The Flying Wienie

The Italian Beef was as good as most in Chicago. They don’t have mozzarella or provolone, only melted cheddar. That’s why I only gave 3 stars but it was good enough for a four.

$ 18 for a grilled chicken sandwich and fries, a chili cheese dog and fries and 2 small sodas! That is beyond ridiculous. The wait was really long and the food sucked. My daughter wouldn’t even touch her fries. They were unseasoned and tasted liked cardboard. I’ve had way better hot dogs at Parlor City (the old Tastee Freeze on 42^nd St.) I won’t be back. Chili was awful. If you want some amazing home made fries check out Wing Stop. Now those are delicious!

Service was quick and friendly. Thats where the enjoyment of my trip ended. I had the Italian and a chili cheese hotdog. Cheese was from a can blah, chili seemed like it was also from some sort of a can. Just very bland. The Italian I orded with no pepers or onions ro see how good the meat quality was, also soaked in the juices or dipped I think he called it. Well it was definitely soaked but the meat was grayish bland again and the whole sandwich tasted like a wet peppercorn. Was always told it was a place you had to try wasn’t impressed is all. Don’t recommend.

In their defense i came here for an italian beef 2 days after a chicago trip. So i got on without the giardinaro and complained and he just threw a giant pile atop. I thought the price was reasonable service was ok and even the sandwich and fries were good. Just nothing mind blowing

As a kid I always went here. They have the best hot dogs you could ever get in your life. I’m not kidding when I say that this place may be my favorite.
I’m glad that they stayed open after the flood because I would have just died.
My favorite thing to get is the Chicago style doge and I hold the tomatoes and jalapeño. There fries are amazing as well and they give you a lot of they. They also give you free refills on drinks.
I also love the originality of the decorations and how it shows that there is a lot of history in this place.
Definitely recommend. Just look for the big wiener.

I use to go there religiously. At least two to three times a week. Then I saw a few things that made my stomach lurch. First… An employee got to the bathroom before me so I waited. He took a piss and walked out wiping his fingers on his apron and I heard the toilet flush, but he never turned the sink on to wash his hands. So I can imagine what he was wiping on his apron. Second… I ordered a double play (which is two hot dogs) and I was standing over where you wait for your food and this Mexican woman that was fixing the meals was walking around with two hot dogs between her fingers (like they were a couple cigarettes). No plastic gloves on, just walking around with MY hot dogs in between her fingers as she gets the buns ready. I’ve seen them use tongs all the other times, but this grubby woman carries them around between her fingers while does other things. I didn’t bother to tell John (the owner) because it was too much for me to handle for one day. I just threw them away and walked out and haven’t been back there since. I can imagine the other unclean things they do there that I don’t see and it makes me sick to think about what I have eaten in there over the years. The fresh cut fries and the Chicago dogs were very tasty, but not worth what goes on around the food. I like John and I feel bad for him, but he has to have seen these things go on and he needs to get a handle on it before someone gets sick.

I love this place. The decorations are awesome, and there’s an airplane on top of the building! The food is how you would expect it. Don’t come here for fine cuisine, come here for a hot dog!
They also have a sit down pacman.
Great staff. Fast service. Eclectic atmosphere. Loved it!

What a dive. I heard good things about this place. Waited for 39 minutes for my small order yet people after us was able to eat and leave. If I was on a lunch break I would have been late. Stay away from this place

Chicago dogs!!! It’s a Cedar Rapids staple eatery. Chicago dogs!!! It has an airplane on top of the restaurant. Chicago dogs!!! They have sit down pacman.

While this place claims to be a «Chicago» institution for Italian Beef, Dogs and Gyros, anyone who has had the real thing knows this pales in comparison. In addition, we were served gyro meat that was old, brown and crunchy instead of them cutting one layer from yesterday’s gyros to get to fresh meat. The Italian Beef was passable, but not what you get at a typical place. All in all, the food was substandard at best and cost $ 26 for three people. Closest place for real food of this type would be Zio’s or Sparti’s in Iowa City for which I would gladly pay up.

Iam not a small business basher at all, This is the first time I went in there, owner was rude, I asked what was on the chicago dog and just pointed to a flyer. Ordered my $ 7 dollar hot dog, drink and fries. The bread smelled, the hot dog was small, the fries were greasy and gross. The chick working there was rude I couldnt even make them smile. The place is dirty. I know its hard to be a small business owner doing all the work yourself, but i will never be back.
I think everything should try this place and maybe they will have a differant experience as I am used to good food clean places.
Hey it is fast food so i might be wrong.

