Author: Gary Nager

Blue Heron Senior Living To Host Open House Apr. 28!

Whether you’re a senior citizen considering assisted living yourself or you need memory care for an aging parent, I hope you’ll take advantage of the opportunity to check out the Blue Heron Senior Living & Memory Care getting ready to open off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. south of S.R. 54 in Wesley Chapel, which will be the first in our area that also will provide on-site skilled nursing and rehabilitation services in either of our distribution areas.

Blue Heron, which is being developed by TLC Management, is hosting an incredible Open House celebration on Wednesday, April 28, 1 p.m.-3 p.m., so if you or someone you love is considering moving to an assisted living facility, you should definitely visit that event (or call the number at the end of this story to arrange a tour if you can’t make it that day).

The Open House event will include a variety of foods prepared by Blue Heron’s in-house chef, refreshments, live music and tours of this beautiful new addition to the Wesley Chapel community.

Blue Heron’s community relations director Sarah Dymond and executive director Kimberly Lehigh took the Neighborhood News on a recent sneak preview tour of the 159,000-sq.-ft. facility and we definitely came away impressed.

The place, which is visible from I-75, looks huge from the outside (see drone photo), but actually is laid out so that it still feels cozy, comfortable and homey.

The entrance lobby is warm and inviting, with comfortable seating and a gas-fired fireplace where residents and visitors can sit and enjoy each other’s company. Directly behind the lobby is the equally attractive main dining area, while to your right is an open kitchen area called The Bistro, where residents can enjoy grab-and-go snacks, coffee drinks and other beverages (there’s even wine on tap) and watch TV as they enjoy their snacks and beverages.

Behind the main dining room is a beautiful outdoor patio, complete with a gas grill, a putting green and plenty of umbrella-covered seating, all overlooking a sizable pond. The outdoor area also will feature live music events for residents.

The first floor also features a great workout facility/wellness center, as well as an art studio/gallery, spa/salon and a life enrichment center.

The separate and secure Memory Care area, which has its own lobby, its own dining room and 22 studio apartments featuring a front-porch-cottage theme, also is on the first floor.

The upper floors are home to Blue Heron’s 73 one- and two-bedroom assisted living apartments, all of which are beautifully designed, with their own kitchens, washer and dryers and easy-access showers.

And, perhaps best of all, Blue Heron is a true rental community, with no buy-in required. “Our residents are free from long-term financial commitments,” Sarah says, “and have the flexibility to manage their own assets and investments.”

Skilled Nursing & Rehab, Too

As mentioned earlier, Blue Heron is the only assisted living facility in either of our distribution areas that also offers both short-term rehabilitation services and skilled nursing care on-site.

For residents who require 24-hour nursing care, Blue Heron has private suites in its health & rehabilitation center, where each resident will enjoy consistent care delivered by a dedicated team of professional, licensed specialists.

Offering short-term rehab in Florida’s newest state-of-the-art therapy center, Blue Heron’s health and rehabilitation blends the comforts of a luxury hotel with advanced therapies and facilities in a unique “Return to Home” program that includes private suites, advanced therapy equipment, physical, occupational and speech therapies, virtual reality workouts and neighborhood amenities.

“There’s really nothing like us in this community,” Lehigh says. “Our leadership team is super-excited. I believe we’ve hired the best of the best.”

For more information about the Apr. 28 Open House at Blue Heron Senior Living (5085 Eagleston Blvd.) or to arrange a private tour, call (813) 454-0513 or visit SeniorLivingatBlueHeron.com.

assisted living facility Blue Heron

Why The Neighborhood News Is Still Your Best Local News Source

Gary Nager

I have to admit that I was really excited to see (on Mar. 26) WFTS-TV’s ABC Action News set up its “Good Morning Tampa Bay” morning show outside the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County, where my wife Jannah is the director of marketing for RADDSports, which manages the programs at the campus.

“Good Morning Wesley Chapel” was the fifth stop on the morning show’s ongoing tour of Tampa Bay communities, so I had hopes to find some new information that maybe managing editor John Cotey, videographer Charmaine George and I haven’t been able to bring you because we’re a three-person team, while ABC Action News has an entire team of reporters, anchors and producers who created multiple features between 5 a.m.-7 a.m. that day about our area.

As a 27-year veteran of covering the news and information coming out of Wesley Chapel, I have to say that I was expecting more — and better — information coming out of that show.

First of all, anchor Deiah Riley started off by calling the Sports Campus the Sports Complex and repeated throughout the morning that the Sports Campus features 16 volleyball courts and eight (at first she said 18) basketball courts (both correct), plus 56 fencing “lanes” and 8 wrestling mats?

