Nibbles & Bites: Fazzoli’s & Barberitos Are Coming Soon To S.R. 54 

Research by Joel Provenzano 

The current construction at The Shoppes at Cypress Creek. 

Although it’s not going to be located in Wesley Chapel, a new 8,000-sq.-ft. building now under construction on S.R. 54 in Lutz, less than a mile west of the Tampa Premium Outlets (and just west of the Mobil gas station), will finally soon be home to two new restaurants — Fazoli’s and Barberitos. 

People have been asking for a while about these two fast casual eateries, as the signs for both had been located at the site for more than a year before the plaza, which is being called The Shoppes at Cypress Creek, began construction. 

The Take 5 Oil Change facility has been open for several weeks now in what is being called The Shoppes at Cypress Creek. 

Well, even though only the Fazoli’s sign is currently still standing, it appears that both restaurants are going to be included in the same under-construction building between the Mobil station and the new Take 5 Oil Change (see bottom photo), which is the first of what ultimately will be four buildings to be located on the 3.52-acre site. 

The site plan submitted with Pasco County by St. Petersburg-based retail developer Paradise Ventures, Inc., calls for three retail tenants in the under-construction building (photo below), the nearly 2,700-sq.ft. westernmost one (closest to the already-built Woodie’s Wash Shack) with a drive-through lane, which we’re assuming will be Fazoli’s, since all of the chain’s current locations (including the nearest one on E. Busch Bvd.) have a drive-through. 

The development’s site plan.

Based on the development’s site plan, it appears that Barberitos will be located in the 1,800-sq.-ft. easternmost space (closest to Take 5) and an as-yet unnamed retailer in the 2,675-sq.-ft. middle space. 

The third building at the site, which is not yet under construction, is a future restaurant pad that the site plan says will be a maximum of 5,500 sq. ft. 

For leasing and other information about the Shoppes at Cypress Creek, call John Mott at (727) 812-1555 or visit ParadiseVenturesInc.com. 

More About Fazoli’s 

According to Fazolis.com, the Kentucky-based chain founded in 1988 has more than 200 locations, the majority of which are franchises in more than half of the 50 U.S. states, including six in Florida. 

The Ultimate Sampler (fettuccine Alfredo, spaghetti & meatballs, penne w/meat sauce and lasagne w/ meat sauce.

The 35-year-old company’s slogan is “Fast. Fresh. Italian.” and fans of the brand say the breadsticks are “even better than Olive Garden’s.” 

Well, I’ve never been a fan of Olive Garden’s breadsticks, but I do love Italian food, so I am hopeful, since Jannah and I live so close to the coming-soon location, that it will be worth the long wait. I likely will visit the Busch Blvd. location sometime after this issue hits mailboxes to try it out. 

In addition to those breadsticks, Fazoli’s features pizzas, pastas (including baked pastas like lasagne and chicken parmigiana), “Snacks & Shareables” (like baked meatballs and fried mozzarella bites), hot and cold subs, salads and a variety of pasta samplers, such as the four-item combo shown above. 

More About Barberitos 
The burrito bowl at Barberitos. 

According to Barberitos.com, the Athens, GA-based fast-casual Southwestern cuisine eatery was founded in 2000 by Downing Barber. The restaurant’s slogan is “Food ‱ Community ‱ People.” 

The “Coming Soon” notification I found says that Barberitos features, “farm-fresh burritos, tacos, quesadillas, salads and more in a casual, family-friendly atmosphere. Choose one of our popular specialty items or create your own favorite from one of more than 30 toppings…and our made-in-house salsas.” 

The nearest to us of the 50+ Barberitos throughout the southeastern U.S. is in Panama City, FL, so I guess I won’t be able to visit one anytime soon. 

The Hub At Lexington Will Offer Another Opportunity To Stay Local 

The buzz words are “downtown,” “neo-traditional” and even Pasco County Commissioner Seth Weightman’s own term, “Eatertainment,” but more and more large developments in the Wesley Chapel area are offering residents the opportunity to live, work, play and eat in or adjacent to their home communities. 

We currently have The Grove at Wesley Chapel and its KRATE Container Park being surrounded by new apartment units, the Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel area will begin opening its first building — with locally owned restaurants and businesses on the ground floor and rental apartment units on the upper floors — by the early part of 2024 and the Wiregrass Ranch development will likely begin developing its long-planned Town Center area sometime sooner than later. 

But, the concept of being able to eat and be entertained in your own backyard will soon not be limited to those new large-scale developments, as The Hub At Lexington will bring 40,000 square feet of “Experiential Dining & Entertainment,” including restaurants, retail shops and at what appears to be Shanks Indoor Golf & Bar (see pg. 18), to the northwest corner of Wesley Chapel Blvd. and Lexington Oaks Blvd. (see sign below), in front of the Sentosa apartments and is expected to begin building by a day or so after this issue reached your mailbox. 

