February 16, 2024

A pair of restaurants to bring Mediterranean fare and wings to Seminole

February 16, 2024/ Veronica Brezina

New restaurant tenants are joining Seminole City Center at 11201 Park Boulevard in Seminole.

Mediterranean fast-casual eatery CAVA and the New York-based Sugar Wing have secured spaces in the open-air shopping center.

Sugar Wing operates four locations in New York City’s Upper East Side, West Village, East Village, and Battery Park as well as an outpost in Clifton, NJ. This will be the company’s sixth location and first Florida outpost, however a location is also coming to Carrollwood.

As for CAVA, this will be its second location in Pinellas County and sixth location in Tampa Bay. The franchise operates over 300 locations around the country.

February 15, 2024

Crepeway Caffe to bring freshly-made crepes to St. Pete's EDGE District

February 15, 2024/ Brian Hartz

Crepeway Caffe, a new venture from Konstantinos Chilias, also known as Chef Dinos, will open by the end of February at 1572 Central Avenue, where it will be part of the EDGE Eatery food hall.

The restaurant was originally going to occupy 907 Central Avenue, a space that was formerly the home of Now and Then, a vintage furniture shop.

Chef Dinos has owned and operated La Creperia Café in Ybor City for nearly 20 years. In an interview with St. Pete Rising, he said Crepeway Caffe’s menu will be similar to that of La Creperia Café.

February 14, 2024

Specialty grocer The Fresh Market to open at Seminole City Center

February 14, 2024/ Veronica Brezina

The Fresh Market is taking over the former Earth Fare grocery store in the 424,000-square-foot Seminole City Center retail plaza at 7774 113th Street North in Seminole.

Earth Fare, a grocery chain that specializes in organic and health food, opened its 24,000-square-foot Seminole store in 2016; however, the company filed for bankruptcy in 2020 and shuttered 50 stores throughout the country. The grocer reopened in the open-air Seminole plaza in 2021, but it later closed and the space has remained vacant.

Build out on The Fresh Market is underway and is likely to open later this year.

February 14, 2024

J.Crew to open store in Northeast Shopping Plaza in St. Pete

February 14, 2024/ Brian Hartz

One of the biggest names in clothing is opening a new location at Northeast Shopping Plaza, a Publix-anchored cluster of retail and service businesses at 226 37th Avenue North.

J. Crew will occupy a 4,982-square-foot space at the busy shopping center, according to documents filed with the City of St. Petersburg. The space was most recently a Play It Again Sports.

The New York-based clothing retailer, whose brands include J. Crew, Madewell, and J. Crew Factory, opened its first brick-and-mortar store in 1989 and now has more than 480 locations throughout the United States.

February 13, 2024

New culinary hub Foodie Labs fosters aspiring chefs in Warehouse Arts District

February 13, 2024/ Veronica Brezina

Breaking into the culinary scene and launching a successful restaurant while taking on overhead costs can be a challenge - one that a pair of entrepreneurs want to help local chefs overcome.

Jim Pachence, a former biotechnology scientist, and Kristin McKinney Zelinsky, owner of the Pro Kitchen Hub in Tampa, have joined forces to open Foodie Labs, a culinary hub with a mix of ghost kitchens and shared spaces in St. Pete's ArtsXchange campus in the Warehouse Arts District at 515 22nd Street South.

We saw there was a big part of the market that was missing. What happens to people who are interested in starting a culinary career? Do they try to go out and sell at farmers' markets?" Pachence said during the February 8th grand opening celebration of Foodie Labs, noting there isn't a consolidated shared commercial kitchen space in the city.