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Business should have been booming for Robbie Will, owner of Willie Dogs, a hot dog truck stationed five days a week in the lot between the Greenwich train station and the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich. With NBA star LeBron James set to reveal the choice of his new team at the Boys and Girls Club on Thursday night, plenty of journalists were parked for the day in Robbie's lot.
But for Robbie, the throng didn't help. "I'm hurting just like everybody else in this economy," he said. "Today is a regular average day like any other one. Not even LeBron [James] can change that."
Handing a fresh chili cheese dog with the works to a hungry patron standing outside his truck, Robbie Will heard, "This has got to be a busier day than usual for you." "Nope, not really, just different faces," Will said handing back change. "And they'll all be gone tomorrow."
Robbie, a resident of Mamaroneck, NY, started the hot dog business eight years ago after previously working with dry wall. He's there at 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. He said two years ago sales began dropping off and he tried anything to bring money in. "I use to come here at 5 a.m. and set up with coffee and breakfast for the commuters, but I realized I should just stick to hot dogs," he said.
While hot dogs are the main draw (apparent by pictures of dancing hot dogs adorning his red and white truck) the most popular items are his steak and cheese wedge with onions for $6. and chilidogs for $2.50 each. "People tell me I have the best chili dogs in Greenwich," Robbie said. "One day someone walked down to my lot with a chili dog in his hand, threw it in my garbage and ordered one from me."
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