Central Park St. Pete, a new five-story food hall in downtown St. Pete, will feature 14 food and beverage concepts | Central Park St. Pete

After six years of anticipation, a new five-story food hall in the heart of downtown St. Pete is finally ready to welcome its first guests.

Central Park, the 27,700-square-foot food hall at 551 Central Avenue, will begin rolling out its 14 concepts in phases rather than opening all at once.

The first openings begin this Thursday, February 19th, when Palm Avenue Deli and Constellation Burger launch for takeout and delivery only. Initial hours will run from 5 to 10 p.m.

Palm Avenue Deli will bring a New York-style delicatessen experience to Central Avenue, serving pastrami sandwiches, reubens, latkes, matzo ball soup, stuffed cabbage and bagels.

Constellation Burger will offer a fast-casual lineup of creative burgers and sandwiches, including everything from classic beef patties to its Local Rock Shrimp Katsu Burger topped with American cheese, shredded lettuce, onion-pickle relish and dill cream sauce.

The Local Rock Shrimp Katsu Burger is one of the items on the Constellation Burger menu at Central Park | Central Park

Next Monday, February 23rd, the next wave of concepts will debut.

Health-focused café Strawberry Fields, along with Central Bar and the venue’s self-serve beer wall, will open with the same 5 to 10 p.m. hours.

Palm Avenue Deli and Strawberry Fields will operate with a limited menu to start, and breakfast service will not be available during the initial soft opening.

The remainder of the building will open gradually over the next several months, bringing a wide-ranging mix of food, beverage and retail concepts to the five-story destination.

Central Park’s first-floor food hall will eventually include elevated Mexican concept Don Ricardo’s Taqueria, pizza spot Park Pie serving Roman and New York-style pies, Italian eatery Speaks Pasta, and Asian street food concept Kojo Wok.

A dessert café called Meadows, frozen cocktail bar 27 North, and retail boutique Worth will be on a mezzanine overlooking the main food hall.

A full-service modern Asian restaurant, Kojo, and Bar Hana by Kojo will anchor the fourth floor, while The Winfield cocktail parlor will be hidden away in the basement.

modern asian restaurant kojo will serve a variety of sushi, crispy nori tacos, steaks and more | Kojo

A members-only social club Night Owl is also planned for the fifth floor.

The project is led by Tampa Bay-based Hi Hospitality Group, which began construction in late 2021 on the site formerly occupied by the Dome Grill.

Vertical construction followed in late 2022, transforming the prominent Central Avenue property into a multi-level food hall and entertainment venue.

Central Park will also host its first major event on March 6th, when DJ Roy Rosenfeld takes over the venue at 10 p.m.

With its phased opening nearly underway, Central Park is set to steadily come online in the months ahead, adding another large-scale dining and social destination to the heart of downtown St. Pete.

Follow Central Park on Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates on its opening timeline.