In the 1988 comedy The Great Outdoors, Dan Aykroyd's character, as well as some foul-mouthed, refuse-foraging raccoons, famously claim that hot dogs are made from lips and... something else. One can question the veracity of such an assertion, but if you've ever enjoyed a hot dog at a baseball game or backyard barbecue, you've certainly done so by suppressing any concern about the true contents of what lies below the condiments.

That's because "What's in a hot dog?" is never a question to Google if you're interested in keeping your appetite (and your faith in humanity, for that matter). However, when the kitchen at a Daniel Boulud restaurant does a hot dog, you can rest assured that the franks come from only the finest foodstuffs.

DBGB Kitchen and Bar is Boulud's casual downtown spot specializing in sausages, burgers, beers and elevated brasserie fare. It's also home to a truly terrific beer and bite deal, available every day and every hour the place is open. For just $10, you get one of three high quality hot dogs and any draft beer from the top notch, twenty tap menu. Better still, you won't be relegated to a bar stool to savor this steal of a supper, as it's served in the entire front bar room, which itself is larger than most restaurants. Considering each dog usually runs well over $10 and every beer on the list is $7 and up, this deal is a damn good value.

The DBGB Dog, the most conventional of the three, consists of a house-made beef frank, sautéed onion, mustard, ketchup and relish. The Tunisienne Dog is a lamb link served with mint, yogurt, red onion and cherry tomato. And then there's the Thai Dog, a pork hot dog with green papaya slaw, sriracha, peanuts and cilantro. All three fancy franks taste nothing like the ones from the street-side dirty water cart, so order a couple of these sizable plates and enjoy them with some peace of mind.

ESSENTIAL INFO:

-Total Cost: $13 per person for a hot dog and beer. Tax and tip included.

-The size of your beer will range from 8 ounces to about a pint, depending upon the type of draft you order. Some options are available in a larger pour, but those are excluded from the hot dog and beer deal.

NEARBY: After dinner, head south across Houston Street and pay a visit to the New Museum without having to pay very much. On Thursday evenings, the New Museum is open until 9:00 PM and admission is pay-what-you-wish. The normal entrance fee is $16 and the suggested admission on Thursday is $2.