Cappy’s Pizzeria Owner Is Happy To Focus On Pizza, Salads & Calzones!

EVEN THOUGH I keep asking him to add some more menu items, Harold Hasselbeck, the owner of the Cappy’s Pizzeria in the City Plaza at Tampa Palms shopping center, says he’d rather keep doing what he does well than bring on additional menu items and spread himself and his small, but happy staff too thin.

OK, I get it, especially when everytime I take the office to Cappy’s, everyone is still happy, despite the comparatively small menu selection. Although the laminated menus themselves feature way-cool album covers on one side and the menu on the other, which fits well with the super-funky décor and vibe at all four Cappy’s locations (Seminole Heights, South Tampa and Riverview are the others).

In previous reviews of Cappy’s, I’ve always explained that even though this uniquely decorated, full-service dine-in and carry-out pizzeria serves both thin-crust and deep-dish pizza, it’s a little bit of a misnomer to call Harold’s thin crust “true New York style” or his deep dish pizza “true Chicago style,” but that doesn’t mean that both styles aren’t delicious, because they are.

But, we’ll get back to the pizza in a bit. For starters, Cappy’s only offers cheesebread ($4.25) and breadstix ($3.25, served with a side of a deep-red, thick marinara dipping sauce) and a variety of salads, all available in small sizes from $4.50-$5.50 and large sizes for $7-$8.50. Our favorites at the office are the large Greek salad shown on the next page — which features lots of feta cheese, kalamata olives, pepperoncini and a nice-sized scoop of Cappy’s house-made potato salad, with a slightly sweeter house-made dressing — and the small tossed salad with Cappy’s house-made Italian vinaigrette dressing, which is a perfect appetizer-size salad for two.

Cappy’s also adds feta to its non-traditional Caesar salad and although I’m not the biggest fan of spinach salad myself, Cappy’s has a spinach & goat cheese salad with white raisins, shaved almonds and a house-made honey balsamic vinaigrette that got rave reviews from the couple at the next table on our most recent visit.

Pizzas & Calzones

Cappy’s opens every weekday at 11 a.m. (noon on Saturday & Sunday), and offers great lunch prices, like single NY-style cheese slices for $2.50 and $3 if you want one topping. I’m partial to the sausage and premium meatball toppings (see below) at Cappy’s, but there are almost 30 different toppings available, with veggies like artichoke hearts, banana peppers, carmelized onions and jalapeños to meats like anchovies, bacon and ham and premium toppings also are available.

There are also lunch-sized calzones for just $5, which comes with mozzarella, a side of marinara sauce and two fillings of your choice. You can even add extra fillings for just $1 apiece.

There also are lunch combos such as two one-topping slices or a one-filling, lunch-sized calzone and a fountain drink for just $5.99, or add a mini-salad (smaller than a small) of your choice to your $5.99 combo and the price is just $8.50.

You can order small- or large-size NY-style pizzas (with a truly crispy crust) and small-, medium- or large-size Chicago-style pizzas for lunch or dinner (Cappy’s Tampa Palms stays open until 9 p.m. on Sun.-Thur. and until 10 p.m. on Fri. & Sat.) and in addition to the regular toppings, you can add premium toppings like chicken, goat cheese, feta and sun-dried tomato.

NY-style pizzas start at just $9.00 for a small or $11 for a large, up to $14.50 for the small and $18.50 for the large“Cappy” (with sausage, ham, pepperoni, fresh mushrooms, onions and green peppers). Our office gobbled up the large Cappy (we ordered it without sausage).

Chicago-style pizzas cost the same for a small as the NY-style and the medium deep-dish costs the same as the large NY-style. The large Chicago style starts at $14 for just cheese and we ordered sausage and meatball that even if I wasn’t in training for a four-mile kayak race, I probably still couldn’t have finished more than two filling wedges of at a time.

Cappy’s also offers a nice variety of  beers on draft (I love the Peroni and Fat Tire), plus red and white wine and red and white sangria by the glass, as well as wines by the bottle.

Cappy’s Pizzeria is located at 16019 Tampa Palms Blvd. For coupons worth $3 off a $20 purchase and $5 off a $30 purchase, see the ad  on pg. 41 of our last New Tampa issue. For more information, visit CappysTampaPalms.com or call (813) 512-8947.

