Fayetteville Hot Dog Madness: And the winner is...

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Hi foodies,

The Fayetteville area has crowned a hot dog queen.

American Cravings food truck bested No. 1 seed Dogslingers in the championship of our Fayetteville Hot Dog Madness tournament, which pitted 16 of our readers' favorite hot dog spots against each other to find the best in town.

While the Chicago-style hot dogs sold at Dogslingers have earned a lot of buzz since last summer, after a round of nominations and three rounds of voting, American Cravings, a food truck often found at the Haymount Truck Stop, local breweries and events around town, was the hot dog winner.

The woman behind the food truck is Kaytlin Martin, an Army spouse and mother of two who started the business in September of 2021 and about a year later, opened a second truck called International Cravings.

Martin credits her love of food and competitive spirit to her parents, who she said always experimented with food. At Thanksgiving, her mom and dad each prepare their own turkey and the family blind taste-tests each bird to determine the winner, she told The Fayetteville Observer in October 2022.

The Florida native loved baking from childhood but didn’t start cooking regularly until after she got married. Her husband loved her dishes, and often said she could have her own food business, she said.

It was just a few weeks after he was stationed at Fort Liberty, while Martin was working full-time in insurance, that she decided she was ready for a change. About a week later, the trailer that started her Cravings food truck brand arrived at the Martins’ Ramsey Street home.

The rest is history, she said.

American Cravings’ best-selling item is the whiskey burger, Martin said, which is topped with cheddar, bacon and whiskey aioli.

The item that won Fayetteville Hot Dog Madness, however, is the truck’s all-beef hot dog. Most commonly topped with chili, cheddar cheese and grilled onions, Martin said she serves dozens of dogs each day.

“My hot dogs are good. Whenever I'm not on a diet, that’s what I eat on my food truck,” she said Wednesday with a laugh.

Still, the food truck owner said she was surprised to hear that she beat Dogslingers.

“I’m in shock right now,” she said. "I appreciate everyone who voted for us. We can't thank you enough."

Happy eating,

Taylor

Taylor Shook writes about food, dining and culture for The Fayetteville Observer. She can be reached at tshook@gannett.com or on Facebook.