It may sound weird, but our obsession with the tasty small fish had grown since our shirasu-don lunch earlier on Enoshima Island. So, it was only natural that the signboard for the hotdogs featuring the regional specialty would draw our attention.

This is only one example of all the shirasu-related food items you can find in both Enoshima and Kamakura, but it was one I was ready to try. I went for the “Kamakura Dog,” the flagship whitebait hot dog for 500 yen (about $4.50).

I watched one of the employees prepare my food and was surprised when the hot dog bun went into deep-fryer.

“This neither a bun nor bread,” she said to me. “We make our dog with corndog dough made from fish paste and cheese.”

After the dough was deep-fried, it was brushed with brown soy-sauce butter, sprinkled with plenty of nori seaweed and finally, heaps of whitebait.

Since each dog is made fresh, I had to wait nearly 10 minutes before the employee handed me my warm delicacy.

The taste was completely new to me.

When I bit in, the extremely rich flavor of brown soy sauce butter, chewy cheese and soy sauce spread in my mouth. The crispy texture of loaded whitebait and seaweed stood out in the corndog made from fish paste. The tad bit salty and bitter whitebait went along nicely with the extremely rich flavor of cheese-and-fish-based dough.

It was tasty!

The complex medley of flavors packed into this dog made both the price and wait worthwhile to me. A complete departure from the typical American hot dog, the Kamakura Dog offers a great chance to enjoy whitebait in a unique way.

When you visit Daibutsu, be sure to drop by Kamakura Dog for another taste of the local flavor.

Kamakura Dog Hours:11 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Location: 1-16-25 Hase, Kamakura City, Kanagawa Pref.