Pop N Sons Diner

I adore Pop ‘n Sons because it takes you back a few decades and really takes all the pressure off from life the second you sit down. Unlike its noisy neighbor, Pop ‘n Sons is not loud and everything moves at a slower pace.
I’m not talking about slow service, just not rushed like you need to hurry so they can fill your seat again… And my VERY favorite thing on the menu? They have fried bologna. Yep. I can have it with my eggs and fried potatoes or I can have it for lunch or dinner as a sandwich. Talk about going back in time… sigh.
I’ve only been here for breakfast and lunch so I can’t say a word about the late night version of Pops, but this daytime restaurant is superb!

My go to restaurant when I need comfort food no matter what it is breakfast, lunch, or dinner they deliver!

Excellent food, excellent service and atmosphere. I felt like I’m at home there. I enjoyed the healthy grilled whitefish and not-​so-​healthy onion rings.

Laid back atmosphere. Very homey. The food prices are very reasonable. I got the 2 eggs 2 sausage 2 pancakes and it was about $ 6, which is a good price for sure. The sausage was awesome, the pancakes were quite good, the eggs I got scrambled and they were done a little less than I would’ve wanted.
The service was good, she brought may of what we needed and the rest was on the next table over.

Great little diner! My boyfriend and I drive by all the time and decided to try this place on a whim. The waitress was very friendly and talkative, which was refreshing compared to other diners in the area that have rushed staff with no mannerisms. I ordered the french toast and bacon and it was delicious, not to mention crazy inexpensive for Tampa food. I liked the old décor– it felt homey. I was pleasantly surprised to find out this place is open ²⁴⁄₇. I will be back!

Amazing little diner. No frills kind of place, very good service and EXCELLENT FOOD! We ended up here at 3am after traveling from miami to tampa, and it hit the spot! Its close to the airport and to the bridge to clearwater.

So off the recommendation of Unilocal,we went to Pop n Sons (which is located to Mom’s diner) parking is difficult, but we were greeted by happy people. The people who work there and the people who eat there make this place a great place to go.
Food was average and we did have to send back our cups a few times because of being dirty, the staff handled it with grace.
I will go back because the service was friendly.

Decent diner — we ate at about 5:00 in the evening in a Sunday. The meatloaf had a decent taste but was so dried out I think it had been in the oven all day. The other food was decent, but nothing to write home about. The server wasn’t all that polite — pretty abrupt.

I love this place! Every time I come here the service and the food is amazing! With one waitress the quality of service far outweighs any other place I’ve ever been. The food is cheaply priced and always good. The only issue I’ve ever had is their salads. The salad is just iceberg lettuce with some tomatoes. I didn’t mind it but it didn’t meet my expectations. Other than that though I’ve NEVER had anything «bad».
I can’t say it enough how well this place is set up and the atmosphere in the restaurant is elegant and quaint. It has an old school 50s twist as well and that makes it even better. I always recommend Pop n’ Sons to anyone I meet and am never dissatisfied.
Will go again, great place to eat with family!

Nice décor and friendly quick service. Food was fine and place was clean.

Decent little dinner joint on Dale Mabry. Very no frills with a standard dinner menu. I ordered an omelet with home fries on the side. It was pretty standard and filling-​nothing to complain about but nothing to rave about either. Home fries were seasoned nicely, but didn’t have any crunch to their outside. Omelet is made with 3 eggs so it’s a good size, but I might be too spoiled with some other dinners I’ve been to because the eggs weren’t crazy out of this world fluffy like I’ve had before. My friend got a side of fruit and to me it tasted like it was out of a can. It’s a solid choice if you’re looking for an inexpensive dinner, but not a place to go out of your way to try.

Good but not great. Prices are very reasonable. After a night out this would probably be a late night meal.

No complaints! Homemade biscuits, homemade gravy (not watered down mix) ! Home fries with cheese & onions was very good ! Crispy bacon, fresh hot coffee! Not much more you could ask for from a diner breakfast. Very friendly, attentive server! Will be back for sure ! Walked out fat & happy

Never once have I visited this diner in 18+ years of living in Tampa until Sunday night. When I first moved to Tampa, I lived in Carrollwood and would drive by this place a couple times per day. But it never seemed too busy so I never bothered checking it out. After seeing Unilocalers check in, I decided to give it a go and I’m glad I did.
It’s a diner in the truest sense of the word. Retro décor with historic pictures of Tampa and vintage cars, waitress calling me «dear» and «honey», frequent customers chitchatting with the staff like they’ve known each other for years, typical diner food at very reasonable prices. Open ²⁴⁄₇!!!
After spending about 10 minutes looking at the large menu, I just ended up getting a burger and fries because the waitress said it was popular. It came out pretty quickly. Strange that it comes on a long bun instead of the typical hamburger bun. But they don’t use frozen hamburger patties so they’re able to shape the meat to fit into the toasted long bun. Of course, it’s a diner, not a gourmet burger joint so I didn’t expect anything fancy. No major complaints but it would be nice if they used seasoning on both the burger and fries. Just temper your expectations when it comes to diner food and you’ll have a good experience.
When I return (and I will definitely return soon), I’ll try out the pancakes or French toast. I love breakfast food any time of the day.

