WORCESTER, Mass. — There's so many places in Central Massachusetts to grab a hot dog, and a local group has made it their mission to find the best one you can get your hands on.

Saturday marked the 13th Annual Worcester Hot Dog Safari. People received scorecards and were asked to sample hot dogs from a number of local eateries.

This year, participants visited five different locations including Firehouse Dogs in Grafton, the Dogfather food truck, Mama Roux in Worcester, Decimation Deli in Worcester and the Dawg Alley. We made a stop by the Dogfather which was set up off of Main Street in West Boylston. 

For participants, it was a busy afternoon traveling across Central Massachusetts looking for the top dog.

Participants make judgements on a one to 10 score, judging toppings, dogs, buns and presentation. They say it's also nice to try something they haven't maybe had before. 

"Different hot dogs, you know," said Dan Barrell, a participant in this year's safari. "I'm usually just a mustard, relish type guy. But, it's something different."

"I'm super excited," said participant Sofia Varner. "I thought it was going to be really plain hot dogs and the nI started looking at the Instagram yesterday and realized there's a lot more variety and a lot more intensity to the hot dogs, which made me a lot more excited."

"I did it last year and all the places are different," said David Abdou, a participant. "They all have different styles, different toppings, which is a really interesting thing because you can try that at home."

Mama Roux in Worcester was declared the winner in 2022. The winner gets a trophy and is automatically entered in the final contestants the following year. Money raised will benefit the Worcester County Food Bank.