Another New Tampa Resident Taken Too Soon — Joel Miller (1988-2017)

In February of 2015, I finally got to do the exclusive interview that former Wharton High football star Joel Miller had promised from Day One he would give me — where he finally got to tell me and our readers his side of the story of the locker room incident between him and former University of South Florida (USF) head football coach Jim Leavitt that ultimately cost Leavitt his job when Joel was a walk-on onto the USF team.

Unfortunately, that incident became the defining moment of his too-short life and that interview was the last real conversation I ever had with Joel, who passed away unexpectedly on September 10 at the too-young age of 29. Joel was a month or so older than my older son Jared, who first got to know his friend when both played youth football for the New Tampa Wildcats.

Jared and I spoke shortly after we heard the news that Joel had passed and both of us were heartbroken for his entire family — his mother Kathy, his father Paul and his siblings.

“Joel and I became a lot closer after high school,” Jared said. “I can’t believe he’s gone.”

Of course, Joel would become one of the top running backs in Hillsborough County when he played for Wharton, where he ran for more than 2,600 yards his final two high school seasons and won Hillsborough County’s 2006 Golden Helmet Award for Class 5A-6A players.

He and Jared remained friends following the Leavitt incident, when all this smart, tough, talented young man wanted to do was to finally be able to tell his side of the story.

We published my interview with Joel in our February 28, 2015, issue, and it was easy to tell that he still hadn’t reconciled how or why the incident happened or how he ended up being blamed for what happened to Leavitt afterward.

“I wasn’t the whistleblower who called the media after the incident,” Joel told me. “I never wanted anyone to find out what happened. I just wanted to play football.”

I was sad that neither Jared nor I were able to attend Joel’s Celebration of Life at St Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church on Cross Creek Blvd. on Sept. 23, but I tried to picture myself in his parents’ shoes and my heart bleeds for Kathy, the long-time local school teacher who I know loved Joel the way I love both of my boys.

Like many other people, I found out about Joel’s passing on Facebook, where I saw this post from Kathy:

“My baby Joel passed away today. I am numb and heartbroken. As you all know, we were very close… I don’t even know what to say or what to do…I know he knows I love him and hope he is at peace… My Joely.”

And then, after his memorial service on the 23rd, Kathy posted:

“Our family would like to thank everyone for donating money towards Joel’s Memorial Service. It was beautiful. Thank you to all who attended the Celebration of Life. We truly appreciate it very much. It was great seeing everyone and hearing the stories that included Joel. We also appreciate all the cards, texts, phone calls, visits and food. This has been a very difficult time for all of us. It still doesn’t seem real. We want each and every one of you to know how much your support has meant to us. Love, the Miller Family.”

A few days later, on Jared’s own 29th birthday, he posted:  “I dedicate this birthday to Joel Miller. I will forever miss you man! Wish that you were here. Love you, bud. My prayers are with your family!”

And, one of Joel’s former coaches at Wharton (and for the New Tampa Wildcats) Craig Rainey, who also was our neighbor when I first moved my family to Florida, posted this:

“Joel, I really don’t even know where to start and can’t believe it. I will never forget you coming in as a freshman introducing yourself, telling me you were our starting running back. From that day forward I knew you were going to be fun to coach and you were. So glad that we developed a friendship and always kept in touch. I have many memories that I will never forget. You were a great kid and touched so many around you. I love you and am going to miss you kid. RIP. Godspeed. Heaven has gained another angel. My thoughts and prayers are with the entire Miller Family.”

Rest in Peace, Joel. You are missed.

  

Nibbles and Bytes: WC Rotary’s Casino Night Raises $18,000!

Congratulations to my friends from the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel (noon), which meets Wednesdays at noon at Lexington Oaks Golf Club, for putting on a smash hit “Casino Night” fund raiser to help the family of Clayton Mahler with their medical bills.

The Rotary Cub was prompted to action by Pasco’s Clerk & Comptroller Dr. Paula O’Neil, who knows the family personally and was the emcee for the event, which was held August 25 — the same day Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas — at Wesley Chapel Nissan on S.R. 54. The dealership took all of the vehicles out of its showroom and replaced them with gaming tables for the event.

Dr. O’Neil, a breast cancer survivor herself, talked to her friend and Wesley Chapel (WC) Nissan public relations rep Troy Stevenson about doing something to help.

Stevenson got the approval of the dealership’s general manager Joey Falcon to host the Casino Night, which was attended by more than 300 people and which raised about $18,000, according to event chair and club Board member Chris Casella.

