Capitol Lunch

Been coming here for over 20 years and my father since the 60s. Never get tired of the delicious food and the best hot dog sauce in the world. Always great service and very fast lines. Will keep coming until I die

$ 2 for a hot dog with meat sauce, onions and mustard is a great price but it was okay. did its part as a quick snack while bf was getting a haircut at Blaze. cash only.

The best hot dogs around! Must try if you haven’t already! The Capppy Dogs have been my favorite ever since I can remember.

When you talk about the best hot dogs in Connecticut, you talk about Blackie’s and Capitol Lunch. The history at both places speaks for itself. Both places get their dogs from Martin Rosol. Blackies is known for their relish, a Capitol dog is best accompanied by mustard, onion, and their much discussed famous meat sauce. Capitol Lunch serves a hell of a product, its no coincidence that they’ve been in business since 1929. The onion rings are the best accompaniment to the «everything» dogs. Check out all the framed pictures on the walls and soak up the history.

Man what can I say except that the food is great. It’s sticks to the palate and it will fill you up big time!

I grew up in Newington and was in New Britain daily. This place was and continues to be a classic lunch spot. The menu is short and sweet but it all hits the spot. Being a dog place you can get these things in boxes to go; my family has been good for that for 30+ years… If your in NB you stop at Cappy and grab a box to go and bring them home to everyone.
This was the place my buds and I would leave lunch break in high school and maybe skip a class to go to, funny thing is if we brought the teacher back a dog shed look the other way!
Ok so enough memories and more review.
Hot dogs, burgers, fries, onion rings… Bout sums it up. On both hot dogs and burgers you can add toppings such as cheese, sour kraut, mustard, ketchup (add yourself), onions and relish, lastly but certainly most important MEAT SAUCE!!! This brown meat sauce is what makes the meals! Don’t ask just try, enjoy, then come like my review to thank me ;)
You can get your fries Cappy Style which are fries with cheese whiz style cheese and meat sauce… Heart attack on a plate but MEAT SAUCE.
the food is grilled on the same grill that’s been there for ever, which gives the food a yummy taste. I usually get one burger and one (ok I lied 2) dogs, along with a side of fries or sometimes o rings and I’ll eat it there. Doing it this way covers most the menu, so there’s a tip if you wanna try all the deliciousness.
I would normally take away stars for … Well call it cleanliness? However I won’t here becuase what some «outsiders» may come in and say is dirty or old; us from the area know that the old floors, and red countertops, the giant old green air conditioning unit, and all the other «things» about Capitol Lunch are what gives it character and makes it an experience. Just think, the same stool you may eat 2 dogs with everything at could be the same stool and lunch that someone’s grandfather ate on his lunch break from the factory many years ago…

I’ve lived in CT all my life and have tried many hot dog places, it’s not close, this place is by far the best of em all! Burgers are very good too! Best part is the great staff and how fast they move along the line. In and out not a long wait at all. Some places you have to plan 10 minutes just to place your order, capital is fast in all aspects. Crappy part of New Britain but well worth grabbing a dog.

Dare I say that I don’t understand what the buzz is about?
Correction, I don’t understand what the buzz is about over the food. I tried Cappy’s hot dogs with the special sauce and was not impressed. Yes it is cheap food but I don’t think it tastes out of the ordinary. Or maybe I’m just not enough of a connoisseur of hot dogs. Come here if you want old school grub like hot dogs, cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, etc. ridiculously fast and cheap.
But the place is a favorite among locals, has history, and a friendly staff. So for many people it probably brings back memories and nostalgia. I think these are the kind of traits that makes Capitol Lunch so loved in it’s community. It has a different kind of buzz — I’m down with that.

How could you not like this place. Best place for hot dogs! I have been going here since I was a young kid and I never had a bad experience. Every time I am in New Britain I try and stop there. If you aren’t from the area or familiar with the place there is parking on the street and its located across the street from a big plaza that has plenty of parking so you can just walk across the street. Their staff is always friendly!

Had lunch there for the umpteenth time with my wife the other day. What makes it a 4 star place you ask? Well, let’s start with reasonably priced Martin Rosol hot dogs that are made just a few blocks away. Cradle that in a fresh soft bun and cover it with your choice of toppings and you get a delicious hot dog that is hard to beat. One item topping that is interesting is the meat sauce. It’s not your typical chili sauce. I don’t even think it has chili in it. Just ground meat and a special brown sauce. Different for sure and I like it. You will have to decide that for yourself after you try it.
So expect this for two people… (4) hot dogs, (1) french fry, (1) onion ring, and one large soda for around $ 13. Please note that this is an old school place. Get in line, order your food, move down the line and pay for it (cash only). You get it handed to you on a tray. Go sit at a table and enjoy. BTW… they do offer a good hamberger or cheeseburger too. Also, if parking on the street don’t forget to pay the parking meter or else.