Here’s the thing — the Sports Campus does have room for that number of fencing pistes (the correct term) and wrestling mats, but has yet (or any plans) to host a fencing or wrestling event. There was no mention of the Sports Campus’ state-of-the-art cheerleading facility, indoor and outdoor soccer under the direction of former Tampa Bay Rowdies head coach Stuart Campbell or the Yo Murphy Performance training area we told you about in our Feb. 16 issue.

OK, so the producers of “Good Morning Wesley Chapel” obviously didn’t read any recent issues of the Neighborhood News to get their information, but there were mistakes and discrepancies throughout the morning.

For example, Riley’s pre-recorded report mistakenly repeated multiple times during those two hours that the ever-expanding Wesley Chapel District Park on Boyette Rd. is part of the county’s sports tourism efforts and re-branding as “Florida’s Sports Coast” — when the WCDP always has been intended for local residents (unlike the Sports Campus). That report also said that WCDP’s inclusive playground (the first of its kind in Pasco) was paid for by impact fees without mentioning the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel, AdventHealth, the Lennar Foundation and others who gave money for that project.

And, speaking of sports tourism, there was no mention of AdventHealth Center Ice, in the heart of Wesley Chapel, or the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center in nearby Zephyrhills.

Plus, while there was a short feature about the new Grove Theater, there was no interview clip with developer Mark Gold, nor any mention of The Grove’s coming-soon KRATE container park, which will bring dozens of new eateries to Wesley Chapel. The theater piece also mentioned its sushi bar, but not the Bistro restaurant.

And, while there were good stats provided about the rise in average home prices in Wesley Chapel, the Realtor interviewed is based out of South Tampa and featured an interview with a family who bought a home with a large body of water behind it which likely also wasn’t located in Wesley Chapel.

The two best features were about Wesley Chapel youngsters, one of which was an update on Janiah Hinds, who we featured back in August 2020 for her “Slay it Proud” T-shirt line. The other was an excellent “Deiah’s Brag Book” feature about 12-year-old soccer player Peyton Wheatley, who suffered a life-threatening event back in late Feb., too late to get the story in our Mar. 16 issue. To help Peyton’s family, visit GoFundMe.com and search “Peyton’s Road to Recovery.”

Garden Mediterranean Grill — So Close & So Authentic!

Even though there are quite a few Mediterranean/Middle Eastern restaurants located in New Tampa, based on what I’ve already tasted and heard from customers, it’s still well worth a few-minute drive to the Eagle Plaza on Oak Grove Blvd. at S.R. 54 in Lutz to try the new Garden Mediterranean Grill.

Owners Raja Saad and her husband, Chef Hedi Jlassi (top photo) are both from the Arabic North African nation of Tunisia and they offer a huge variety of delicious Mediterranean-influenced food in a beautiful, but casual setting.

The restaurant now called Garden Mediterranean Grill has had a number of previous tenants, including a Latin restaurant and a number of coffee shops, but Raja and Hedi and their family believe that they have brought the right cuisine and the right price to the location — and yes, the food is delicious!

Whether you dine as a couple of bring a large family or group of friends to the Garden, you’re sure to find plenty of options, as well as huge portions.

To start, try the Foule (pronounced “fool”; center photo, far right), a delicious dish of puréed fava beans, garlic, lemon and topped with virgin olive oil. It’s served with the fluffiest pita bread I’ve had anywhere. To really get into the variety of starters, however, Raja and Hedi recommend the appetizer platter, which includes hummus, baba Ghanouj (mashed, cooked eggplant), labneh (strained yogurt), falafel (fried, ground chick peas) and grape leaves. Other starters include fried calamari, Nabulsi fried cheese, tabouli (chopped parsley, diced tomatoes, onions, dry mint, lemon juice and olive oil), shakshouka merguez (sautée of Merguez sausage and eggs cooked with tomatoes, onion, garlic and spices and even shrimp scampi.

So far, the only salad I’ve sampled is the tangy house salad (diced tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, lettuce, parsley, herbs, olive oil and lemon juice), but there also is a great-looking Greek salad, fattoush, tahini and Caesar salads. You also can top your salad with a variety of meats and seafood, including chicken kabobs (so good) or shawarma, beef or lamb shish kabobs, kufta (ground lamb) kabobs, delicious, fresh-cut gyro meat, salmon or shrimp.

I haven’t sampled any of the sandwiches yet, but I have had several of the meats available as sandwiches as entrée platters. The sandwich that looked the most interesting to me was the chicken shawarma quesadilla, which is a nice Middle Eastern take on the popular Mexican dish which combines sliced chicken shawarma meat and a delicious garlic sauce with cheese, onions and tomatoes stuffed inside a soft tortilla. There’s also fish, shrimp and falafel wraps on the menu.

