Emaretta Branham
Staff Writer
Lakeland just got a little more sweeter by adding the Dirty Dawg Pop Shop that just opened on Aug. 1. They are located inside the Lakeland Ice Cream Company. Dirty Soda and Dirty Popcorn are all under the brand Dirty Dawg Pop Shop. The address is located off of 2972 Lakeland Highlands Rd. The name of the shop comes after their dogs’ names which they have special dirty sodas named after.
“My husband and I have two very spoiled cocker spaniels. And we just love our dogs and they have a very unique look to them,” the owner Melissa Sanchez Vann said.
The Dirty Soda is a drink consisting of soda “spiked” with cream, flavored syrups or fruit juices. The Drink has been described as “alcohol free mocktails with optional flavor, cream and fruit add in.”
“We have been in business since 2015 together, so we do catering, restaurant, ice cream, charcuterie and now dirty soda and popcorn,” Sanchez Vann said.
The store has over 80 different flavors of hand dipped ice cream, sorbet, sherbet and more. House made waffle cones, bubble waffles, banana splits, milkshakes and a soda bar and sundaes, they also have a few different toppings you can choose from. They are home to the famous cotton candy burrito and pickle split. They are also gluten free and also have vegan and dairy free options as well.
“The menu we have our three founding dogs, if you will. Rosie’s Favorite, Charlie’s Favorite, and my partner’s dog Mae, we are gonna be doing like, a monthly special where we do different one-off sodas that are not on the menu,” Sanchez Vann said.
These are just three of the dirty soda’s Dirty Dawg. You can also create your own dirty soda, featuring any soda drink of your choice and then a topping of your choice.
Some options include Coke-based drinks like The Dawg House (Coke, cherry, vanilla cream) and Salty Dawg (Coke, coconut, lime, coconut cream), as well as Sprite mixes such as Peachy Pup (Sprite, peach, strawberry, vanilla cream) and Lazy Dawg (Sprite, blue raspberry, cotton candy, cotton candy cream). Fanta lovers can try Rosie’s Favorite (Strawberry Fanta, strawberry cream) or Mae’s Favorite (Grape Fanta, vanilla cream).
“We offer waffle cones Wednesday, we have 25 cents off waffle cones, milkshakes Monday, we have a dollar off milkshakes,” Sanchez Vann said.
Their hours from Sunday through Thursday are 12-9 p.m. On Friday and Saturday, hours are from 12-10 p.m.
“We also have different spirit nights and coupons depending on the time of year it is and whatnot,” Sanchez Vann said.
They are wheelchair accessible, walk in welcome outdoor parking and accept contactless payments. They also allow service animals inside the restaurant and have free wifi.
Their prices are lower than the average prices for soda and ice cream. They have over an 80% good rating from customer experience. It would be a good place to go on a hot day or a good post to meet up with friends at.
For customers who have never had dirty soda before, come only by and give dirty sodas a try.
“So there are some different options, for example, Dr. Pepper, we have one that’s really good that has a lime and coconut in it,” Sanchez Vann said.
So do not worry about the ones on the menu, stick to the soda you like and go from there. From sodas you like you can add things from the menu that they have there for example the lime or marshmallow fluff.
It is a perfect spot to hang out with friends and go during events that they have and get coupons and drinks and ice cream off for just visiting during one of their events.
