Best Hot Dogs Mel’s Hot Dogs Finalists:Gigglewaters, Coney Island Hot Dogs Credit: Photo via Mel's Hot Dogs/Facebook

Tampa Bay has a lot of happy hours, but until now none of them were specifically geared towards sophisticated afterwork crowds who enjoy an encased meat with their beer.

Starting today, East Tampa culinary institution Mel’s Hot Dogs is launching a new happy hour, where diners can either score a free beer or a free scoop of ice cream with the purchase of any hot dog basket.

The promotion will run Monday-Friday, from 3 p.m.-7 p.m., and is good for any of their 15 hot dogs, including their famous Mighty Mel dogs, chili dogs, bagel dogs, or the popular new dog Rodeo Dog (diced onion rings, bacon, barbecue sauce and cheddar cheese).

Mel’s also recently started offering a “Party Pack” that feeds 12 (or one ambitious go-getter) featuring 12 hot dogs, a quart of beans, a quart of coleslaw, chips and 12 cookies for $95.99.

The 53-year-old hot Tampa dog joint started offering ice cream and a wider selection of bottled beers and seltzers in 2023, after founder Mel Lohn sold the establishment to longtime customer Pam Szabo and her brothers.

Mel’s, which won a Best of The Bay 2024 reader’s poll for “Best Hot Dogs,” is located at 4136 E Busch Blvd., at the southeastern corner of the Busch Gardens parking lot, and is open seven days a week, from 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

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This article appears in Mar 13-19, 2025.