Let me start off by saying that I really enjoy the food here. I think the man, who I assume is the owner is kind of a prick but maybe that is what he is going for. I have been helped by a couple other people there and they all seemed pretty nice. I usually get the Gyro or a couple Chicago Dogs. — 4 Stars
Last time I was there there was a girl behind the counter who coughed and yawned every few seconds. I wasn’t the only one who noticed. A man standing next to me asked if I thought she was coughing on the food. I said that I hoped she wasn’t. When he left he said, «wish me luck.» I didn’t get sick and I still at my meal but it was unappetizing to see. — 2 Stars
I will continue being a customer despite the owner and his coughing employee mainly because I like the food. I wish you all luck.

Hadn’t been here for years. But I decided it was time to take the kids to enjoy it.
Time had obviously made me forget why I hadn’t been here in such a long time. What was it? Oh yeah, it was filthy and overpriced!
There is limited seating inside and when we arrived there were three empty tables. We picked the one that looked the cleanest and proceeded to be grossed out by the lack of cleaning that is done. From greasy looking walls and surfaces to dirty tables (not just the last group’s crumbs but that stuff that’s been stuck on a while) it certainly lives up to it’s rating as a dive.
The food for three of use was almost $ 30. That was three lunch specials. Nothing else. The gyro was ok, not the best I’ve ever had. The fries however, are worth coming back for. I love me those fries. They remind me of Mary Kay’s fries from the Hill at UNI back in the late 80’s. If I could go back in time, that’s where I would go!
My kids, 14 yr old twins, not impressed. They like the gyro well enough but prefer the ones they had at the Vernon Inn. The one that the table top pac-​man game was great and was mad I would pony up the cash for a game. But I was afraid it was more for eating on instead of playing.
If the Wienie can hold on another 8 years or so, I might forget again and be back. Then again, they might dust by then.

The more I go the more I hate it. Really costly for a hot dog, and not very good one at that. Greasy and really tacky kitsch on the inside. Sorry folks I bet you’re nice but you just don’t care anymore and it shows in the food.

Funky and eclectic atmosphere, friendly staff and fast service.
Chili dogs, Chicago dogs and their cheese fries were my ‘go-​to’ items when I ate here. Everything I sampled was tasty and well-​cooked. Prices were average and I really did enjoy the food.
Yes, ‘ate’ because I haven’t been back since I physically watched (wait…more like stared at in disbelief) an employee lick hot cheese from her bare hand and proceed to serve food. ICK! Note: If you haven’t dined here before, everything is cooked pretty much in front of you so you can see exactly what’s going on.
I always dined outside because inside the T.F.isn’t the cleanest.
As a staple in CR, I still recommend paying the restaurant a visit. Be sure to keep an eye on the employee prepping your food though.
Good for kids, larger groups/​parties and more.
You really don’t have anything to loose… except for (maybe) e-​coli in your cheese fries. ³⁄₅ stars because the establishment could really use a deep clean and some employee training about hygiene + food service.

Funky place… sandwiches. sausages…hot dogs.
I have never had a bad buy here.
I am glad… sooo glad they came back after the flood.
The look of the plane crashed into the roof! Priceless. I love it.
Bad location… no advertising. worth looking for… really!

Really neat restaurant, with an aviation theme inside and out. I had the 2 hotdog combo, both Chicago style. I ate there at about 2pm, so it was very easy to get a table.
The thing I don’t like about the Flying Wienie is its hours, it closes at 6 most days (I think). Which is much sooner than I like to get dinner.
Other than that, quick, tasty hotdog stand with a cool theme.

This place is a hole in the wall with OK food. It’s pretty dirty in there and covered in dust. I went there last week and paid $ 8 for a gyro that had a few strips of meat and 2 pounds of Tzatziki. $ 8 was the combo price, but they didn’t care and wouldn’t give me a refund for over paying… The gyro wasn’t that great and the pita had grease dripping out the bottom while I ate.
The guy behind the counter has the personality of a feral cat.
I won’t be back for a while. If you want to over pay for your lunch, sit in filth, and be treated like garbage, you will love it here!

I have eaten at the Flying Wienie many times, I usually get the Gyros. The fresh cut fries are greasy and some may consider them not fully cooked but that is a personal preference.
The dogs are wonderful and the atmosphere is really neat. I would give it 5 stars if there was more room for dine in sitting.

It’s a beautiful day in Cedar Rapids, all sunny and warm outside, a day that just begs for eating a hot dog, fries, and a Dr Pepper outside in the sun. Unfortunately, the Flying Wienie does not have enough tables outside to accommodate the droves of Cedar Rapidians who are craving meat on a bun. If they had more tables I think I’d give them that 5^th star.
The service is always great, the restaurant is appropriately scummy for such an establishment, and the food is delicious.
Oh! And no more hard buns. Now, just put some more tables outside (or chairs around some of the chair-​less tables) and we’d be all set!