Edgewater's 'Hot Dog Man' Relocates from Muddy Creek to Mayo Road

Darryl Wilson has been running "Doggies All-American Hot Dogs," his hot dog stand on the corner of Muddy Creek Road and Central Avenue in Edgewater for the past seven years. He doesn't work when it is raining, or when the temperature dips so low that his sodas freeze. But otherwise, he can be found Wednesday through Saturday scooping chili, sauerkraut and cheese onto his freshly steamed all-beef hot dogs.

But this year, as the winter weather started to thaw, Wilson's familiar stand wasn't at the intersection. Locals wondered where the friendly face of "the hot dog man" had gone.

"It got to be too dangerous, to me and anyone coming for me, to be there," Wilson said.

The problem was that construction at the intersection, spearheaded by Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works, but also involving state agencies, contractors, and other construction vendors left Wilson with no place to park his vehicle on a regular basis.

"We tried to work it out, but there were so many different contractors, it was hard," he said.

About three weeks ago, Wilson relocated the stand to the parking lot of Wilmer's Teltronic, 214 Mayo Road in London Towne/Woodland Beach.

According to Chuck Janson who works at Wilmers, they came to an agreement a few months ago for Wilson to bring his stand the 1.3 miles from its original location.

Each day that he is open, Wilson drives his van that tows the hot dog cart to the site and opens for business at 10 a.m. By noon on a recent Wednesday, Wilson had a line of people waiting their turn for a good, quick (and cheap) meal.

"People are slowly finding me again," Wilson said.

Frank Lowman was enjoying a hot dog with all the fixings, chips and a drink, which set him back just $3. Lowman didn't know that Wilson had relocated and just stumbled upon him while driving down Mayo Road. He was a customer of Wilson's at the Muddy Creek location.

"He is always friendly to everyone. I like to come here," Lowman said. "And most of all, it is affordable."

Lowman said he likes the location on Mayo Road better than the one at Muddy Creek Road. He settled into a portable chair under the shade of a tree to enjoy his meal, listening to the music Wilson was playing out of the van. 

Wilson said that he had worked in a couple of different industries prior to becoming Edgewater's hot dog man. He bought the cart about eight years ago and started the business to supplement his social security income.

He said that over the years he has added different features to the business.

"When I started, just had the blue pickup and the cart," he said. Now Wilson has a cash register, a microwave, a generator and portable seating and tables that he sets up so that people don't have to eat in their cars.

"I've been very lucky. People have been very supportive," Wilson said.

You can find Darryl Wilson's hot dog stand operating on Mayo Road, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, weather permitting.