Do You Know Any Of These Newly Married Couples?

On a beautiful Valentine’s Day, February 14, 23 couples were joined in holy matrimony by Pasco Clerk of the Court & Comptroller Nikki Alvarez-Sowles (photo), in front of the historic courthouse building in Dade City. This is the 17th year Pasco has held a Valentine’s Day Wedding Ceremony, which has previously helped more than 300 couples tie the knot. 

There were two couples listed with Wesley Chapel addresses:

Edwin Rodriguez & Loretta Hernandez

Renande Valcine & Michelle L. Santiago

Best of luck to all of the happy couples!

Sean Bartell Foundation Charity Bingo Event Raises Thousands For Local Scholarships! 

(l.-r.) Simone & James Bartell, Paul & Jamie Bartell & Phyllis Yoder (Jamie’s Sister) at the Sean Bartell Memorial Foundation’s Charity Bingo event held in the cafeteria at Cypress Creek High on Jan. 24, which raised nearly $4,000 for the Foundation. (Photos by Charmaine George) 

Congratulations to my friends Jamie, Paul and James Bartell for hosting another successful Charity Bingo event for the Sean Bartell Memorial Foundation — which was named in honor and memory of Paul and Jamie’s younger son Sean, who passed away in 2014 from Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, or SJS. 

This year’s Charity Bingo event, which was postponed and had to find a new location because of Hurricane Milton, was held on Jan. 25 in the cafeteria at Cypress Creek High, and that Paul says was attended by about 150 people and raised just shy of $4,000. 

That money will be used to fund scholarships for seniors graduating from Wiregrass Ranch, Wesley Chapel, Cypress Creek and Zephyrhills high schools, as well as Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation off Curley Rd. for the first time. From 2015, when Jamie and Paul founded the Foundation, to last year, $74,000 already has been awarded in $1,000 scholarships and $10,000 provided to teachers at our local high schools. 

“We exceeded our expectations this year,” Paul says, “and hope to do even better next year!” 

Among the prizes won at this year’s Bingo event were (photo below) a 50” TV, Kate Spade and Michael Kors purses, dining gift cards, a set of top-quality steak knives and more. Congrats again! — GN 

Portillo’s ‘Beef Bus’ Visits The Tampa Premium Outlets, But Is It Opening There? 

Whether or not you were one of the midwestern U.S. natives who lost your minds when it was first announced that Portillo’s Hot Dogs was coming to “somewhere near” the Tampa Premium Outlets, you had a recent chance (on Jan. 26) to check out the Chicago fave in person at the main entrance to the outlet mall. 

The Portillo’s “Beef Bus” sat at the mall’s main entrance from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. that day, but a lot fewer people than I expected showed up to sample the Chicago-style hot dogs, chili dogs, crinkle-cut fries and Italian beef sandwiches than I expected, probably because there wasn’t much promoting of it beforehand (at least not that I saw). 

When photographer Charmaine George and I visited shortly after the Beef Bus first arrived that day, there were no lines whatsoever, but we immediately posted some pics and announced that even if you didn’t show up that day, you could still grab one of the “BOGO” cards (valid at any Florida Portillo’s, including the closest location on E. Fowler Ave., in front of the University Mall) that the restaurant’s marketing crew was giving away that day. They gave us about 50 of the cards, which we mentioned in our Facebook post and asked our readers/ followers to direct message me to say “I Love Portillo’s” in order to be sent one of the cards in the mail. At our press time, we still had about 20 left, so if you want one, send me an email with “I Love Portillo’s” in the subject line and we’ll mail you one, too, while my small supply lasts! 

Our new friends at the Portillo’s Beef Bus don’t know when or for sure where Portillo’s will open (or they at least didn’t say if they did know), but we have now been told by employees of Rock & Brews, which fronts S.R. 56 in front of the mall, that the KISS-inspired restaurant will close by May 1 of this year, when Portillo’s will begin the process of revamping the Rock & Brews building in anticipation of opening the Lutz/Wesley Chapel Portillo’s before the end of 2025. 

In the meantime, I hope you will continue to visit Rock & Brews. For more information about Portillo’s, visit Portillos.com. — GN 

Raising Cane’s Is Now Open On S.R. 56!

Neighborhood News Publisher & Local RealtorsŸ Donate A Prize To First-In-Line Sisters!

Raising Cane’s, the Baton Rouge, LA-based fast casual fried chicken chain founded by Todd Graves in 1996 that serves only fried chicken fingers (also available on a sandwich), crinkle-cut fries, Texas toast and cole slaw (below right), opened as previously announced in the print editions of the Neighborhood News on Jan. 28 at 25952 S.R. 56, Lutz, next to Rock & Brews. And, based on the crowds that were still filling the parking lot more than a week later, we know people are excited about it!

Jannah, photographer Charmaine George and I were there on opening day and we also attended the restaurant’s soft pre-opening VIP event  on Jan. 27 — and I have to say that we were all pretty impressed. Yes, the menu is simple, but it’s done right — the chicken fingers are lightly seasoned (NOT at all spicy!), super-crispy outside and moist on the inside. The fries also are crispy and tasty (and seemingly not seasoned, other than lightly salted, which I appreciate), the Texas toast is legit and the cole slaw is creamy and has just a hint of sweetness. 

