Craig Reidt has been dipping corn dogs and cheese sticks since he was 6 years old.
But he’s 68 now — and he’s just about done.
Craig’s Hot Dog on a Stick, on the Redondo Beach Pier, will likely close Sept. 8, or when supplies run out, owner Reidt said during an interview this week at the store. He has about a week’s worth of supplies, Reidt said.
“It’s sad, but it’s time,” Reidt said while taking cash-only orders. “I’m worn out.”
There’s been a lack of foot traffic past the establishment in recent years, Reidt said. In the old days, he added, the beach would be packed — and the summer break rush would last through Labor Day.
But now, children go back to school in August, and the patronage seems to have fizzled out with that change.
“I can’t see us going past (Sept. 8),” Reidt said. “I want to get it cleared out (before next month ends).”
Although it’s been a long 62 years in the business, Reidt said, he’s never seen it as a job.
“It’s been great,” he said, “better than working for a living.”
The Redondo pier location, built in 1962, was the second store that Hot Dog on a Stick founder Dave Barham opened, Reidt said. The flagship store opened in 1946 in Santa Monica.
Barham and Reidt’s father, Bud Reidt, worked together at Northrop Grumman until the former decided to leave and open the now-famous restaurant.
Craig’s Hot Dog on a Stick is the only independently owned store, hence Reidt’s first name at the beginning. It’s able to stand that way, Reidt said, because Barham personally opened it and made the younger Reidt agree to never sell the rights to that spot.
Reidt would dip hot dogs and cheese sticks at muscle beach in Santa Monica as young as 6 years old, he said, but he officially became a Hot Dog on a Stick employee at 12 years old, making 50 cents an hour. It was 1968 — and Barham was ready to retire.
Although he was no longer behind the fryer, Barham continued to open new stores, which became common sights…
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