half-smoke

Near perfect conditions to enjoy a drink and a half-smoke at Nats Park today.

"My understanding is he had a half-smoke.

A half-smoke can be half pork, half beef, all beef, or anything in between.

Ben's menu features the "original chili half-smoke" as its "signature dish".

A half-smoke is a "local sausage delicacy" found in Washington, D.C., and the surrounding region.

It became a longtime fixture in the black business community, serving up bowls of chili and its trademark chili-covered half-smoke sausages.

By the late 1990s, no D.C. politician would dream of running for office without dropping into Ben's for a ritual half-smoke and milkshake.

Michael Stern, a writer specializing in U.S. regional foods, penned a 2008 review raving "The half-smoke is sensational!"

Ali also had some advice for the soon-to-be president: Order the signature half-smoke, a type of sausage found in D.C., and get it smothered in chili.

"Why is it a big deal about the president ordering a half-smoke?" she asks when someone mentions President Obama's visit to the landmark U Street eatery.

Every Washingtonian worth his half-smoke knows about the landmark U Street NW diner that Mahaboob Ben Ali founded in 1958.

He orders his "regular": Chili Cheese Burger, Chili Cheese Fry and a Chili Half-Smoke.

Admittedly, Ben’s is touristy — their half-smoke may be the most photographed sausage this side of Munich’s Hofbrauhaus – yet it still retains an authenticity, friendliness and quirk factor worthy of a visit.

The "original" half-smoke is considered to be the sausage distributed by D.C.'s Briggs and Co. meatpackers, originating in around 1950, though Raymond Briggs started selling his half-smokes in about 1930.

In Washington, D.C. the half-smoke is similar to a hot dog, but usually larger, spicier, and with more coarsely-ground meat, the sausage is often half-pork and half-beef, smoked, and served with herbs, onion, and chili sauce.

The host, Adam Richman, helped Nizam Ali prepare his chili before trying out a chili Half-Smoke; Richman sat in the same seat that President Barack Obama had sat in earlier in the year.

On January 10, then president-elect Obama came into "The Bowl" with Washington Mayor Adrian Fenty and sampled the restaurant's signature chili half-smoke -- a smoked sausage served on a bun with chili, mustard and onions.

For example, Ben's Chili Bowl in Washington, D.C. doesn't just have a trademark frank (the half-smoke), it has a trademark topping (chili), is well-regarded by locals and professional eaters alike, and eating there is a memorable experience unto itself.

Here he was in Washington, flown in... by boxing promoter and radio talk host Rock Newman, for a 14-hour visit that started with two bites of a chili half-smoke at Ben's and concluded with an appearance on Newman's Saturday morning radio show.

Nationals Park baseball park in the Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, D.C., the home ballpark for the Washington Nationals, offers a sandwich prepared with a half-smoke, Maryland crab dip and Virginia ham called "The DMV" as part of its concessions.

One team member had to take the briefcase they received from the marked car, and then find one of fifty "spies" around the Tidal Basin who would respond to their given code phrase with another supplied code phrase (Max & Katie: "Where can I get a good half-smoke with chili?"

In the past week, the same people who saw hope in Obama’s jaunts across the city just before his inauguration — remember that half-smoke he ate at Ben’s Chili Bowl? — have excoriated him for relegating the District to the status of bargaining chip in a broader budget game with House leaders.

Menu highlights include a shrimp and spicy ale pot pie with bacon and chilies meeting the hoppy Wildeman Farmhouse IPA, while a coppa and duck heart half-smoke will be topped with trotter chili, Lusk cheese and pickles and served with Gonzo imperial porter.