It takes a talented chef with great humility to tackle the challenge of creating haute hot dogs — that is, serving hot dogs decked out with more than drizzles of mustard and relish. Just such a guy is Anthony Piscioneri, executive chef of DC-3 (a hot dog eatery on Capitol Hill) and a sometime chef for other Matchbox Food Group restaurants, such as nearby Ted’s Bulletin.

Perhaps his California background — specifically San Francisco — has helped to spark his creative genes, letting him come up with such unusual dogs as the bacon-wrapped Tuscan Sonoran and the falafel-garnished California Left-Winger. He agrees: “A lot of my culture comes from San Francisco,” he says. “I fished off Fisherman’s Wharf. So my culinary leanings are California-influenced.” That fishing might also explain his adult passion for cooking with seafood.