South Park Coney Island

Sitting on a grassy riverbank off Highway 285, this 42-foot hot-dog-shaped diner is one of the last surviving programmatic novelty buildings in Colorado — a bun-and-frank of stucco and steel, 18 tons of mid-century roadside weird, built in 1966 and still slinging elk dogs in the shadow of the Rockies. It started life on Denver's Colfax Avenue, bumped around for decades, and finally landed in tiny Bailey, where owner Jay Aigner resurrected it on July 4th, 2007. South Park ran with the gag in seasons 25–27 (it's Cartman's house, then "DikinBaus Hot Dogs"), which sent a new wave of pilgrims up the mountain — but the place had been hiding in plain sight for nearly sixty years before anyone in a Netflix queue noticed. As of summer 2026 a proper bar, the Boardwalk Tavern, is being bolted onto the compound with a July 1 opening, meaning you can now chase a spicy elk dog with a cold beer at a hot-dog building in the mountains. You didn't hear it from us.

The move: Drive the scenic Highway 285 corridor out of Denver on a weekend morning, roll up to the bun around noon when the crowds are thin, order the elk dog and a shake, then claim a picnic table by the river — and if you time it right for July or later, grab a drink next door at the Boardwalk Tavern before the drive home.

• 📍 Bailey
• 💸 Free
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Outdoors

Where: 10 Old Stagecoach Rd, Bailey, CO 80421

Hours: Added 2026-06-09 — confirm current hours before you go.

⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4

Verified 2026-06-09.