When Sam Nazarian's company SBE opens a new spot in town, I'm all eyes and ears . . . and tongue. Papaya King (1645 Wilcox Ave., 323-871-8799) — New York's hot dog guru for 79 years — opens to the public at 11 a.m. today. Though we can't get an inside peek until later this morning — stay tuned for photos — let's get to know it from the outside. Learn eight exciting facts about it now, and then head to what's sure to be the most buzzed about eatery in Hollywood.

  1. Papaya King was founded in New York by Gus Poulos and has been around since 1932.
  2. It was the first restaurant to fuse fruity drinks like papaya with sausages.
  3. There are three other locations, two in New York and one in New Jersey.
  4. The menu has six classic combos to choose from: the original (two franks with kraut, NY onions, relish, and papaya drink); chili combo (two franks with chili and papaya juice); king combo (two franks with kraut, NY onions, relish, papaya drink, and curly fries); jumbo sausage (all-beef sausage with sautéed onions and peppers, papaya drink, and curly fries); the 1932 (frank with kraut, NY onions, relish, papaya drink, and curly fries); and grand slam (two specialty franks or three classic franks, papaya drink, and curly fries).
  5. Besides papaya, other tropical drinks are mango, orange, grape, coconut champagne, piña colada, strawberry fields, and banana daiquiri.
  6. There are also fresh smoothies like papaya pride and pineapple surprise and fresh-squeezed juices like grapefruit and apple.
  7. Side orders you can get are curly fries with cheese, sweet potato fries, and NYC knish.
  8. Papaya King is on Twitter @PapayaKingLA.