Is a Hot Dog a Sandwich? Tax, Dictionary, Hot Dog Council

Nova, our AI presenter, explains this in the video. This page gives you the written version.

The short answer

It depends on who you ask, and each answer was written for a different job.

• The tax office says yes. New York's Tax Bulletin ST-835 (2019) treats sandwiches as cold and hot sandwiches of every kind that are prepared and ready to eat. Its examples include hot dogs and sausages on buns and rolls. This is a sales-tax classification, not a court ruling, and it covers a hot dog sold ready to eat, not a packet of frankfurters.
• The dictionary says yes. In 2016, Merriam-Webster said a sandwich is two or more slices of bread, or a split roll, with a filling between. By that formula, a hot dog counts.
• The Hot Dog Council says no. In 2015 the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council called the hot dog a category of its own. Its case rests on history and naming, not shape. The hot dog was once called a Coney Island sandwich, and the council says the name changed.

Why they disagree

A tax office needs a rule for what gets taxed. A dictionary describes how people use words. A trade group promotes its product. That last point is our reading of why they differ, not a published finding.

A famous second opinion

Stephen Colbert asked Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg the question. Her answer, as widely reported: on his definition, yes. She had first made him define a sandwich.

What facts settle

Facts settle what each body said and when. They don't settle your definition, and that is the point. The hot dog never changes. Your definition does.

So, Team Sandwich or Team Hot Dog?

Sources

• New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, Tax Bulletin ST-835, "Sandwiches" (2019), tax.ny.gov
• Merriam-Webster's definition of "sandwich" and its 2016 statement, as reported by Mental Floss (1 June 2016)
• National Hot Dog & Sausage Council statement (2015), as reported by Laughing Squid (6 November 2015)
• Colbert and Ginsburg exchange, as reported by the ABA Journal and TODAY

Transcript

Nova: New York taxes hot dogs as sandwiches. Three answers, three reasons. Merriam-Webster: yes. Split roll plus filling. The Hot Dog Council: hard no. History, not shape. New York's not judging. It's taxing. Colbert asked Justice Ginsburg. Her answer: on his definition, yes. Shape, history, tax. Three questions, one word. Team Sandwich! Split roll, filling. Team Hot Dog! Earned its name. The hot dog never changes. Your definition does.

Nova and her voice are AI-generated.

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