Well, it's just that I tried it but eat($item[optimal dog]) doesn't work because $item[optimal dog] doesn't exist. IIRC, negative items like the dogs and Crimbo food aren't made in to $item[]s, right? Always wondered why that was.
This Feature Request might interest you. I'm not sure if it will eventually lead to negative items being available in ASH, but it does point out a hitch in that idea:
Peche a la Frog: desc_item.php?whichitem=-1_food
As Jus Gezund Heit: desc_item.php?whichitem=-2_food
Bouillabaise Coucher Avec Moi: desc_item.php?whichitem=-3_food
Petite Porter: desc_item.php?whichitem=-1_booze
Scrawny Stout: desc_item.php?whichitem=-2_booze
Infinitesimal IPA: desc_item.php?whichitem=-3_booze
So, which ones are items -1, -2, and -3, respectively?
The other hitch is that if I put those in, there will immediately be requests (Theraze, I am looking at you) to put in sushi as negative pseudo-items as well - even though KoL itself has no publicized item descriptions for them. And I don't want to simply make up numbers.
If you want the "eat" command to consider sushi, make a new Feature Request. As you point out, "make" works.
If you want a way to eat hot dogs or sushi via eat(), well, I expect not, when you can simply use cli_execute( "eat optimal dog" ).