Clayton was diagnosed with Stage 3 rhabdomyosarcoma after a July 4th visit to the emergency room for a growth in his nose that was obstructing his airway. He is receiving 42 weeks of chemotherapy, followed by radiation, after 95 percent of the mass was removed.

The Mahlers’ medical bills are piling up and you could feel the love and appreciation flowing in every direction during Casino Night, which was attended by a Who’s Who of local politicos, including Congressman Gus Bilirakis, State Representatives Danny Burgess and Amber Mariano and four of the five members of the Pasco County Board of County Commissioners, as well as by numerous Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce members, many of whom served as volunteers.

The food was donated by Latin Twist Café on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., although Chick-fil-A on BBD in New Tampa donated the food for the second floor VIP room, where Clayton and his family spent most of the evening. Wine was donated by our friends Charles and Cheryl Visalli of Time for Wine and the delicious Taino Light and Boricua beer was donated by WC Nissan owner Jay Rosario, who also is an owner of the beer company, which is based in Altamonte Springs.

“We’re proud to be able to help this wonderful family,” Casella said. “We really want to thank Dr. O’Neil, the family and especially Wesley Chapel Nissan for hosting us.”

Unfortunately, the club’s planned Sept. 11 American flag giveaway and breakfast for local first responders had to be scrapped because of Hurricane Irma, which made landfall in Florida on Sept 10. The club has since rescheduled the flag giveaway at both the Shops at Wiregrass and Tampa Premium Outlets malls for this weekend — Saturday-Sunday, September 23-24, noon-4 p.m., at both locations.

For more information, visit WCRotary.com or attend one of the club’s meetings at Lexington Oaks Golf Club.

Starbucks, Chick-fil-A & CubeSmart Getting Closer

If it’s been a while since you ventured out on S.R. 54 east of I-75, you may not have noticed all the progress that’s been made on both the new Starbucks, located just east of the new Walmart on 54 or the new CubeSmart self-storage facility located just west of the intersection of 54 and Curley Rd.

Prior to Hurricane Irma, we also saw some progress on the planned Chick-fil-A that is just beginning construction on 54, just west of the Walgreens at BBD.

We will have updates on all three businesses in a future issue.

Sorry that we didn’t have room for a list of WCCC events in this issue, but there are always great events — many of which are free — available for current and future Chamber members to attend and this month is no different.

For all the latest events, visit WesleyChapelChamber.com. — GN

Happy Cow Is So Much More Than Just Great Frozen Yogurt!

THERE is little doubt that there are a lot of ice cream and frozen yogurt shops in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel — and several others that have come and gone the last few years.

So, how does a single location (a second location has opened on Gall Blvd. in Zephyrhills) of a (so far; see below) non-chain that opened next to Bonefish Grill in a crowded, Wesley Chapel shopping center in 2013 continue to distinguish itself from its competition?

Happy Cow Frozen Yogurt co-owner Ray Perez says that, at his brightly colored dessert shop, “Our products and unique, Disney-like environment and customer-first attitude are only the beginning. We are still service-based, even though the product itself is self-serve.”

For example, he says, that every staff member is taught to bring high chairs for parents toting babies and toddlers and to bring napkins when they notice that a customer forgot to grab some.

Happy Cow offers up to 16 flavors at once (Ray says there are at least 100 being rotated), and not all of them are frozen yogurt.

“We’re a true dessert shop,” he says. “In addition to frozen yogurt, we have soft-serve ice cream, soft serve gelato, sorbet and we always have gluten-free, no-sugar-added and fat-free options. We also offer 60 different toppings, 7 sauces, freshly baked cookies and brownies, waffle cones and fresh fruit. We even recently added amazing milkshakes and even ‘epic shakes’ like Cookies & Cream Craze.”

And, despite being up against any number of chain frozen yogurt shops across the Tampa Bay area, Happy Cow was voted “Best in the Bay” by Creative Loafing readers for 2016. It also has been the Favorite Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt Shop” of Neighborhood News readers entering our annual Reader Survey & Contest (see pg. 42 of this issue) the last three years in a row. “We’re proud that the people who read those publications love us,” Ray says.

Ray, whose wife Kristi helps out at the two current locations on weekends, also is partners with Connie and Bill Rogers in the Happy Cow corporate entity, which is now beginning to sell franchises — and not just for locations in strip shopping plazas. “We’re looking to put Happy Cow kiosks in malls and even schools.”

