Pink’s Hot Dogs and other eateries celebrate the Dodgers in the World Series

Pink’s Hot Dogs has once again turned blue to celebrate the Dodgers making it to the World Series against the New York Yankees. Game One is Friday, Oct. 25.

“We’ve painted the entire front facade of Pink’s blue,” said president and co-owner Richard Pink in a phone interview. “We put all the staff into Dodgers T-shirts that say ‘Pink’s loves the Dodgers,’ as well as Dodgers hats.”

The hot dog stand, founded by his parents in 1939, is still at its original location, 709 N. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles.

This is the fourth time Pink’s has celebrated the Dodgers making it to the World Series, beginning in  2017, when the Dodgers lost to the Houston Astros. In 2018, the Boston Red Sox defeated the Dodgers. In 2020, the Dodgers triumphed over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Pink’s promotion includes a Blues Dog, which is a bacon chili cheese dog that goes for $7.17. The $7 commemorates the seven times the Dodgers have won the World Series. The 17 cents is for the number on Shohei Ohtani’s uniform.

Pink’s challenged Gray’s Papaya, a New York hot dog restaurant, to a World Series bet, with the loser promising to donate $1,000 to a charity of choice.

“Win or lose, Pink’s bleeds Dodger blue,” Pink said.

He has fond memories of pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who died Tuesday.

“Probably the most special occasion we had with the Dodgers was when Fernando Valenzuela came to Pink’s. He let all his friends know, so there was a crowd of about 200 people. Fernando signed autographs, shook everybody’s hand. Just a great personality and through-and-through one of the greatest human beings that has ever played for the Dodgers.”

Pink said Valenzuela asked for something with jalapeños.

“I said I’ve got a 12-inch jalapeño dog and I’ll put mayonnaise on it. I’ll put mustard on it, and ketchup, grilled onions and bacon. He said perfect.”

Pink’s has 40 hot dogs on its menu in addition to 12 hamburgers, and several of them are named after celebrities. There’s only one dog named after an athlete, the Shaq Dog, honoring basketball great Shaquille O’Neal. Pink said Dodger players tend to be loyal to the Dodger Dog, a pork hot dog that’s now available in stores.

Pink said when Valenzuela was pitching, he would see a lot of customers wearing his jersey.

“It was almost like you cloned Fernando, because there were like 10 people in a row that all had his jersey, one after the other. Some of them didn’t even know one another. They just loved him.”

Proceeds from the Blues Dog will go to the LA Dodgers Foundation, which has a mission “improve education, health care, homelessness and social justice for all Angelenos.”

Information: pinkshollywood.com

Not all of Pink’s Hot Dogs in Los Angeles has gone blue in honor of the Dodgers making the World Series on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. Pink’s is donating the profits of their Blue’s Bacon Chili Cheese Dog to the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation for the World Series. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

Rachel Wilson and Andrea Harrison, both of Los Angeles, place orders at Pink’s Hot Dogs in Los Angeles which has gone blue in honor of the Dodgers making the World Series on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. Pink’s is donating the profits of their Blue’s Bacon Chili Cheese Dog to the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation for the World Series. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

Yuka and Haruka, of Tokyo, Japan, visit Pink’s Hot Dogs for the first time during a Dodger shopping trip from New York on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. Pink’s has gone blue and is donating the profits of their Blue’s Bacon Chili Cheese Dog to the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation for the World Series. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

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Not all of Pink’s Hot Dogs in Los Angeles has gone blue in honor of the Dodgers making the World Series on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. Pink’s is donating the profits of their Blue’s Bacon Chili Cheese Dog to the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation for the World Series. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

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