If you only like spicy chicken, this is not the place for you, as even the Thousand Island-style “Cane’s sauce” offers no heat at all. But, if you like your chicken extra crispy and tasty, Raising Cane’s is definitely worth visiting!

As for opening day, 20 of the first 100 people in line (photo) on Jan. 28 received free Raising Cane’s for a year, but yours truly was saddened by the fact that Wesley Chapel residents (and sisters) Scarlett Sponberg and Fallon Fields (photo below), who arrived before 3 a.m. on the 28th in order to be first in line, were not among those “Grand Prize” winners. 

Even though Raising Cane’s marketing rep Stephanie Wielinski (in red in photo below) made it clear to everyone on line that being first didn’t guarantee receiving one of the top prizes, Realtors¼ Chad and April Emory of Emorys Rock Realty (visit EmorysRockRealty.com) and I didn’t think that was fair, so we went ahead and purchased enough gift cards to cover one year of free Raising Cane’s for those dedicated young ladies 

(l.-r. In top photo) Neighborhood News publisher Gary Nager, Scarlett Spongberg, Fallon Fields & RealtorÂź April Emory of Emorys Rock Realty)

Scarlett did receive a nice gift basket for being first in line, but April, Chad and I felt that just wasn’t enough for her and her sister!

Raising Cane’s gets props for providing a check for $1,000 to Wiregrass Ranch High (photo below), which brought along its cheerleading squad and other athletes to celebrate the donation.   

For more info about Raising Cane’s, call (813) 559-3590 or visit RaisingCanes.com — and please tell them I sent you! — GN

Enter Our FREE, Online-Only ‘Oscars’ Contest; Plus, Just How ‘Chicken’ Are You?! 

Oscar nominees Monica Barbaro & TimothĂ©e Chalamet in “A Complete Unknown” (Photo: IMDB)

We’ve only been able to even have an Academy Awards/ “Oscars” contest a few times in the past because of the timing of when the nominees are announced to when the annual Academy Awards are held vs. our deadlines for our print issues of the Neighborhood News.. 

As devastating as the uncontrolled wild fires in California have been, the fires caused both the announcement of this year’s nominees and the televised red carpet gala itself to be delayed — so much so that we actually have time to finally include this FREE contest again this year — and you could win some great prizes. 

If you’re a movie buff, you probably have seen many of the films included in this year’s list of finalists/nominees. 

But, even if you’re more like me — the only nominated films I’ve seen are “Wicked,” the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown” and Best Animated Film nominee “Inside Out 2” (the latter thanks to mine and Jannah’s granddaughter Rosie) — you have a chance to win some great prizes by simply telling us which films and actors YOU think will win the coveted gold statuettes. 

Here’s How The Contest Works: 

CLICK HERE and provide us with your REAL (you’d be surprised how many entries with fake names we receive in our contests every year — I know I’m always surprised) first AND last name, the community you live in, email address and daytime phone number. In addition, we ask each entrant in this contest to please pick the winner in each of the following major Oscars categories: 

1. Best Picture 

2. Best Actress 

3. Best Actor 

4. Best Supporting Actress 

5. Best Supporting Actor 

6. Best Director 

7. Best Animated Feature Film 

If only one entrant picks the most winners in those seven categories, that person will win a prize package to the B&B Theatres at The Grove, which could include movie tickets, popcorn, dinner and drinks, valued at about $200. 

However, if more than one entry has the same number of correct picks, the winner will be drawn at random from all tied entries. Each of the other tied entries will receive two top-level B&B movie passes. 

That’s all you need to do/know. Please note that we already have posted a link to the contest page on our “Neighborhood News” Facebook page and will do so again at least once each of the two weeks between when you receive this issue in your mailbox and the ABC-TV telecast of the Academy Awards on Sunday, March 2. 

At our press time, we only received a little more than 20 entries, so the contest would appear to be wide open. But please, get your entry in no later than Saturday, March 1, at 11:59:59 p.m., to be eligible! 

Please note that B&B Theatres at The Grove is not affiliated with this contest. 

So, Just How ‘Chicken’ Are You? 

Despite all of the nasty online comments about the sheer number of chicken places now located in or adjacent to Wesley Chapel, the fact is that we probably wouldn’t have so many chicken-only (or predominantly chicken) places if there wasn’t a demand for them and, it seems, that most locals have both their favorites and least favorites among the following (in alphabetical order): 

Chicken Guy! 

Chick-fil-A 

Chick’n Fun 

Dave’s Hot Chicken 

Hangry Joe’s Hot Chicken 

PDQ 

Popeye’s 

Raising Cane’s 

Slim Chickens 

Sweet Krunch Korean Fried Chicken 

Zaxby’s 

Since I am not the biggest “fast food” chicken enthusiast myself, I decided to give those of you who claim to be true lovers of fried chicken an opportunity to be judges in a Neighborhood News-sponsored contest to find Wesley Chapel’s favorite fast-casual chicken place! 

I haven’t figured out all of the details yet of how it will work or when it will be (or if any of the places listed will agree to be part of it), but if you’re interested in being one of the judges, please email me at ads@ntneighborhoodnews.com with your contact info (name, daytime phone number & community you live in) and “I want to be a chicken contest judge” in the subject line!