Review: 30356 Hot Dog Stand
Posted by CapnRex101,30356 Hot Dog Stand is currently available with the purchase of LEGO City sets in brand stores and on shop.LEGO.com in the UK and Europe.
Polybags often include stalls selling balloons, flowers or food and such models are useful as they can fit into just about any scene, perhaps beside a Modular Building or another City set.
Minifigure
A chef attends the hot dog stand, wearing a toque blanche with a white jacket. I like the contrasting red neckerchief and his rotund figure certainly suits someone who works in such close proximity to hot dogs! This is probably the most suitable design available for a polybag, although an apron like that seen on the Hot Dog Man from Series 17 of the Collectable Minifigures would have been even better in my opinion.
Nevertheless, I like the moustachioed head which has only appeared in six previous sets so remains fairly rare. The chef comes with some dark bluish grey tongs, represented by a claw element, as well as a hot dog bun and a sausage. These accessories are very useful and you could also use the hot dog found on top of the awning, although that one is primarily intended to catch the attention of potential customers.
The Completed Model
Stalls have been vastly oversized in a number of past polybags but I think this hot dog cart looks great beside the chef. It reminds me of the models from 60097 City Square and 60134 Fun at the Park - City People Pack, although this version includes a higher level of detail and a large awning to protect the figure from the sun. The green bin feels somewhat superfluous but more scenery is always welcome in a set of this size.
There is a handle at the rear so the chef can push the cart along and it rolls on four wheels, the most notable of which are the spoked wheels at the front. These elements are incredibly useful and have only featured in four sets before now, usually forming part of a wheelchair. A simple grille allows the chef to cook the sausages and there are ketchup and mustard dispensers at the end, as always.
The most unusual aspect of this model is the awning fitted to the side. I think it looks good when viewed from the right hand side, as shown in the images above, but turning the cart around reveals a Technic mechanism which looks odd to me. However, the colour scheme remains consistent and the entire awning rotates as the cart rolls back and forth, facilitated by friction between a tan gear and one of the rear tyres. This works well and I am impressed that the designer was able to include a function in such a small model.
Overall
This is a fun little polybag. The stall is generously sized for a free item and I like its overall appearance, although the offset awning does look strange from certain angles. Nevertheless, the rotating function is excellent and I think white, red and yellow is an ideal colour scheme for a hot dog stand. The model is also remarkably detailed, including many of the features one would expect to find on this kind of vehicle in reality.
I would therefore have no hesitation in recommending this set, even if you are only interested in some of the rare and interesting pieces it contains. It is a great bonus when purchasing a City set within the next few weeks, on par with similar past offerings such as the excellent 40140 Flower Cart. Hopefully this polybag will soon be available around the world.
I hope you have found this review informative. Let us know by liking this article and share your thoughts on the set in the comments below.
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19 comments on this article
Roll the cart along the table and see what happens to the awning, thanks to the Technic mechanism: it rotates, which I thought was pretty cool.
This set is free from 27 december 2017 -> 4 march 2018. Does this mean 30358 and 40290 will not be available here?
I like this one well done lego, feel like goin to get one in Manchester arndale lol.
I also like the road works and dragster polybags too..
I went lego store before Christmas and bought my daughter tic tac toe
(lego friends) for £3, she loves it..
This is very cute! Fingers crossed that the US will be getting a similar promotion...
When it come to street vendors and food trucks it seems like LEGO relies too heavily on minifigures dressed like chefs from fancy French restaurants. I’d love to see a little more variety.
Not available in LEGO.com Germany at the moment.
Aamof, the set is not even in the inventory, at least the search for the set number leads to nothing.
We found this polybag at two local Toronto Walmarts for $4.86 CDN. Great if you don't have other purchases planned.
I'm glad there's no relish. Yuck.
I'll gladly take that amazing little thing than the horrid drag racer that North America gets.
I am going to buy the cheapest LEGO city police set which is around $7 to get the awesome hot dog bun pcs (x2) in this poly bag.
I hope this promotion continues into January! I'm going for the aniversery set promotion and may have to pick up something City related just for this!
I bought this lovely set with 30357 approx. 2 weeks ago at Walmart, in Calgary, AB (like OurObsession in Toronto).
Do any of you guys know where we could this polybag here in the US? Maybe LEGOLAND has some.
I hope to get this on a LEGO.com order by January or other month along with the road repair crew.
Hmprf.. I had to put in an order with a City set just to secure one of these beauties. -Only three days after the last order placed.. 2018 is already start to get expensive..
I found some today at the plateau Walmart in Gatineau, QC
I found these yesterday at Walmart(Toronto).
Just for info, UK-MK is out of stock of this set (as of Saturday 30 Dec), and is giving away the Scarif Stormtrooper instead!
My wife and kids picked up one of these in Denmark for me as we don't get them in the US. Yay!