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The Costco hot dog and soda combo (Costco item number 138158, $1.50) is an icon, right up there with the McDonald's cheeseburger and Campbell's chicken soup.

Despite its iconic status, the Costco hot dog experience varies around the country. Most Costcos sell the Hebrew National hot dog, and a few use Best Kosher brand. One warehouse, the Chicago Lincoln Park location, serves Vienna beef hot dogs. Not coincidentally, the Vienna beef headquarters is right next door.

The hot dog is not the healthiest meal you can have. You'll pick up 552 calories, 288 of them from fat. There's enough sodium (1800 mg) in it to satisfy three quarters of your daily needs, and don't expect to get any essential vitamins from this meal.

You can substitute a sausage for a hot dog, if that fits your taste. Most of the country favors the all-beef hot dog over the sausage by about a 2 to 1 margin. In the West, you can get the polish sausage, but in the Northeast you are served a polish sausage with onions and peppers.

In 2007, Costco sold about 75.6 million of these hot dog soda combos, for $1.50 each. And, they've been selling them for that price since 1985.