And, although he can’t yet announce anything in terms of franchises that already are sold, he says, “There is a lot of interest from the public in our brand. I should be able to make some announcements soon.”

He also says that catering is a popular part of the Happy Cow experience, especially in family-oriented, growing Wesley Chapel.

“We brought in one of our mobile machines to Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel for an event and served 600 members of the hospital’s staff,” he says. “And, everyone went home happy.”

Personally, my favorite flavors are peanut butter and cake batter and I usually start with one of Happy Cow’s chewy, fudgy brownies as a base. I also always have to have the hot chocolate fudge, peanut butter fudge and/or marshmallow cream topping. The good news is that if you don’t like what I enjoy, Happy Cow’s variety of toppings and sauces will surely include something you love, too.

Ray says that Happy Cow also is the only yogurt shop that delivers through Uber Eats to a limited area, including to Meadow Pointe, Seven Oaks and even Grand Hampton in New Tampa, “and it’s taken off more than I expected, without marketing it to our 17,000 Facebook and Instagram followers.”

Happy Cow Frozen Yogurt also has a user-friendly “C’mon, Get Happy” Rewards Club with “no passwords, no cards, just fun.”

And, with the coupon from the ad on pg. 3 of this issue, you’ll get 15-percent-off any product at Happy Cow.

Happy Cow Frozen Yogurt (1646 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.) is open at 11 a.m. every day and stays open until 10 p.m. every weeknight and until 11 p.m. on Fri. & Sat. For more information, visit HappyCowFroYo.com or call (813) 428-5929 and please tell Ray and the crew you read about them in the Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News!

Got Pain? Check Out Affordable, Quality Care At The Joint Chiropractic Center!

Alex and Valerie Pierroutsakos and their family invite you to visit The Joint Chiropractic in the Publix-anchored New Tampa Center plaza on BBD Blvd.

Two years before I moved from Westchester County, NY, to Wesley Chapel and three years before I purchased the Neighborhood News in 1994, one of my last part-time jobs in New York was as a “freelance marketing rep,” for a company that mainly dealt with doctors, dentists and other medical professionals who prior to that time, had never done much advertising of any kind because it was frowned upon by their respective professions.

My first client was a chiropractor, so I opened with a joke I had recently heard.

“Doc, is it true that a chiropractor can fix literally anything that’s wrong with you…in ‘only’ 50 visits?”

My client responded with a smile, “No, young man, it takes 100 visits.”

Shortly after that, I spoke with an orthopaedic surgeon I greatly respected who said that, “Yes, chiropractic is at least a step above voodoo.”

Well, that was more than 20 years ago and I’m not laughing anymore.

I met Alex Pierroutsakos, who operates the new New Tampa location of The Joint Chiropractic Center (in the Publix-anchored New Tampa Center shopping plaza on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. at New Tampa/Cross Creek Blvd.) with his wife, Valerie, at a Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce (WCCC) mixer a month or two before The Joint opened in June. Alex was talking about his new franchise and how it works to a small group of Chamber members. My fiancé (then, my girlfriend) Jannah turned to me and said, “I’m definitely doing this.”

Jannah, who has been seeing chiropractors for years following an auto accident that left her with chronic lower back and neck pain, said the only reason she stopped going was because she could only afford one or two adjustments a month and that wasn’t really enough to keep her pain at bay.

I, on the other hand, had never had any back or neck pain of any kind through my 40s. The only ongoing pain I had ever experienced was knee pain likely caused by playing basketball on cement in my late 30s, when I was often 25-50 pounds overweight. I had arthroscopic surgery on both knees almost 15 years ago and once I also lost the bulk of that additional weight, the knee pain went away.

But, since turning 50 a few (too many) years ago, it seems like every time I sleep “funny” or have to sit for too long at the computer without a break on deadline, I have been getting neck and/or lower back pain that feels like a needle jabbing me if I move too quickly. And, although I’ve never gained back more than 25 of the 50 lbs. I lost after my knee surgeries, alternating between my non-deadline weeks — where I work out and/or kayak 4-5 days a week to some deadline weeks where I do no exercise at all — had amplified my other pain and made my knees so creaky again that I was often walking with a limp.

The more I got to know Alex and Valerie, the more I realized that The Joint was the place for me.

Alex was involved in a car accident where someone else died eight years or so ago, that left him minus a limb.