The perfectly-season meat entrée platters all include long-grain yellow rice and amazing grilled veggies (onions and red and green peppers; Jannah and I order them well-cooked). Among my favorite entrées so far are the gyro, beef shawarma and chicken kabob platters, but my can’t-miss option so far is the lamb chop platter. You get four tender, delicious rib chops that are grilled to perfection.

Other entrée options include Turkish kabobs (ground lamb and beef, but Raja says they are different from kufta kabobs), Merguez sausage, lamb shanks and chicken tekka, which is a marinated half-chicken char-grilled in what appears to be an Indian-influenced blend of spices. I didn’t taste it but photographer Charmaine George said it was outstanding.

Although I can’t eat shrimp and personally don’t love salmon or tilapia, the seafood entrées include shrimp kabobs, salmon, fish and mixed seafood platters, as well as the char-broiled whole fish of the day, usually red snapper or bronzino. There are also are large meat-lovers’ platters (with shish, kufta and chicken kabobs, gyro and beef and chicken shawarma) and royal meat-lovers’ platters (add lamb chops, shrimp and salmon), both in sizes to serve 2-3 and 4-6 people, although all of them honestly look like they could serve even more people to me.

Desserts & Beverages!

Like most Mediterranean restaurants, Garden Mediterranean Grill offers dessert favorites like baklava, warbat (filo dough stuffed with cream) and a variety of cakes, but my favorite so far are the almond baklava fingers shown and the salted caramel cheesecake. I’ve yet to try the baklava with ice cream, but it’s definitely on my list. As for beverages, try the Turkish coffee, the Moroccan mint green tea and the fresh mint lemonade.

Left to right: Mint lemonade, salted caramel cake and hot tea being poured.

Garden Mediterranean Grill is located at 1900 Oak Grove Blvd., Lutz (zip code 33559) and is open Mon.-Thur., 10 a.m.-10 p.m., 10 a.m.-11 p.m. on Fri., 9 a.m.-11 p.m. on Sat. and 9 a.m.-10 p.m. on Sun. For more information, call (813) 528-8088 or see the ad on pg. 39 of our latest issues for a Grand Opening Special 15%-off coupon.

chicken food lamb mediterranean

Fresh Kitchen Is Open; First Watch Is On Deck

Although New Tampa already is home to several “build-your-own bowl,” fast-casual restaurants, the opening of the new Fresh Kitchen at the north end of the Sprouts Farmers Market-anchored Village at Hunter’s Lake plaza is still well worth celebrating.

Fresh Kitchen, which has eleven locations in Florida, from Gainesville to Davie, is now open. It will hold its official ribbon cutting Tuesday, March 30 at 10:30 a.m.

Fresh Kitchen has one of the best (and tastiest) varieties of bowl bases, veggies and proteins of any bowl restaurant in our area.

I already love the “power” and coconut ginger rice, cauliflower potato mash, kale slaw and baby kale caesar as bases, parmesan broccoli and herb roasted cauliflower veggies, fresh-grilled steak and unique almond-baked chicken fingers, the creamy white ginger and herb balsamic vinaigrette sauces and pico de gallo and kale pesto tomatoes “add-ons.”

Fresh Kitchen president Steven Lanza, who attended the “friends & family” event where these pics were taken, says everything at Fresh Kitchen is fresh, homemade and gluten-free.

“We call it healthy food that’s flavorful,” Lanza says. “We believe our quality is as good as you would find in a steakhouse or fine-dining restaurant in a fast-casual environment.”

For more info about Fresh Kitchen (8648 Hunter’s Village Rd.), call (813) 336-3800 or visit eatfreshkitchen.com.

First Watch To Open Apr. 5

Directly adjacent to Fresh Kitchen, New Tampa is getting its own First Watch restaurant, even though there’s already a location only 3 miles to the north on BBD in Wesley Chapel.

Even so, operations manager (and New Tampa resident) Carrie Hagerman says the Wesley Chapel location isn’t going anywhere.

“That area is growing so fast,” Hagerman says. “There’s plenty of room for both stores.”

First Watch Fresh kitchen

Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. — Legit Bagels, Delicious Coffee & More

As a native New Yorker raised on bagels and lox (aka smoked salmon) and bacon, egg and cheese bagel sandwiches, but who has been living on the west coast of Florida since 1993, one of the hardest things for me to find in our area has been true, New York-style kettle-boiled-then-baked bagels that tasted anything like those I had been enjoying since I was a child.