Reminded me of a classic diner in New Jersey except it’s located in Tampa near the airport. My new Sherpa of Tampa Dining — Mark H — loved their pancakes and gave it a great review. They are open 24 hours so an an early wake up call was the perfect excuse to take the 15 minute ride over.
I got 2 eggs scrambled well, hash browns with onions (Mark’s suggestion) and two small blueberry pancakes. Coffee was good. Bacon was cooked crispy but very thin. Food was good.
The waitstaff looked like they were extras in an old movie that takes place in a diner. Did a great job. The décor was retro. I expected Gary Cooper or Humphrey Bogart to walk in.
Brought my sister French Toast which she said was delicious.
Think I’ll be back. Definitely a fine breakfast spot.

We stopped in here after the game to take a break from the mobs of people and general traffic chaos that ensues after a Buccaneers football game. This is in interesting place and it is truly a «Diner» in every sense of the word. When we entered we sat ourselves at the bequest of the staff member who was seemingly running the joint.
The woman who appeared to be the only worker there was pleasant, and dare I say a bit ostentatious. For example, she yelled from across the restaurant to me, of which there were 4 booths between she and I, to determine if I wanted ketchup with my burger. This isn’t a bad thing and I found it to be amusing, and part of the charm and allure of the Diner.
The diner appeared to be clean and had an aesthetically pleasing look and feel to it. The food was on the greasy side, but this is what we expected. As far as food quality, it was average, not great and not bad, but perfectly acceptable. The prices here are also reasonable. The staff is pleasant, the food is OK, and the prices are realistic. I believe the Diner’s hours are also likely beyond that of a normal eatery so this likely serves as a good late night snack spot.

I really liked my experience here. Walked in and was immediately greeted by a lovely waitress named Delilah. Got the food promptly and it was all made from scratch. I admire the local diners that have stood the test of time. It shows that they have great food, wonderful service, and that they value all their customers. I’m definitely coming back to this place.

I love places like this. Greasy spoon with friendly and attentive staff? Yes, please.
We started with the fried mushrooms. They were perfectly crispy and wonderful. My husband also had a bowl of chili that he proclaimed excellent. My real winner was the Reuben sandwich. I was expecting the corned beef to be some nasty lunchmeat, but it was thick chunks of corned beef. The sandwich got a tiny bit soggy. I got the fried okra on the side, and they were a tad under seasoned, but with ketchup, they were fine. My husband had the country fried steak. He did not love it, but the rest of the meal was so good, he’s okay with returning to try other things.

Overrated. Service is slow, servers are not friendly and prices are higher than comparable places. Food quality is low and things which are supposed to be hot like sausage turned out cold. This place is a huge disappointment as I normally like these small family owned diner concepts for quick Sunday brunch.
It took 15 minutes or so just to be acknowledged and once our order was in, about an hour to get our food. The restaurant wasn’t packed or anything and most people seemed to arrive after us and leave before we even got our food. My guess is that they forgot to put in our order but then had no explanation for us and when the food arrived, they were still missing items which they had to put back in. Again no apologies or acknowledgment. What was intended to be a faster dining experience turned into a good investment into our morning/​afternoon.
When we arrived we also asked for a chocolate milk for our 4 year old son. Later when the server came she told us that we received too large of a cup and therefore would be extra and not included in the kids meal. It was the manager who brought it in the first place so crazy they would ask us to pay extra for their mistake. This ended up not being on our final bill (I would not have paid that anyway).
We definitely would not recommend this place and would recommend people pick another place.

Pop N Sons has been around ever since I can remember. My son used to come here so much, I was surprised there wasn’t a statue dedicated to him somewhere in the place.
Picture a diner and you picture this place. I grew up in North Jersey. You jab someone with a smart comment, they jab you back. Same here. The service is friendly, you make a dry comment, they make one back. Just like home. The kitchen is pretty quick. I kept them on their toes. I had just done 5 days of juicing. I hadn’t had any caffeine for 5 days either. I had two cups of coffee that morning and my wife said I wouldn’t shut up. So we (three of us) entered here for lunch. For starts, I ordered two plates of onion rings (to share, to share), a bowl of Chili with cheese and onions on top (not to share, not to share). I then ordered a cheesesteak with fries.
The prices are just right. The food is commensurate with the prices. Good food, cheap. The cheesesteak roll (was that a hot dog roll???) was crisp and the cheesesteak was hot. Didn’t take me back to the Philly area since the cheese was different. It wasn’t that gooey American cheese they use up there. The onion rings were hot and good. The chili was your basic chili, not over spicy, but it had a decent taste to it.
Parking is around the back. Entrance is around the front. My son says the awesome burger is pretty good anytime.
Go back? Sure.