Final Touch Quality Cleaners — Amazing People & Fantastic Cleaning Services! 

(L.-r.) Reggie, Ryder, Erica & Ryleigh invite you to check out Final Touch Quality Cleaners, which will make sure every inch of your home, apartment, business or Airbnb will be sparkling when they leave. (All photos by Charmaine George) 

Reggie Wakefield and Erica Poniatowski, the owners of Final Touch Quality Cleaners, have become mine and Jannah’s friends over the course of the last two years, since they took over cleaning our previous apartment and especially, since they have been cleaning our larger, new apartment at the Silversaw Apartments. 

Jannah first met both Erica and Reggie at her Business Networking International (BNI) meetings. Erica joined the group and we all hit it off instantly. 

Both Erica and Reggie have cleaned our place, but Erica is more focused on her career as a RealtorÂź with Great Western Realty in Tampa, while Reggie…well, I’ll let him tell you. 

“I was cleaning houses and apartments in New York City when I was seven or eight years old, when my mom used to take me and one of my sisters (Brittany) with her. We were both young, so we thought she was just doing favors for our neighbors, but we later found out she had made a business out of it!” 

He adds, “We were both kind of chunky kids, so we loved cleaning food trucks because they would pay us with free food!,” he laughs. 

And, although Reggie got into the home alarm business when he and Erica graduated from the same high school in southern New Jersey, he says, “I’ve just always loved to clean! I get a feeling of satisfaction when I leave someone’s home or business sparkling.” 

So, when both he and Erica made the decision to move from New Jersey to Florida, after both of them left different alarm companies, it was Reggie who pushed for them to start their own cleaning service in the Sunshine State, especially since Brittany, the sister he used to clean with when they were kids, already owned a successful “sister” cleaning company in Norfolk, VA. 

The couple ultimately settled in nearby Lutz and Erica became the public face of the new Final Touch Quality Cleaners — despite Reggie’s winning smile and hard-to-resist personality — so he could focus on the cleaning side while she ran the business and handled the billing and marketing. 

“Even though she’s great at it, I know that cleaning isn’t Erica’s thing,” Reggie says. “When Erica said she wanted to get her real estate license, I was happy for her to go for it.” 

In the meantime, Final Touch has continued to grow, with all-5-star reviews on 16 reviews on Google. Customer Jackie P., in a 5-star Google review, says, “I’ve used Final Touch Quality Cleaners for everything I have! My home and my business! They do phenomenal work and their detailed approach is very reassuring. They also make our appliances look like new each time they leave and we always have a great smelling house afterwards. 10/10. Will always recommend and use.” 

One thing I’ve noticed when Reggie cleans our apartment is how methodical he is. We haven’t had an actual office for him to clean, but I can imagine how he would be able to expand what he does for us for a much larger space. 

Speaking of larger spaces, after Erica and Reggie met Rock & Brews general manager Kareem Nelson at a BNI function at the restaurant a year ago, they immediately were hired to clean it. 

“Kareem told me they had an in-house cleaning crew they weren’t happy with,” Reggie says. “I told him ‘I got you’ and we’ve been cleaning it ever since. I’m sad they’re closing it, not just because we’re losing a commercial client, but because Kareem has been so great to work with.” 

So, as of now, Reggie says he and Erica are focused on finding another big commercial account to replace Rock & Brews. 

“We have a crew and we all work the commercial accounts together to get it done — not just fast, but right!,” he says. “We’ll always make sure your office, restaurant or other place of business always looks as good as your home when we finish cleaning.” Reggie and Erica also are happy to clean your Airbnb, and provide move-in, move-out and post-construction cleans, too. 

Final Touch also is looking to hire additional cleaners after an amazing occurrence with part of their crew. “We had a couple working for us but they recently won a million dollars on a scratch-off ticket!,” Reggie says. “At first, they said they would keep on working…after all, a million dollars isn’t worth as much today as it once was… but they ended up leaving anyway.” 

Erica and Reggie have a daughter named Ryleigh and a son named Ryder and you can see how much they love their little family. 

“We’ve got to make it work for them,” Reggie says, “and I have no doubt we will.” 

New clients who mention this story will receive 10% off their first clean with Final Touch Quality Cleaners. For more information and a free estimate, call (813) 530-5591 or email FinalTouchQC@gmail.com. 

