Special Guest at the Residence Inn at The Depot: Oscar Mayer Wienermobile

An Oscar Mayer Wienermobile rolled into the Cities this week, making stops in Cottage Grove, Oakdale, Maple Grove, St. Louis Park and the Hopkins Raspberry Festival's Marketplace Fair - but parking at the Residence Inn at The Depot for the evening downtime between events.

Cookout Christian and Sauerkraut Kat are the two "Hotdoggers" manning this Wienermobile, affectionately known as WEENR.

There are six Wienermobiles active today, assigned to specific regions. This one is for the central region of America.

Two staff (known as "Hotdoggers") are assigned to each Wienermobile, and they are truly immersed in their work. They attend Hotdog High to learn everything from Oscar Mayer history to how to drive the Wienermobile. 

Hotdoggers' speech is peppered with non-stop puns and they don't break character, right down to their names, which I learned first hand from Sauerkraut Kat and Cookout Christian. Per Kat, she refers to herself and Christian as “fresh meat” because they've only been on the road for one month (and have been "relishing" every second of their travels!). She immediately dubbed me "Ketchup Kim."

Kat hails from Lubbock, Texas, and graduated from the University of Texas in Austin with a Marketing Degree. Her favorite memory as a Hotdogger thus far is having a marching band surprise them by playing the Oscar Mayer jingle while they walked in a Firemen’s parade.

Christian is from the Philadelphia area and received his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Penn State. He said the best moment as a Hotdogger was getting to show his mom the Wienermobile and drive her around on his first week.

Keeping with the pun-heavy lingo, Christian and Katherine emerged from the "bun" roof.

Katherine Abraham a.k.a. Sauerkraut Kat at the helm.

Hotdoggers wear Oscar Mayer gear from head to toe - including their socks!

While Wienermobile Hotdoggers don't serve actual Oscar Mayer hotdogs, anyone who visits them will receive an iconic Weenie Whistle.

I scored some stickers and Weenie Whistles for the grandkids.  :D

There isn't a surface inside the Wienermobile that isn't decked out with wiener graphics.

Hotdoggers! Photo: Kraft Heinz Company