Hey everyone! I wanted to do this review because I was really excited to find out that there was a vegetarian option for the Korean Rice Dog that everyone has been posting about recently all over social media. Before when I ate meat, a corn dog (not the same as rice dog) was a favourite snack but coming across vegetarian versions have been rare but thankfully there was one place in Scarborough that offered it so I had to try it! Before you continue to read below make sure to show love on Instagram and Facebook by following as well as liking and sharing the posts associated with this review!

Background and Location

If you’re not familiar with a rice dog it is a popular Korean street food as the hot dog is wrapped in rice flour batter that is fried before consuming. You will see a lot of different options from toppings and flavours eg. some have potatoes on the outside, while some ooze with mozzarella cheese and I have even seen squid ink. ChungChun Rice Dog is a popular chain that sells these special Korean rice dogs and have a few different locations but the one I went to is at Skycity Shopping Centre which located at 3250 Midland Ave G112, Scarborough, Ontario (Midland and Finch). This plaza is home to a lot of popular spots with a lot of different parking options, but keep in mind it is often really busy.

Above is a snapshot of what you can expect when you go there from 2 separate lines one for ordering and then one for pickup. Before you order and even after you will look at the second image to choose your seasoning and sauces, some you need to state before when ordering eg. potatoes but you do get to choose the toppings by the third photo (watch the reel on Instagram) and then you get a nice packaging to take home with you.

Price

Prior to talking about the taste I wanted to mention about price and the items I got. I tried two different veggie dogs one basic and one with toppings, both were the same price at $5.99 CAD and a pineapple ade drink that came out to less than $4 CAD after tax. For meat eaters, it is around the same with the most I have seen for $7.99. There is a chocolate option as well for those a sweet tooth. I am curious to try other options if there are more vegetarian options but what was mainly promoted were the veggie dogs.

Taste

So here is what you probably are here for, how did it taste? I honestly enjoyed it, both versions the regular and the one with the toppings. The regular one is fine on its own and there is a good balance between the batter and the hot dog. Plus the veggie dog itself is big and it reminded me of the Fieldroast veggie sausages. The overall texture was great, very chewy. One was pretty filling as I only took a few bites of the regular one, while the one I got for myself was the one topped with honey butter, bbq sauce, and sweet chilli. It was an interesting mix of ingredients, it wasn’t too sweet but did give a nice flavour to enhance the taste of the rice dog.

Overall

All in all for the taste, price, and the size of this rice dog, I highly encourage any vegetarians in the area to try this out for themselves. In my opinion, you are definitely getting your money’s worth for this and it is awesome that vegetarians can enjoy this fun Korean street food! I do recommend playing around with the toppings to really enjoy the rice dog but you can’t go wrong with just the regular veggie rice dog. If you have tried the vegetarian option for yourself, let me know your thoughts below or on the Instagram and Facebook posts, make sure to follow as well and stay tuned for more food reviews in the near future!