Pink’s Hot Dogs is headed to Tokyo with fluffy soufflé pancake company

Los Angeles’s iconic Pink’s Hot Dogs, a local favorite for more than half a century, is setting up shop in Japan.

The chili dog vendor, which has been at the corner of La Brea and Melrose for 80 years, is set to open its first location in Japan at the end of this year.

It has signed a deal with the Japanese restaurant group, Sunpark, to open a Tokyo branch by the end of this year and then expand in the country.

Sunpark manages a variety of restaurant chains, including Takagi Coffee, which is famous for its fluffy soufflé pancakes and has an outlet in Beverly Grove.

The family-owned Pink’s opened as a push cart in 1939, selling 10-cent dogs during the Great Depression.

Its menu features 43 types of hot dogs, many named after famous L.A. figures, including the Drew’s News Dog, Drew Barrymore’s favorite, and the Back-to-Back Dog, dedicated to Shohei Ohtani.

In the U.S., Pink’s has six locations in Los Angeles and two around Las Vegas, usually inside amusement parks and other venues.

Richard Pink, a co-owner of Pink’s, said 50-60% of its customers during the summer are Japanese. He said they come to the restaurant after reading about it online, seeing it on social media or just hearing about it through word of mouth.

“We have so many Japanese customers coming to Pink’s and they hear about it, and many of them come with their suitcases, and they’re either coming from the airport or going to the airport,” he said. “They stop off at Pink’s and want to try a chili dog. It’s fascinating.”

The menu in Japan will feature 15 hot dogs, burgers, and sides. It will have Japan-only toppings local flavors.

Pink’s opened its first South Korea location in Seoul in November.

The restaurant opened its first international store in the Philippines in 2016, and has since opened two more in the country. All international locations are run by local operators.

Pink said the company has has focused on expanding internationally rather than nationally because it’s easier to stand out and make a profit in places where hot dogs aren’t a common sight.

“It will be unique and different in Japan, and hopefully, they like hot dogs as much as Americans do, and they like the authenticity of Pink’s, the history, the Hollywood connection,” he said. “And so for all those reasons we felt very confident that this was the right move to make.”

In the next three years, Pink said he expects five to ten more stores to open in Japan. For the restaurant’s next venture, he said he’s eyeing Australia, Singapore and Mexico.

Last year, another L.A. staple, Randy’s Donuts, opened its first Japan location in Tokyo, and has multiple locations that sell classic American donuts and Japan exclusives.