The story
Mel Lohn, originally from Chicago, toured Florida in the early 1970s with his rock and roll band in a hollowed-out school bus. Late one night in Tampa he wanted a Chicago-style hot dog and found no hot dog stands in the city. He opened his own on July 3, 1973, at the corner of 42nd Street and Busch Boulevard.
The shop, at 4136 E Busch Blvd just east of Busch Gardens, kept a menu much like its original one. Its walls and columns are covered with newspaper articles, plaques and old photos, and Mel and his wife Virginia ran it as a family business. After 50 years Mel sold it, and the Szabo family, customers across four generations, took over on September 6, 2023.
What's There Now
It is still Mel's Hot Dogs, now run by the Szabo family.
Everything that was here
- 1973–present · still open
Mel's Hot DogsRestaurant
A Chicago musician touring Florida in a hollowed-out school bus couldn't find a hot dog in Tampa, so he opened a stand in 1973.
See the map in 1974 →
Did you know?
Nearby history
Busch Gardens Tampa (original 1959 Bird Gardens)
Tower Drive-In
Lowry Park Zoo and Tampa Fairyland
J.C. Newman Cigar Company
Columbia Restaurant
Circulo Cubano de Tampa (Cuban Club)
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