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The late columnist Ken Hoffman gave his name to these Houston dishes

The late columnist Ken Hoffman gave his name to these Houston dishes

Longtime columnist Ken Hoffman died suddenly Sunday morning. Many Houstonians will remember him for his offbeat columns about Houston life and his fast-food reviews. His legacy also includes dishes named after him.

In nearly 10 years, Hoffman has managed to get at least five dishes named after him at Houston establishments he loves. He worked at the Houston Post before moving to the Houston Chronicle, where he spent 22 years. He recently continued his career at CultureMap Houston.

Here are the foods that pay homage to Hoffman.

It all started with a burger at Demeris Bar-B-Q. Hoffman said he spent many late nights in Demeris’ test kitchen in 2008, where he worked with Yonny Demeris to develop the “Hoffy Burger.” The result was a half-pound Angus beef patty topped with Demeris’ secret barbecue sauce, thick-cut bacon, a big slice of cheddar cheese and a crispy fried onion ring on a sweet sourdough bun. Demeris Bar-B-Q is honoring Hoffman by offering the “Hoffy Burger” for half price, $7 this week only.

“I’d put this monster up against any burger in Houston,” Hoffman wrote.

In 2010, Hoffman was asked to create a New York-style hot dog for Astros games. It was part of a line of “extreme hot dogs” sold behind Section 154 at Minute Maid Park. It consisted of a beef sausage with sauerkraut and mustard on a bun. Shortly after, he asked the stadium to purchase Gulden’s Spicy Brown Mustard to ensure that his hot dog was topped with it instead of other brands of mustard. To Hoffman’s delight, they named the New York hot dog after him.

“It took me more than a year of hard work, constant desire and sleepless nights, but I finally achieved my greatest journalistic triumph,” Hoffman wrote, referring to Gulden’s spicy brown mustard on his namesake hot dog.

Hoffman said he experimented with different flavors and textures alongside Lawrence Shipley III until he found the perfect doughnut to put his name on. He settled on a cinnamon twist doughnut, dipped in chocolate glaze, but huge. It’s still on the menu today, known as the Hoffy Twist, or cinnamon twist doughnut with chocolate glaze.

“Total calories: About a billion. Fat grams: 10 to the 23rd power. Flavor: In the words of Buzz Lightyear, to infinity and beyond,” Hoffman wrote in his 2013 column.

Unlike the other creations to date, Hoffman had no hand in making the Chocolate Bar’s “Ken Hoffman is Completely Crazy” ice cream, which has since been renamed Winfield’s Chocolate Bar. It consists of a milk chocolate ice cream base with warm pieces of milk chocolate, dark chocolate and white chocolate candy, as well as almonds, cashews, pecans, hazelnuts, walnuts and macadamia nuts.

New York City delis feature the “Woody Allen,” a double-decker sandwich with pastrami and corned beef. Houston’s Kenny & Ziggy’s features the Ken Hoffman sandwich: a chicken salad with lettuce, tomato, and lots of bacon. In his 2014 column, Hoffman said he was the first low-level celebrity to have a sandwich named after him at Kenny & Ziggy’s. He carefully selected the sandwich’s ingredients. It can still be ordered off-menu today.

“I want to be remembered…between two slices of bread,” Hoffman wrote.