A new nautical-themed bar and full-service restaurant will soon launch on the 200 block of Central Avenue, known as the most popular destination for nightlife in the Sunshine City.

Segreti’s Hospitality Group, the owner of Yard of Ale and 260 First in downtown St. Pete, hopes to open the 7,000-square-foot establishment, dubbed the Nauti Duchess, in mid-April. Located at 217 Central Avenue, it’ll takes the place of Caddy’s on Central, which closed in 2020 after COVID-19 shut down all restaurants and bars in Florida.

Segreti’s Hospitality Group originally proposed a dual-restaurant concept, The Brickyard and Pizza N’ Brew, for this space in 2020. However, the group has since abandoned that plan in favor of the Nauti Duchess, which will occupy the entire 7,000 square foot space.

People who work at the Carillon Park office complex in northern St. Petersburg now have a new option for their daily coffee run.

Biggby Coffee has opened its second location in Florida at 4000 Ulmerton Road, which is technically a Clearwater address but is closer to Tampa Bay than the Gulf of Mexico.

Headquartered in Lansing, Michigan, Biggby Coffee is widespread throughout the Midwest but not the South. In addition to the St. Pete/Clearwater location, it has cafes in Ormond Beach, Atlanta and a handful of cities in the Carolinas. Jacksonville is also getting a Biggby Coffee, according to the company’s website.

The vacant Kenneth City building that used to look like a delicious vanilla ice cream cone is about to be revived as a cookie shop.

Formerly home to Twistee Treat and then The Daily Scoop, the property at 5804 54th Avenue North, which is less than a mile from the border of St. Petersburg, had a makeover when Driftwood Kava and Roastery was planning to occupy the space about a year ago. The iconic ice cream cone was covered with brown foam to resemble a volcano. However, Driftwood never opened and the space went back on the market.

Recently, a new banner was hoisted indicating the property has been leased to Crave Cookies & Soda, a Utah-based company that recently expanded to Florida, opening its first Sunshine State shop in Odessa. It operates eight stores in Utah.

Nearly three years after The Melting Pot shuttered its long-standing location on 4th Street, the popular fondue restaurant has finally found a new home in the Sunshine City.

Front Burner Brands, the Tampa-based company that manages the Melting Pot brand of fondue restaurants, has confirmed to St. Pete Rising that it has leased 4,900 square feet of space at 695 Central Avenue in downtown St. Petersburg for a new flagship Melting Pot location.

The two-story, 16,000-square-foot building, which will house the future Melting Pot, is perfectly situated on Central Avenue adjacent to the Morean Arts Center and across the street from the Chihuly Collection.

A new pub and pizzeria is about to join the eclectic collection of locally owned retail shops and restaurants along Gulfport’s Beach Boulevard.

Owners Tom Lussiano and Larisa Curbelo are putting the finishing touches on Tommy’s Hideaway, located at 3121 Beach Boulevard South, formerly occupied by Dog Pier Hot Dog Shop (and Salty’s Sandwich Bar before that), and they expect the restaurant to open during the first week of February.

The menu is still under development, but Lussiano and Curbelo say they’ll serve a wide variety of pizzas, including gluten-free options, baked in a traditional ceramic, wood-fired oven, along with chicken wings and tenders, clam pies, cast-iron skillet shrimp scampi and a selection of Italian subs made with in-house, freshly baked bread.