Yes, there is a place in North Tampa, another in Clearwater and one in Brandon, but until recently, no such “legit” bagel place has existed in New Tampa or Wesley Chapel.

Daniel Kurland is a New Jersey native who first moved to the east coast of Florida and was living in Vero Beach when he first tried a Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. bagel.

“I grew up on bagels,” Daniel says. “Every town in New Jersey had a couple of bagel places. But, when I moved to Florida, it was hard to find good bagels.”

Daniel says he was a steady customer of the Vero Beach Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. before he moved to near Wesley Chapel three years ago and says, “I was shocked by the lack of not only good bagel places, but of breakfast places in general. Not even a Denny’s or an IHOP.”

So, Daniel, who has had many previous careers, including a “dot com” business that he sold. He owned and operated a bar in Ft. Lauderdale before moving to Vero.

“Owning a bar, I liked being part of the community and I was looking for that feel again,” he says, when he found what he believed to be a perfect location for a Brooklyn Water Bagel Co., on S.R. 54, just west of I-75, in an existing strip center at the front of developer Mark Gold’s fast-developing Grove property.

OK, Let’s Talk Food!

Daniel says that the thing he first liked about Brooklyn water Bagel Co. was the fact that just about everything is made in-house, using water that is “Brooklynized” right in the store.

“We use the water to not only make the bagels, but also our coffee (more on that below) and our desserts (ditto),” he says. “I really think it makes a difference,” and the location’s growing roster of regular customers seems to agree with him.

“Our most popular ‘regular flavors’ of bagels are probably the everything and plain,” he says. “If we ever run out of those, we might as well close our doors.”

And, while my personal favorite Brooklyn Water Bagels are the Black Russian (pumpernickel) with (sesame) seeds and the white sesame and poppy seed varieties, Daniel says that there are a few other flavors he can rotate in and out.

For example, although he always has cinnamon raisin bagels in his bagel bins, he recently has been selling cinnamon crunch bagels that are proving to be pretty popular, and others like blueberry and egg that can be rotated into the selection. “We’ll even do an olive cream cheese in the spring.”

My favorites at Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. are the “Williamsburg,” with authentic Nova Scotia-style smoked salmon, cream cheese and tomato (I hold the onion it comes with) or a bacon, egg & cheese on a double-toasted bagel. But, Daniel says the “not-spicy” chorizo sausage sandwich shown below is among his favorites, as are the made-to-your specifications fluffy omelettes next to the chorizo sandwich above. Photographer Charmaine George added spinach, mushrooms and bacon to that omelette, which was served with two crispy hash brown “cakes.”

Also available are the “Brooklyn,” with bacon, sausage and ham, eggs and cheese, and the “Jersey Boy,” with Taylor ham, eggs and cheese. There’s also a “Greenpoint” with scrambled egg whites, spinach, mushroom and Swiss on a scooped, toasted whole wheat bagel. You can even get fresh avocado on a bagel.

Lunch, Coffee & Dessert!

The lunch menu is limited to tasty NY-style basics — a corned beef Reuben (with sauerkraut, Swiss and 1000 Island or spicy mustard on rye), a turkey or pastrami Reuben (with the same toppings) called “Rachel,” and tuna and chicken salad melts. I have tried all but the chicken salad and so far, so delicious.

I’ve also made my own sandwich from the Brooklyn Sandwich Board with corned beef and pastrami, although there’s also house-roasted chicken and even whitefish salad. Charmaine also enjoyed the roasted chicken, bacon & avocado wrap above.

Don’t miss the beverages, either. I’m kind of addicted to the Brooklyn Infusion coffee, flavored with vanilla, caramel and Kahlua, although there also are dark and medium roasts, as well as decaf and pumpkin spice varieties. The same flavors are available cold, too, as iced coffee “Cubstas,” and there’s also CinnaBuzz coffee with extra caffeine. There’s even actual coffee-flavored ice cubes at the coffee bar and fans of authentic egg creams will find New York’s beloved Fox’s U-Bet chocolate syrup and soda fountain seltzer.

The decadent dessert options include legit black-&-white and chewy chocolate chunk cookies, plus house-baked muffins, in flavors like cookies & cream and a mixed-nut “stud muffin.” Daniel says the only dessert items not baked in-house are the variety of different rugelach, a rolled Jewish-origin pastry available in chocolate, cinnamon, apricot and other flavors.

Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. is located at 27835 Wesley Chapel Blvd. (S.R. 54), Suite 101 (next to the new King of the Coop chicken). It is open every day, 6 a.m.-3 p.m. To place an order or for more information, call (813) 775-2275 or visit BrooklynWaterBagel.com.

brooklyn water bagel