities.

In Huntington and the western coalfields, chili-slaw dogs are still staples at some drive-ins and neighborhood restaurants.

The Slaw Line

Whether slaw belongs on your hot dog can depend on which side of the slaw line you order from.

Food writers often use that name for an unofficial boundary that generally runs across the central part of the state.

South of it, a hot dog ordered “all the way” commonly means mustard, chili sauce, onions and coleslaw.

North of it, ordering slaw can surprise the person at the counter.

The debate is mostly good-natured.

Still, many locals identify strongly with their food traditions.

In parts of the north, many traditional stands serve hot dogs with sauce, mustard and onions, leaving slaw as an extra.

Italian heritage is strong in the northern part of the state, and slaw is often unavailable there.

Marion County has notable Italian heritage, and slaw on a hot dog isn’t something to ask for there.

A 1992 Charleston Daily Mail story by Becky Fleming was titled “State Divided by Invisible Slaw Line.”

In it, ordering everything at Louis’ in Wheeling meant chili, onions and mustard.

Ketchup Question

Ketchup stays off the classic slaw dog.

Pickles are out, too.

Fairmont’s Yann’s Hot Dog Stand went further in 2017, with no ketchup to be found.

The write-up says the stand wanted you to taste the hot dog.

Steamed Buns

A steamed bun sits under the classic slaw dog, along with a ballpark frank.

Toasting is out.

West Virginia Explorer's history builds your hot dog the same way, starting with a steamed bun.