Cozy Dog Drive In: Birthplace of the Corn Dog
Springfield, Illinois
If you order a corn dog at the Cozy Dog Drive In, the staff may give you a hard stare. They serve only Cozy Dogs. Various signs around the establishment make it clear that 1) the Cozy Dog preceded the modern corn dog; 2) Cozy Dogs are superior in quality and taste to modern corn dogs.
The familiar fried golden weenie on a stick, whatever its name, was invented by Drive-In founder Ed Waldmire Jr. during his stint in the military in World War II. At first he named them Crusty Curs; his wife, Virginia, talked him out of that. After several years perfecting the recipe, the Waldmires opened the Cozy Dog Drive In in 1949, featuring Virginia's cartoon logo of two "cozy" hot dogs in love. The Drive In has moved a couple of times since then, but always somewhere in Springfield on Route 66. The Cozy Dogs are still prepared with the original recipe and 1960s equipment, and are now served by a third generation of Waldmires.