"Sumo Dog," the newest addition to The Canopy shopping center in Indio, is part of a series of distinctive restaurants, offering a reinvented American hot dog experience by infusing Japanese elements. Jeffrey Lunak, the visionary behind the restaurant, brings his extensive experience as a veteran of "Iron Chef" Masaharu Morimoto's Restaurant Group.
"For the city, it's a great win to have great food. We love different styles of hot dogs out here, and you get to grow something from the very beginning from a festival out to now a permanent location," Andrew McDuffie, treasurer of the Greater Coachella Valley Chamber of Commerce (GCVCC), told NBC News Palm Springs.
Sumo Dog began as a pop-up at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. The newest Coachella Valley location is its 15th location in the U.S. and the third restaurant to open in The Canopy shopping center.
According to the City of Indio, the American-Japanese hot dog fusion includes unique menu items, such as the "Miso Katsu" dog, consisting of a katsu-fried hot dog topped with miso mustard, coleslaw, tonkatsu sauce, mayo, furikake and scallions.
Sumo dog staff says they are looking to bring a sense of fun into the shopping center and into the community.
“Number one, the best hot dog that they’ve ever had is the simplest goal. And then, an environment that’s kind of conducive to -- our mantra is 'all things to all people.' So all walks of life, all age groups, all demographics, coming here, having fun, listening to some good music and eating some great food,” Lunak told NBC News Palm Springs.
Other Sumo Dog locations are inside sports arenas, like Yankee Stadium, SoFi Stadium and the Golden 1 Center, and Lunak is hoping to re-create the same type of feeling in this new location inside The Canopy.