Indiana Jones gets to keep his job.
So do Scarface, Luke Skywalker and all the other characters whose job it is to guard the walls of Gator Dawgs, staring down at droves of new customers.
After a close call with closing up, the hot dog shop will get to keep its doors open after all.
Once word got out via Facebook posts, word of mouth and news stories about the restaurant’s imminent shutdown, the place became a madhouse. The tip jar overflowed, customers streamed out the door and owners Otis and Candy Britt could hardly shovel their exotically topped hot dogs out the door fast enough.
“When we said we were closing, it just went nuts,” Candy Britt said.
When their landlord found out they were in trouble, he cut rent by $500 until August. That, combined with the influx of customers, will keep Gator Dawgs afloat, she said.
When Student Body president Ashton Charles found out about the close, she was distraught. Gator Dawgs is her lunch place most days of the week.
Her name is even on the menu — The Ashton Dog. It’s a vegetarian hot dog, topped with vegetarian chili and tater tots.
“It’s been a part of my college career,” she said.
Since the rush of customers, Otis Britt quit the job he took cooking steaks at Cody’s Original Roadhouse. He had to give back money to the customers who had tried to buy the posters off the walls, the Pac-Man machine in the back of the dining room and the foosball table.
Now, he’s back in his kitchen, serving the since-lengthened dinner line.
“If this many people love us and want us to stay, then we’re not going anywhere,” he said.
He punches his fist in the air.
“Take that, economy.”