Hate the meatsauce no flavor. Gross
Tastes no different then a hotdog I cook at home. Pretty cheap dogs but nothing to write home about

The best hot dog, ever! Starting with Martin Rosol hot dogs, add the perfect ratio of mustard and chopped onions, topped off with their signature sauce, you will keep coming back for more. My only complaint is that I can’t eat as many in one sitting as I could as a kid.

Capital Lunch is an old school experience serving up old school grub, I’m just not entirely sure what makes it spectacular or out of the ordinary.
The hot dog was good if not exception, the cheeseburger with their «special sauce» was even better. I just wouldn’t go out of my way for this unless you were desperate.

In all these years, I’ve never stopped in.
Capitol Lunch is definitely a local thing, but I just don’t get it. Awful-​looking meat sauce was equally awful-​tasting.
I love the old-​style joints that haven’t changed in decades, but… ugh.

I grew up going to this place and it was always a special treat to go here. The hotdogs with sauce are the best but I also get a cheeseburger with sauce and ketchup and it is awesome… usually. But over the last few years the sauce isn’t as good and the overall experience is not the same. I miss the days of the group of family members that used to run it. Something has changed and it just isn’t as good. The nostalgia is there and the memories but the awesomeness is gone.

I understand and appreciate the history of this place but I don’t get it. The hotdogs themselves on a steamed bun are very good but the meat sauce must be an acquired taste. To me, the meat sauce tastes like canned dog food smells. This is not appealing to me and while I’d happily enjoy a plain dog from Capitol Lunch I will most definitely not be having that meat sauce again.

My husband brought me here so he could reminisce about his younger years while we were in CT visiting his family. This place has been around for a very long time. He had the hotdogs and said they were pretty much just as he remembered them from back then. I had a burger since I am not really into hot dogs and the burger was good but average.
The place looks like it hasn’t been renovated any time recently but I guess that’s part of the charm. Surprisingly there weren’t many people here on a Saturday afternoon so there were plenty of places to sit. The food was hot, quick, and cheap.
While it brought back memories for my husband I asked him if he wanted to return the next time we came back to visit and he said no. Perhaps his taste buds are more refined now.

Old school place, cash-​only. They serve a minimalist menu of onion rings, fries, burgers, and hot dogs with their famed special sauce. It’s basically a chili dog with mustard and topped with chopped onion. I don’t get what the hype is all about — the special sauce is actually pretty bland.
Having said that, it’s a fine place for lunch. Very inexpensive and ridiculously fast — the order was ready in literally about 3 seconds.

As far as hotdogs go you can’t beat Capitol lunch. Just walk in there ask for 2 «up» which means onion mustard and the perfect meat sauce for a hotdog! I have to hold back and only order 2… I could prob put down 5 of these yummy dogs!!!

Oh how quickly i have fallen in love! «High school teen, head over heels, it’s my first time — type love.»
I’ve passed by this place a number of times, never opting to step inside, till I took the time to check out it’s decent star rating on Unilocal,I’m game.
Me and my bf were first timers and stood in awe of the ridiculously, ridiculously, Wal Mart-​esque low pricing of the food!
We were ill prepared when ordering and when they asked what we wanted on our dogs and hamburgers (we ain’t picky!) we just blurted out «Everything!» We got a look of confusion, and then chose to specify exactly what we wanted on our dogs and burgers.
The burger, we opted for (mustard, ketchup, mayo, pickles, onions) + lettuce and tomtato — 60 cents more for these. The burger was fresh, good, and delish! Juices dripping down, on this manageable sized burger made this thing disappear within a few bites for us both! YUM!
But the hot dogs are what they’re really know for here. We got the dogs with mustard, onions, and the Famous Sauce. What’s the famous sauce? I have no idea, but its delicious! The dogs are perfectly sized and have a *SNAP* to ‘em! Before i moved here, Man v. Food told me Connecticut was the Hot Dog capitol, and if Capitol Lunch is the reason for that distinction i wholeheartedly agree! DOUBLE YUM.
This place has a lot of history, my bf and i sat down and were jokingly heckled by an older gentlemen telling us about back in the day when hot dogs were 15 cents, and how we stole the seat he’d been sitting in for 80 years. And another man chimed in telling us about how this was his last hurrah before going on a diet (not sure how that ended up working out) but still remembers a date taking him to Capitol when he was in his twenties.
A place with a friendly staff, great food, cheap food, and a long bit of history.
This place is a GEM.