It's a man eat dog world: Ean Bordeaux

MEET HIM: Hot Dog Guy

When you order a Willy Dog from this River Market Vendor, he'll be perfectly frank.

by Mellissa Tucker

05/09/07 SyncWeekly.com pg. 7

By day he keeps his eye on fraud and corruption in Central Arkansas. By night, he’s your friendly River Market hot dog salesman.

If you’ve got a penchant for the political scene (and lots of time to spare). Stop and ask him about misconduct in Pulaski County Special School District or corruption in general.  Amid drunken street walkers, hollering passengers and honking cars on president Clinton Avenue-and next to a pyramid of foil wrapped buns, you’ll get an earful. If you really get him going he’ll probably shake his tongs at you while making his point.  Ean Bordeaux maintains 12 blog's with titles ranging from “Slum Watch” to “Katrina Investigations” to “Child Predator Watch News Index”-and each of them would make a public official cringe.  

He was born in Chicago but has lived somewhere new almost every year of his life.  But one thing that was always constant, His family’s summers in Arkansas [and Louisiana]. He says Arkansas [and Louisiana] are the closest to home he’s known and considers himself a southerner.

Bordeaux spends his time petitioning for the rights of Creoles and had a run as a country music singer in Nashville. Nowadays he can be found under a multicolored umbrella in the River Market selling Willy Dogs. (He says he bought that umbrella because it was the sturdiest one he could find, “but I get asked a lot if I’m gay.” He’s say he’s not, so you can stop asking)

And he has plenty of stories to share from his time spent watching downtown. “Do you know John Popper?”, he asked. (Blues Traveler played at the Rev Room on april 15)

“I fed him. He and his bodyguard ate a Big Willy.” Bordeaux said, adding that he gave the one to Popper but made the bodyguard pay for his.

“Then they went over to Ernie Biggs and had shots of Patron and had kind of an after party."  He has a great relationship with the policemen and cab drivers downtown.  “The policemen downtown are some of the best you’ll meet”. Bordeaux said, “about 95%  of them.  But the bad ones are really bad.”

The cabbies often grab him extra supplies like ice and mustard.

And the hot dogs, well-"I tasted a bunch of different brands until I found the right ones, and that’s no fun.  But when you find the right one, you stick with it.

Bordeaux claims to have the best gourmet hot dogs in the city.

"These are upper middle grade, which is more than what this market usually gets around here.”, he said.

And the way that Bordeaux cooks his dogs make them different.  “Some people boil it with just meat and water, we’re not English.