Sushi Update — Sushi Bowls & Ginza Are Gone, Sushi Time Is In 

It was only 3-1/2 months ago that we were the first to tell you about the opening of Sushi Bowls by Kazoku Sushi (photo below) in the Pebble Creek Collection, but co-owner Cristina Chanquin admits that Sushi Bowls closed abruptly a few weeks ago. She cited issues with finding a solid team to work at the New Tampa location and a need to “focus on the foundation of our business,” as Cristina and her husband Sergio also own Sushi House in Ybor City. 

“But, we do serve our bowls at the cafĂ©s at both the AdventHealth and BayCare hospitals in Wesley Chapel every Thursday,” she says. 

So, if you (like yours truly) were a fan of Sushi Bowls, you can still grab a tasty bowl at those local hospitals. 

Is It Sushi Time Yet? 

But, speaking of sushi, if you’ve been wondering what happened to Ginza Endless Sushi & Hibachi next to LA Fitness at 6417 E. County Line Rd. (top photo), it’s been replaced with another Japanese restaurant — Sushi Time Hibachi, Ramen & Seafood. 

Now open less than three weeks as this issue is reaching you, the new owners want everyone to know that Sushi Time is not another all-you-care-to-eat place, nor does it offer teppanyaki/hibachi tables in the dining room. 

It is, however, a reasonably priced, full-service, sushi-focused, sit-down Japanese restaurant with nearly 80 different sushi and sashimi options. Of course, Jannah and I first had to try — and gave thumbs-up to — the California roll shown above left), but we’ll be back for more. 

But, for those of you who, like us, enjoy Japanese/Asian appetizers like fried (or steamed) pork gyoza dumplings, spring and egg rolls, we did try all of the above and enjoyed them all — especially the extra-crispy pork egg rolls. 

We also sampled the chicken hibachi (which is still available, but made in the kitchen) shown right, which was loaded with large chunks of chicken and fresh veggies and served with white or pretty good fried rice. There also are steak and shrimp hibachi options and Asian favorites like Mongolian chicken or beef, General Tso’s chicken, beef or chicken with broccoli and more. For more info about Sushi Time, call (813) 364-4545 or visit SushiTimeTampa.com and please tell the owners I sent you! — GN

CAO Bakery — Don’t Judge A Delicious Restaurant By Its Location! 

I’ll admit that the first time I happened to walk into the Kangaroo Express gas station at 17519 Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. in New Tampa last year, I was actually looking for the Paris Baguette bakery — which is now located across BBD, but hadn’t opened yet. 

But, what I found was a section of the gas station’s convenience store that was a Cuban-style bakery that actually was open — known as CAO Bakery & Café— and you were definitely hit with a whiff of delicious baked goods in a large display case as you walked towards that case. 

“OK, great,” I thought, “I can always go for a guava pastelito, a beef or chicken empanada and/or a slice of cake — or all of the above.” 

CAO stands for Cuban American Original, but it also is the actual last name of one of the co-owners, Antonio Cao, who is a third-generation baker. Antonio and his partner and childhood friend, Carlos de Varona opened their first bakery together around 2000, in a very Cuban area of Miami called Westchester, not too far from Little Havana. 

Today, there are 20 CAO locations, mostly in South Florida — although there also is a full-service CAO Bakery on W. Hillsborough Ave. in Tampa — with more on the way. The BBD location is corporate-owned, but franchises are available, according to Antonio’s wife Yvette, who handles the marketing of the brand. 

“Most of our other locations are full-service bakery-restaurants of anywhere from 2,000-4,000 square feet,” Yvette says. “We were looking for a spot in the Wesley Chapel area and found that the previous vendor at this location had left, so we decided to open what we call an ‘express’ location there as a test market.” 

Even so, I had no idea how huge the menu at the New Tampa CAO was until I spoke with Yvette. Yes, there is a tremendous selection of freshly baked (from frozen) sweet and savory treats that are delivered from Miami to Tampa twice a week. But wait, there’s more. 

“You can tell that everything is freshly baked on premises,” Yvette says. “Once people find us, they tell us they love us!” 

And, despite being open for less than a year at this location, almost all of CAO’s Google reviews are 5-stars out of 5, including customer Omar Rodriguez-Hazan, who says he drives an hour from South Lakeland at least once a week, “to enjoy the flavors of Miami. The food and service are awesome. Don’t be fooled by the fact they are located in a gas station. They are a top-notch bakery which I highly recommend!” 

As for the non-pastry food options, CAO has delicious bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches (below left), a twist on the popular Media Noche sandwich called Medio Dia (above right; it’s a classic guava and cheese pastelito filled with ham and melted Swiss) and even a churrasco steak plate (top photo) of which customer Jason Hicks said in his 5-star Google review, “The meat was tender and the chimichurri sauce was great. The Cuban sandwich was good also and the prices are reasonable.” 

