WILDWOOD, FL (352today.com) – We’re a little late to the party on this one, but 352Today just learned that the Wildwood location of the iconic Coney Island Drive-Inn hot dog restaurant brand closed for good at the end of business on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026.
While it had only been at its location at 610 N. Main St. since late 2021, it was part of a family of Florida restaurants that grew from a single restaurant, opened in 1960 in Brooksville, that almost immediately became a treasured Sunshine State institution.
In addition to its wide and wild variety of delicious wieners–this reporter was partial to the Gator Dog, which blended alligator meat with pork sausage–the Wildwood Coney Island was known for its wings, shakes and kitschy, oft-Instagrammed interior decor.
“We were fortunate to enjoy four profitable years at our location there in Wildwood. We were approached a few months back by a local realtor, wanting to know if we would sell the location,” restaurant reps wrote in a comment to their own farewell post on Facebook. “We gave him a price a few weeks later he had a buyer… The Wildwood Soup Kitchen had lost their location. They were able to raise the money to purchase our building from us. Well, it is bittersweet, but we are proud to see them be able to stay in Wildwood and continue to do their good work again thanks to all to supported us.”
The Wildwood location is survived by five remaining Coney Island Drive-Inn locations, the closest of which are located in Bushnell (311 N. Market St.) and Eustis (158512 U.S. HWY 441).