“I have struggled with managing pain as well as trying to stay active and healthy,” he says. “In order to stay healthy and not grow dependent on opioids and other drugs, I have found massage and chiropractic care to be the keys to managing my pain and staying pain-free. Unfortunately, chiropractic care has been limited due to insurance limitations and cost and I had only been able to go when there was a problem or injury. Until The Joint, no model was available for me to get these benefits to stay aligned to prevent injury and manage bouts of phantom pain and back pain.  I am still very active as a runner, golfer, basketball, and active with my kids sports. ”

But, once these Wesley Chapel residents found The Joint franchise, Alex, a successful traveling business consultant, said he knew he had found the right niche for not only himself, but for a new business for his family.

“I realized that by having a Joint membership that offers four adjustments a month for one low price, I could take a more to take a proactive approach to my health, be in less pain, perform better in sports, while also saving money in the long run. And, I wanted to share that concept to other people.”

Member Benefits

 The Joint charges only $29 for an initial visit, which includes a consultation and physical exam with one of locations licensed chiropractic physicians (more on them below) and an adjustment, plus just $69 per month for four additional adjustments. If you need additional adjustments in a calendar month, they cost only $10 per visit.

The really cool thing about The Joint is that it stays open late (until 7 p.m.) and on weekends and you never need an appointment or even to call ahead. Since Jannah and I became the New Tampa location’s first two official clients on opening day in June, I have shown up more than a dozen times and have never had to wait more than 5 or 10 minutes to be seen by the doctor.

And, that’s by design. The Joint was originally founded in 1999 by a Doctor of Chiropractic with a vision to transform the traditional, often misunderstood concept of routine chiropractic care by making it more convenient, friendly and affordable. In March 2010, The Joint was re-founded with the acquisition of the original eight franchised clinics. Today, The Joint has grown to a nationwide network of more than 370 clinics utilizing more than 850 chiropractic physicians and the numbers continue to grow because it works. And, although no insurance is needed, The Joint is FSA (Healthcare Flexible Spending Account) and HSA (Health Savings Account)-accepted.

My New Friend, Dr. Barney

Although I had never met him before The Joint opened, I now consider the New Tampa location of The Joint’s Doctor of Chiropractic, Barnabas (Barney) Bickerton, D.C., to be my friend. Dr. Barney (photo, right) knew that I was nervous as I watched him adjust Jannah that first day (in The Joint’s open adjustment area) and he really took the time to discuss my issues before examining me. He then pinpointed, within a few moments, not only where I was feeling pain but also the source of that pain.

I told him the thing I was most worried about was having my neck adjusted, especially after watching him adjust Jannah’s neck, and he only massaged my neck in different positions that first visit. Instead, he focused not only on my back, but also on my achy knees and even the rotator cuffs in my arms.

Today, I’m an old pro at having my neck adjusted, thanks to the gentle, knowledgeable and caring Dr. Barney, and every time I visit The Joint, I feel better when I leave than I did when I came in.

And, Dr. Barney, who has more than 20 years of experience and earned his Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) degree from the Logan College of Chiropractic in Chesterfield, MO, isn’t alone at The Joint in New Tampa, where you also may see fellow D.C. Edward Leonard (whose TJ Wesley Chapel is listed as The Joint New Tampa’s owner; Alex and Valerie’s VALEX Inc. is listed as the location’s manager).

Both Jannah and her boss at the Pasco Education Foundation, Stacey Capogrosso, have both been adjusted by Dr. Leonard, as well as by Dr. Bickerton, and they agree that The Joint currently has two outstanding chiropractors.

“Val and I are focused on providing the care and experience from a customer and patient point of view,” Alex says. “We are both very strong believers in chiropractic care and focus on delivering the same experience we expect for ourselves but now to our customers that we serve in our neighborhood. Our location draws from both New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, which are both very health-oriented areas.”

Alex also says that the Wesley Chapel Chamber has been instrumental in helping The Joint get connected to the community and local businesses.  “But, more important is how welcoming the Chamber has been to us,” he says. “We are new to the area and were unsure of how the Chamber would help us. But, the Chamber members have welcomed us with open arms and helped us feel more connected with the community.”

And, The Joint has made me a believer, too. I feel great and I’ve even stopped limping.

For more information about The Joint Chiropractic-New Tampa Center (19014 BBD Blvd.), call (813) 995-7380, or visit TheJoint.com .