Critic's Review
I was at the Hard Rock and decided to pick up a hot dog on the way home. Howie's is well hidden in a little strip mall just north of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel.
The interior is very fast foodish with juvenile furniture that looks like it might be a 1st grade classroom. Behind the counter is Howie.
There were only 3 customers; 2 waiting for food and it took quite a while for a hot dog and a salad. Howie makes each order one at t a time himself. He asked me 3 times if my order was take out.
When I got home, I opened it up.
A wobbly dog and a smaller salad than I expected. The total for all of this was $8.99 including tax.
I had the salad later in the evening. This salad was unacceptable, as is. The peperoncini, if that's what it was, didn't look right. I added some ripe tomatoes and some peppers I had in the fridge; some green pepper for crunch. There wasn't much feta; the salad was lame.
The dog didn't look much like the staged photo that Rebecca posted in Urbanspoon; there was only 1 sport pepper. 1/2 tomato slice and the pickle was a bad slice; too short and too thick on one side.
It sounds petty, but a too-thick pickle makes it very difficult to eat the dog properly. You want to get all of the flavors in each bite. Overall it was a tasty dog but it was sloppily made.
Conclusion
Howie's Top Dog is just a hot dog stand, so the expectations are low. It's probably fine for just a dog; but $3.29 for a regular hot dog is no bargain.