The Dew Drop Inn introduced Mobile to the hot dog 98 years ago. Since the restaurant opened in 1924, many SHC students and Mobile residents have visited the establishment.

The menu features American cuisine. Historically, the Dew Drop Inn is the oldest restaurant in Mobile, loacted on Old Shell Road. The restaurant became widely popular amongst Mobile’s locals once the original Dew Drop hot dog recipe was perfected. 

Kenneth Hamlin is the current owner of the Dew Drop Inn. According to Hamlin, the founder Mr. Whitney and his wife are responsible for the original Dew Drop hot dog. While the pink hot dog was the first item on the menu, the Dew Drop hamburger was not far behind. Mr. Whitney’s original chili hot dog and hamburger recipes are still on the menu. According to the Southern Living magazine, some Mobilians even claim that Jimmy Buffett’s famous Cheesburger in Paradise song was inspired by the burgers from Dew Drop Inn.

Hamlin took over the business after his father. He is the fifth owner and has worked at the restaurant since he was a young child. Being the oldest restaurant in Mobile, many locals have been coming to the Dew Drop Inn for many years. “I’ve been coming to the Dew Drop for a while, I usually get the onion rings and a hot dog,” junior, Keegan Abell said. “Dew Drop is a great restaurant and a lot of us locals come here all the time.”

At this family-owned restaurant, you can see the Hamlin family sitting at a table watching a football game together. “The fact the Dew Drop has been here for generations that people just want to come back because their grandparents were here, and it’s just a tradition,” Hamlin said.

Hours for the Dew Drop Inn are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information about the Dew Drop Inn visit the restaurant’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DewDropInn.Mobile.AL. To watch the video story go to https://www.youtube.com/watchv=4nsl2j3DznA.