Glizzy’s, a late night hot dog spot, opens in Williamsburg  

By Scott Lynch

No frills, just grizzies. (Scott Lynch)

Let’s get this out the way first: yes, calling a hot dog a “glizzy” here in New York City is an extremely new bit of viral/TikTok slang, so it’s totally fine and normal and not uncool if you hadn’t heard it until that Sidetalk video, or until you started reading this article right now.

The word “glizzy” emerged, it seems, from the D.C.-Metro area as “izzle-speak” street slang for Glock, or handguns in general. And since, in certain circles, guns are seen as interchangeable with penises, the inevitable leap was made: glitzy = dong. And since a hot dog shares the same basic shape as a phallus, soon rude hot-dog-eating videos starring “glizzy guzzlers” were garnering millions of views on social media and … you can probably take it from there.

This all happened in the last few years, and now there’s a new hot dog joint in Williamsburg called, for maximum clout, Glizzy’s, with a cute, very non-gun, non-penis-like cartoony logo and three long-time friends and New York lifers at the helm.

Johnny Huynh grew up in Bushwick with his grandmother, and also co-owns the three Lucy’s Vietnamese restaurants in Brooklyn, fast-casual spots known for their smoked brisket banh mi and pho. Nikki Yam is from Queens, currently living in Flushing and, after teaching elementary school for seven years, is now a curriculum manager at a couple of charter schools. Philip Ng, born and raised in Midwood, is a firefighter in addition to his Glizzy’s duties.

The menu features 10 tricked-out hot dogs, each a homage to a different culinary and/or cultural tradition. The best of the half dozen I tried prior to Glizzy’s grand opening this past weekend was the Sean Paul, Huynh’s salute to the Jamaican dancehall legend, a snappy dog loaded with jerk smoked brisket, some creamy coleslaw, and a fiery scotch bonnet sauce.

The Sean Paul, with jerked smoked brisket; $9.50 (Scott Lynch)

Also good was the Texas-style “We Got A Problem,” basically a chili cheese dog with crushed Fritos sprinkled on top, and the Korean “Mr. Lee,” covered in kimchi, furikake, and gochujang ketchup. There’s a pizza dog called Fuhgeddaboudit, a veggie version called The Yammy, and a halal dog slathered in harrisa and yogurt sauces called The Ocky, a shout-out to the TikTok-famous Red Hook bodega owner Rahim Mohamed.

The Fuhgeddaboudit, with mozz, pizza sauce, and garlic breadcrumbs; $8.50 (Scott Lynch)

Despite a couple of fun decor details — the ordering counter looks like a hot dog cart — this is a pretty bare-bones operation. There’s no seating, just a stainless counter at which to perch as you guzzle your glizzies, and most of 450 square feet has been given over to prep and storage space. There’s soda, Brooklyn Best iced teas, and beer as soon as the license comes through.

The Chinatown, with mapo sauce; $8.50 (Scott Lynch)

The former tenant was the Metro Line Cab Service, and there’s no venting, so the dogs are cooked on rollers, rather than a grill. And the ingredients are definitely nothing fancy — the dogs themselves are your basic Sabrett’s, the rolls from Arnold’s, the toppings a variety of institutional brands. “I’m not trying to gourmet the hot dog,” Huynh tells Brooklyn Magazine. “I’m just trying to give you what you need.”

The counter cart (Scott Lynch)

That said, feel free to be creative with your glizzy. “This is fun food,” says Huynh. “A hot dog and a bun, that’s just the beginning of it, but the rest is, like, endless. Unlimited customization means unlimited content on TikTok. I think it’s cool that you can just come in, two in the morning, three in the morning, and you’re drunk, and put 30 toppings on it.”

Glizzy’s is located at 390 Metropolitan Avenue, between Marcy Avenue and Havemeyer Street, and is currently open on Sunday through Wednesday from 11 a.m to to midnight, and on Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 a.m.