Ellisburg native goes from hardware to award-winning hot dogs

Jul. 1—PORTLAND, Maine — Ellisburg native Allison B. Stevens has something to celebrate this Fourth of July — a day Americans will consume an estimated 150 million hot dogs, according to the National Hog Dog and Sausage Council.

On Thursday, the Watertown Daily Times published a wire story from Bloomberg listing "The 13 best hot dogs in the U.S." One of those hot dogs can be found at The Thirsty Pig, 37 Exchange St., Portland, Maine. In 2018, Bon Appetit named Portland the top food city in the U.S.

The Thirsty Pig in the food-competitive city is owned by Ms. Stevens, the daughter of Sarah J. "Sally" Stevens and the late Richard B. Stevens. Mr. Stevens died in 2007 at the age of 57. He was president of O.D. Greene Ace Hardware in Adams and Sackets Harbor.

"I grew up on a farm in Ellisburg and my parents owned O.D. Greene, so I grew up in business," Ms. Stevens said Thursday in a phone interview. "It's kind of in my DNA, but really it's just my passion for business and local food."

Ms. Stevens recalled working at customer appreciation days at O.D. Greene sites, grilling up hot dogs.

Mrs. Stevens, her mom, added: "We've always cooked a lot and had lots of party and friends' gatherings, where we all cooked and so forth over the years."

At the Thirsty Pig, there are several hot dog dishes, including the Spicy McFirepants, named after Ms. Stevens. Bloomberg writer Adam Reiner singled it out as a top dog and called it "a nod to the fiery personality of the restaurant's owner."

"It's been a top seller for years, and it makes people laugh," Ms. Stevens said.

Mr. Reiner's description of Spicy McFirepants: "It's topped with a housemade hot relish, banana peppers, pickled jalapenos and jalapeno cream cheese."

"You've got to cool it down a little bit somewhere in there," Ms. Stevens said of the cream cheese addition.

Ms. Stevens said the hot dog dishes at The Thirsty Pig are named after workers at the restaurant. Other selections include Spicy Pirate, Granddaddy Perp and Kind of a Big Dill.

Ms. Stevens said she doesn't mind being called Spicy McFirepants.

"It's funny," she said. "It's better than the pig lady. I get that a lot too."

Her husband, David B. Nowers, helps her run the restaurant. They were wed in June 2017.

"I've been open for 11 years here in Portland's Old Port, which is like the busiest section of Portland," Ms. Stevens said. "It's my name, my concept. I just wanted a small restaurant that paired really well with good beer. But I have 130 seats, though."

The Old Port section, on the southeastern side of Portland, features cobblestone streets, 19th-century brick buildings and fishing piers.

Ms. Stevens is involved in the community and is founder of Portland Beer Week, an 11-day festival held in June that started in 2011.

The Spicy McFirepants hot dog, Ms. Stevens said, goes well with "a hazy New England IPA" like The Substance, a product of Bissell Brothers Brewing Co., Portland.

The hot dogs she uses, which she described as Hoffman-like, are made by Shields Provisions, Kennebunk.

Ms. Stevens attended South Jefferson Central School until 10th grade, and then switched to Gould Academy for grades 11 and 12, and graduated from the academy in 1999. Gould Academy is a private school located in Bethel, Maine. At age 16, she became proprietor of Al's Coffee Cafe in Sackets Harbor. She said she made enough money with Al's for her Gould Academy tuition, room and board for two years.

She then attended the College of Charleston in South Carolina, and earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology.

In 2020, Ms. Stevens told The GAzette, a publication of Gould Academy: "I think I have a filter missing! I've never been shy or afraid of being bold. My food history and my beer history have set me up. Through miracles? Good luck? I don't know, but here I am."

Ms. Stevens and her husband live on Peaks Island in Casco Bay.

"We commute by boat every day, by ferry. And we walk to work," she said.

On Thursday, she anticipated another busy weekend, especially with the recent hot dog recognition.

"I just ordered 500 in today," she said.