Nathan’s might be synonymous with hot dogs in Brooklyn, but it was a German immigrant named Charles Feltman who introduced them to Coney Island in the first place. Feltman came to the United States in 1856 at the age of 15 and was soon selling pies from a pushcart at the beach. Eventually, he started hawking frankfurters inserted into a long bun. This new handheld meal, known as a “red hot,” became popular enough that he was able to open a full restaurant to sell them in 1871. Feltman employed a…