Other sandwiches include the frita CAO (a Cuban-style cheeseburger that is a house-made blend of beef, pork & chorizo, topped with crispy shoestring papitas, Swiss cheese and sazon aioli) and the Croqueta club (signature croquetas de la casa, layered with sliced turkey, crisp bacon, melted American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes & mayo) — and many more. 

Other satisfied customers have loved CAO’s catering options, like trays of assorted pastelitos and croquetas shown above. 

There also are more American dessert favorites like strawberry cheesecake (bottom photo on next page), carrot cake and Latin dessert staples like flan, cuatro leches, panetelita dulce de leche, flan cheesecake and so much more. 

And, many customers, including yours truly, rave about CAO’s cafĂ© con leche, including Oscar Olivera, who called it, “The best cafĂ© con leche in Tampa, no questions about it!!!” 

For more information about CAO, call (813) 280-9640 or visit CAOBakeryCafe.com to order pickup or delivery online. If you use code “CAOTAMPA” when you order, you’ll save $5 off any order of $20 or more. Or, mention the ad below or this story when you order in person to receive the discount. And, please tell them I sent you!

Cookie Plug Opens 3rd Florida Storefront In The Village At The Grove! 

Nicole (left) and Sommer Cholnik were first in line to buy a dozen cookies at the new Cookie Plug store in The Grove at Wesley Chapel on June 28. (Photos by Charmaine George)

Cookie Plug, an edgy, innovative bakery with more than 25 locations nationwide (and growing), has opened its newest storefront in The Village at The Grove at 6013 Wesley Chapel Grove Blvd., Suite 102 (next to the Ice Dreammm Shop). A nice crowd of locals lined up outside the new Cookie Plug at 11 a.m. on June 28, where they received free samples of the different flavors. There also was a DJ and a great Opening Day special — eight free giant-sized cookies when you purchased four, plus a drink. 

Cookie Plug Wesley Chapel is owned and operated by Florida resident David Johnson, who says he is eager to introduce the uniqueness of the bakery to locals. With support from his wife Jackie, Johnson plans to open more locations in the state, including one in Highwoods Preserve in New Tampa, which is at least a couple of months behind the Wesley Chapel store. 

“I was initially drawn to the creativity of the concept and the nod to hip-hop culture that Cookie Plug brings to the table, but then, the minute I tasted the cookies, I was hooked,” Johnson said in a press release. “We are particularly excited to serve the Wesley Chapel community in a space that is surrounded by thriving businesses, shops and homes. We are eager to bring this sweet addition to the area, offering thick-cut cookies in a variety of flavors that are unlike anything else you can get in Tampa Bay and beyond.” 

Originally founded in Riverside, CA, in 2019, Cookie Plug was inspired by graffiti and street art with the aim to add a unique twist to the conventional bakery. Offering cookies made fresh daily that are part cake, part brownie, part cookie and 100% delicious, the brand’s inventive menu offers 12 different flavors, including: s’mores, chocolate chip, sugar, triple chocolate, strawberry cheesecake (Charmaine and I both loved this one), red velvet, snickerdoodle and two rotating flavors, including this months “Black Ops,” the brownie-flavored cookie with red, white & blue star sprinkles shown in the box held by Nicole and Sommer Cholnik, who were first in line on June 28. 

Cookie Plug also has keto cookie options available, as well as mini “plug popper” cookies, ice cream sandwiches and custom cakes to satisfy any sweet tooth. 

“We have an incredible product and I can’t wait for locals in Wesley Chapel and Tampa Bay to experience it for themselves,” said David Denker, president and chief growth officer of Cookie Plug. 

Cookie Plug Wesley Chapel is open Mon.-Thur., noon-11 p.m.; noon-midnight on Fri. & Sat.; & noon- 9 p.m. on Sun. For more info, follow Cookie Plug on Instagram or Facebook @cookie.plug or visit CookiePlug.com/wesleychapel. For franchising opportunities, visit Franchise.CookiePlug.com. — GN 

The Secret Lounge Is Open In Freedom Plaza!

Located at 30120 S.R. 54 in the Freedom Plaza, between Bosco’s and the Smoke Shop, is The Secret Lounge, which is owned by Ahmed, who also owns the Smoke Shop. Former Bosco’s pizza guy Johnny (left) is among those serving up Halal hamburgers, cheeseburgers and hot dogs at The Secret Lounge, as well as French fries, onion rings, empanadas and tasty San Bernardo ice cream, all at great prices! For more info, call (813) 803-3463. — GNÂ