How Toledo Invented the Hungarian Hot Dog

The Hungarian hot dog was invented in Toledo. It may seem far-fetched but it’s true.

“I don’t think you can get a Hungarian hot dog in Hungary,” says Lindsey Bond, executive director of Tony Packo’s. (In fact, the Hungarian ambassador visited the Toledo restaurant in 1973 and said there was nothing like it in his native land.)

Tony Packo’s namesake, the son of Hungarian immigrants, opened his restaurant in Toledo’s Birmingham neighborhood, not far from where he grew up, during  the Great Depression. At just 10 cents, his sandwiches — made using a spiced Hungarian sausage called Kolbasz — outpriced his customers. So, he split the sausage in half, put it in a hot dog bun, topped it with chili sauce and called it a “Hungarian hot dog,” even trademarking the name. The innovation has sustained the restaurant ever since. 

“We’re serving the same recipe that Tony created, 94 years later,” Bond says. 

The seasoning for the sauce remains the key to the hot dog’s appeal. Although it’s not public information, Bond will give one hint: “We’re Hungarians, so we’re big fans of paprika.”

The restaurant and its fare (it’s also notable for its chicken paprikash and beanless chili) were merely a local treasure until the 1970s, when Tony Packo’s became famous for two things: The first was its collection of autographed hot dog buns (starting when Burt Reynolds, in a local theater production at the Masonic Auditorium, came for dinner and signed one). 

The second was its on-screen fandom by Corporal Maxwell Q. Klinger, a character played by actor Jamie Farr on the hit television series “M*A*S*H.” Like Farr, Klinger was a Toledo native, so the actor got the name of his hometown spot worked into several episodes during the show’s run.

Today, Tony Packo’s original Front Street location is dotted with “M*A*S*H” memorabilia, but fans will get a chance to see even more this summer, as a new museum is opening on the restaurant’s second floor. 

“There’s a ton more history to Tony Packo’s that I think people aren’t aware of,” Bond says. Tony Packo’s original location: 1902 Front St., Toledo 43605, 419/691-6054, tonypackos.com

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