Mad Dogs Hot Dogs — Restaurant in Florida

I recently called ahead to order a to-go meal from Mad Dog Hot Dog in Venice, Florida. It was my first time dining at this spot, and though I wasn't familiar with the menu, the lady who took my call was patient and friendly despite them being busy. She went over the options with me to help me understand how to order vegan options. She didn't provide me with a total, but she mentioned it would take about 20 minutes, which was no problem for me. I headed to the location, which was a small spot with minimal outdoor seating, and noticed that the drive-through on both sides seemed to be popular.

Upon arriving, I waited for about 10-15 minutes or so, which totaled to about 30-40 minutes from the time I placed my order. The wait wasn't too bad considering the circumstances (probably too long if i ate there). Nevertheless, I was glad to see that they offered vegan options, including beyond meat sausage as an alternative to soy dogs. However, the rest of the options were limited as they were tofu/soy-based, and I try to avoid consuming too much soy. I would have loved to try the chili cheese fries, but unfortunately, they were also soy-based. On the positive side, they did offer sweet potato fries as an alternative.

I ended up ordering the Po' boy and the Drago, as well as two Works hot dogs. I requested one of them to be without onions, but unfortunately, it wasn't labeled, so we had to figure it out when we ate it. Despite that, the food was tasty, fresh, and came in generous portions with big buns! I appreciate the concept of offering vegan options and the flexibility to substitute ingredients in most of their menu items to make them vegan.

One area that could use improvement was the efficiency of orders in and out. It seemed like the staff was overwhelmed with the volume of orders, which caused some delays. They could benefit from some streamlining there. However, I would still go back to Mad Dog Hot Dog and try different dogs, as they have a good concept. Overall, I enjoyed my meal and appreciated the efforts they made to accommodate vegan diners. It's nice to have a place with vegan options in an area with limited choices. I aint mad :) so keep up the good work Mad...

You know what I've been thinking about my experience here. We had vacationed in Venice a couple years in a row and as vegetarians we really loved Mad Dogs and appreciated the options. The food was really good and it was so nice to have vegetarian hotdogs and chili. However, the last time we went there the lady working there made it much less of a happy experience. I was ordering some sort of chili dish- either a chili dog or chili cheese fries, I can't remember which. She told me that if she let me order that it would use up too much of the vegetarian chili and she wouldn't do that so that others could still have it to. BUT IT WAS A MENU ITEM. I was there and ordering the food. She didn't even offer me any other options- it was like she didn't even want me to have any of the chili, like I was not worthy or something. I did end up getting a little bit of chili on something that "took less chili" after asking myself if I was "allowed" to order it on something else. I think it just really ruined the whole experience. This is years later but it is sadly a memory that I still think about and really all I can see now when I think about Mad Dogs which used to be a happy...

After living in Englewood, Fl for 2.5 years, we finally decided to try Mad Dogs hot dogs. We were not disappointed. Coming from New Haven, Ct. where hot dogs are very popular, these hot dogs were delicious. Hot and fresh. The french fries were hot and plentiful. The soda was ice cold. The prices were more than fair. They feature family packs. 6, 8 or 10 hot dogs and fries combinations to save you money. The service was 100% friendly. We will come back again and again. I love this place.

This is our second review. Yesterday March 27, 2014, we drove the 14 short miles from our home in Englewood for our second visit in 2 weeks to Mad Dogs. My wife of 59 years just had a birthday March 26th. Wanting to take her out to a fine Restaurant, she said, take me to Mad Dogs for hot dogs. I mentioned 3 expense Restaurants in the area, but she wanted a hot dog from Mad Dogs and so did I. We love this place. The young couple from New York that run it are customer oriented and friendly. Next week we are returning for the mild Italian sausage and peppers sub on Italian bread....