When we were preparing to leave Paradise Beach in Indialantic, Florida, we passed a birthday party that was in full celebration mode; complete with grilled hot dogs. The aroma seemed to linger and caused our mouths to begin to water. Out by the parking lot, we smelled the cooked food coming from the Paradise Treats food trailer. Needless to say, we were hungry!
As I prepared to pull out of the parking lot, Mandy was busy looking up places to eat and found a hot dog joint just down the road. Seemed like the perfect fit for our appetite. They had good reviews, an interesting mix of food and beverages, their pricing was reasonable, they were local and they were close; all pluses to us.
A few miles down the road at 890 N Miramar Ave, Indialantic, FL we pulled into Long Doggers. They had a drive through as well as outdoor indoor seating. Indoor seating was air-conditioned with plenty of natural light. We were there in the evening, clouds were overcast and there was a nice breeze, so we chose to sit outside. Even without the breeze, Long Doggers had plenty of circular and ceiling fans keeping the air moving. In addition, there was a huge flat screen TV mounted so that all outdoor patrons could see the football game that was playing.
It wasn’t long before our server, Melissa, greeted us. They place a card in a stand with their name on it and the years of service they have had with Long Doggers. I thought it was a nice touch. And it means that you know the name of your server. We ordered our default beverage, water, and perused the menu. We spotted some Maryland Style Crab Balls. They were served with Tsunami Sauce. We put our order in for those as we tried to decide what kind of hot dogs we wanted. The menu had a plethora of unique choices.
It was just Mandy and me. Our bottomless pits we call our sons were with friends. We decided to order three footlongs but to cut them in half so we could try different options. We settled on a High Life Dog, a Johnny O’ Dog and the Patty Melt Dog. We added a regular side of onion rings to the mix and topped it off with a couple of Imperial Lagers from Costa Rica.
It seemed like it was no time at all and our Maryland Style Crab Balls arrived. We tried them without the Tsunami sauce first. But, once we spread the sauce on, we devoured the rest smothered in sauce. Honestly, we used the sauce on everything. The Tsunami sauce is a welcome add to the food.
Shortly after we finished our Maryland Style Crab Balls our main dish arrived. As I stated, we asked them to cut them in half. The cut in half hot dogs came in 1/2 sized containers. I guess we were not the first to make such a request. They fit three halves of a foot long hot dog onto each plate along with a couple of wet naps. A basket of onion rings accompanied our order. They were huge. I am glad we did not order the large.
Mandy and I dove in. The hot dogs were unique in flavor and delicious. Surprisingly enough, I enjoyed the Johnny O the best. I would have guessed that I would have liked the High Life the best. But, I enjoyed the way the cole slaw and chili complemented each other. I, however, was not surprised that Mandy enjoyed the Patty Melt one the most. After the three halves of foot long hot dogs each, splitting the Maryland Style Crab Balls, a beer each and most of the onion rings (we had to take some home in a to go box), we were stuffed!
After a day at the beach with sun and surf, the hot unique hot dogs and cold beer hit the spot. I have no problem with recommending this establishment. The service was stellar. The food selection and taste was above average. The pricing was reasonable. The cleanliness was above average. All in all the place was above average. I would give them a 3.5 out of 5 stars. If we venture back to the area, I will likely stop in and patronize Long Doggers again.
