Lubins-N-Links: A Delicious Culinary Invention In Tarrytown

Main Street in Tarrytown, New York, is just what it sounds like: a charming thoroughfare lined with cute restaurants and the city's famed Music Hall. But hiding in a tiny storefront is a little shop called Lubins-N-Links, specializing in a creation that's entirely their own invention: the Lubin.

What is a Lubin, you may ask? It's slow-roasted beef made in house, shredded and tucked into a hot dog bun (think New Orleans-style debris, but not quite as much of a flavorbomb). While they're tasty all on their own, they really come to life when toppings are added, and there are a whole lot of toppings. There's the Bob-a-Lubin (cheese sauce and sweet onions), Squazz-a-Lubin (chipotle barbecue sauce and roasted "Jubee" onions), Beav-a-Lubin (onion relish and chipotle mayo), Flamin' Lubin (Jubee onions, hot peppers, habanero sauce), and the exquisitely named Reuben Lubin (Russian dressing, chopped onions, and kraut). I suggest you get a couple (most of them cost less than $4.00), and make sure one of them is the simple Cheese Lubin (pictured), topped with just cheese sauce made with four different cheeses.

The "links" part of the equation is, as you might have guessed, hot dogs, which are available in beef, chicken, turkey, veggie, or tofu varieties, also with an insanely wide variety of options (try the homemade chili). There's not much of a place to sit inside, but you can get to a spacious back yard through a side alley.

Whenever an entirely new food item is invented, it's worthy of celebration. When it's a Lubin, it's worthy of a trip to Tarrytown just to eat one. Or four.