Less than a year since it opened, it appears that Kong Dog — a Korean-style corn dog joint — has closed its Washington Street outpost in Hoboken. Signage for the TikTok-famous chain first went up last fall at the former Zero Otto Uno location, and by March 2024, the fast-casual restaurant celebrated its grand opening. Over the past few weeks, however, the business has been notably vacant, and the 502 Washington Street commercial property is now available for lease. Read everything we know about the status of Kong Dog’s location in Hoboken, New Jersey.
The Details
Kong Dog is best known as a TikTok-famous Korean-style corndog joint. In the summer of 2023, the restaurant made its way to Newport Centre, located at 30 Mall Drive in Jersey City.
Read More: New Dispensary, Village Hoboken, Opening This Month on Washington Street
Kong Dog expanded to Hoboken in March 2024, taking over the former Zero Otto Uno space on Washington Street. It celebrated its official grand opening on Friday, March 8th, welcoming Hoboken locals to try its indulgent selection of corn dogs. Think: churro, ramen, and hot Cheetos crusts, filled with mozzarella, beef, chicken sausage, or plant-based sausage. All deep fried, of course.
Photo Credit: @r_mac9595
On September 19th, an eagle-eyed HG reader shared that the business had been vacant for weeks and that the exterior banner had been taken down. After a little digging, it turns out that the commercial property is currently available for lease, indicating that Kong Dog has moved out.
The Hoboken Girl has reached out to the Kong Dong team and will update this article with any additional comments.
See More: Rutt’s Hut in Clifton: Home of the Ripper Since 1928
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We’re OOO Till 1/6
Dear The Local Girl readers and friends,
2024 has felt both like 10 years and at the same time, three months. No matter how we feel about it, though, the chapter is closing — and before it does, we want to take a moment to express our deepest gratitude to you. It’s because of you that we are still able to do what we love to do: write, inquire, create community, and occasionally, share memes.
While each year presents its challenges (for us and many others), we remain true to our purpose: to shine a light on the local small-owned businesses, happenings in the area, news, people, organizations, and missions of all industries and backgrounds. We aim to uplift, inform, and encourage our readers to join us in celebrating how special our communities are — all while creating community.
Most media outlets continue to publish over the holidays, but we have taken the decisive stance to pause on our platforms + social media over the last few years. That means you will see a few pre-scheduled fun things go out this next week on social and the site, but that’s it. Our team is getting a full week off, and that includes our social team! We’re all taking a much-needed rest.
Before our OOOs officially go up, a few highlights + core memories from 2024 we're reflecting on:
- Growing our sister site, The Jersey Shore Girl, and launching our newest venture, The Bergen County Girl.
- Breaking down the beauty scene in Hoboken and determining that Hoboken IS the beauty capital of New Jersey (we think so at least — the stats don't lie).
- Covering all of the crazy and fun things that have happened in New Jersey: earthquakes, solar eclipses, sonic booms, PATH closures, celebrity lookalike contests, Jeremy Allen White's coffee tour of Hoboken (IYKYK). The list, truly, goes on.
- Hosted a Hoboken Girl Happy Hour at The Waiting Room in Hoboken to kick off our 2024 Week of Wellness and collect period supplies for our annual drive with The Flow Initiative (for which we collected 30K+(!!) supplies.
- Raised thousands of dollars for local non-profits through our Hoboken Girl Breakfast Sandwich at Alessio's in Hoboken and Jersey City.
- Donated to local animal shelters with our annual Puppy Bowl.
- Published over 2,500 new articles, posted over 3,500 new social media posts, and so much more.
Our out-of-office messages are up, our DMs will have an auto-reply, and we’ll be a bit off the grid this next week. On Monday, January 6th we’ll be back with regular content. You’re welcome to send us tips at any time to [email protected] + @thehobokengirl on Instagram, but they’ll be read upon our return.
Hopefully, this is also the sign you need to know that it’s okay to take a break. It’s so important to recharge. We are all burnt out. Watch that reality show, read that book, clean that closet — whatever makes you feel refreshed, rejuvenated, and ready to start 2025 on a positive note.
We want you to know how much we appreciate every DM, comment, share, like, read, and email. It’s what keeps us going. Have a wonderful, safe, and healthy holiday! We'll see you in 2025.
Happy holidays to you and yours, from ours <3
xo, Jen + The Local Girl Team
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