According to leasing agent Courtney Bissett- Hayes of Bissett McGrath Properties, The Hub at Lexington will include 15-20 local and regional restaurants in six buildings and an as-yet unknown entertainment venue, all with access to covered outdoor seating with 12 large artificial trees providing shade. It’s being developed by Center Connect Development, which already has opened its The Hub at Bexley (but not yet with all of its businesses open) on S.R. 54 at Bexley Village Dr./Northpointe Pkwy., in front of the Bexley community near the Suncoast Pkwy. As shown on the sign below, the developer prides itself on providing “Live, Work & Play” opportunities. 

Jannah and I visited The Hub at Bexley (top photos) during its weekly Friday evening street fair and while it’s reminiscent of The Village at The Grove, the covered area provides great relief from our Florida heat and includes the now-open Grain & Berry and Thirsty Buffalo brewery, plus The Poke Company, The Blend Coffee & Cocktails, Taco Bus and downtown St. Pete favorite Bella Brava, as well as Duckweed Liquors, a fitness location and more coming soon. 

Bissett-Hayes says that The Hub at Lexington is larger and will have twice as many artificial shade trees (12 vs. 6) as The Hub at Bexley. 

For leasing information at The Hub at Lexington, call Courtney Bissett-Hayes at (813) 340-7936. 

Lotte Plaza Market To Open On BBD On November 3! 

A sampling of food items at SGD So Gong Dong Tofu & BBQ.

With the large population of Asian people living in both New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, there’s no doubt that a lot of folks in both of our distribution areas have been excited about the long-awaited opening of the Lotte Plaza Market, the latest link in the largest (with more than a dozen units) chain of Asian supermarkets. 

Well, that wait is about to end, as Lotte (located at 17605 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.) has not only scheduled its Grand Opening to the public for Friday, November 3, at 9 a.m., yours truly got to walk around — and take pictures of all of the departments — at the nearly-finished store shortly before we went to press with this issue. And, even though I’m not Korean or of Asian descent, I am truly excited about this 49,000-sq.-ft. former (and long-vacant) Sweetbay (and Kash N Karry before that) store, which is much more than just another supermarket. 

The interior of a Tous Les Jours bakery at another location. 

Yes, there are massive bags of rice, a huge variety of Ramen noodles and many other Asian staples. But, the thing that got me most excited, as you might expect, is that our Lotte will have at least five different options in it sizable food court (called Eatery Sijang), all of which are serving different Korean cuisine, although there also is a renowned South Korea-owned French bakery chain, called Tous Les Jours. The other food court options, which are sure to be packed every day, include Luna Tea, BB.Q Chicken, SGD So Gong Dong Tofu & BBQ and JAWS Topokki. 

Check the pics on this page for not only under-construction food court pics, but of the fresh seafood, butcher shop, grocery and Lotte’s unique gifts and housewares. For more info, visit LottePlaza.com. — GN 


(Above, l.-r.) The ordering kiosk at the New Tampa Lotte’s Eatery Sijang & samples of JAWS Topokki’s food & galbi fried chicken from BB.Q. Chicken that may be on the kiosk. 

Why Are There So Many Car Washes In Wesley Chapel? 

Research by Jannah Nager

 Wesley Chapel, New Tampa and the surrounding areas are — fortunately or unfortunately — known for being overrun by regional and national chain restaurants, nail salons, multi-story self-storage facilities and, of course, huge car wash buildings. 

And, while some of these car wash facilities are locally owned and/or regional chains. the trend in this industry is in the growth of large conglomerates offering you the opportunity to have your car washed by giant machines in just a few minutes while you stay seated in your vehicle with the gear shift in “Neutral” and the windows closed. Most of these car wash facilities offer recurring monthly memberships that the companies are hoping you’ll use like many people do gym memberships — meaning they hope you use them as little as possible or not at all as you continue to pay each month for the equivalent price of two or three jacked-up individual washes. 

While they are obviously profitable, why do we already have — and seem to need — so many of them? 

Pretty much anytime I’m on Facebook, I see someone in one of the many Wesley Chapel Facebook groups making a snide comment about how many car washes we have in and around our area. 

Woodie’s Wash Shack, which opened on S.R. 54 in Feb. 2022, west of the Tampa Premium Outlets, plans to open a Wesley Chapel location on Oakley Blvd. near The Grove. (

So, why are there so many dang car washes? While some online critics believe they’re all money laundering (no pun intended) fronts, the fact is that they are hugely profitable, especially when they’re owned by a large national or regional company. 

One industry official, who asked to not be identified for this story, says it’s because, “just as McDonald’s isn’t really in the hamburger business, but in the real estate business (at least according to the 2016 movie “The Founder,” starring Michael Keaton as McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc), these big car wash conglomerates are buying up valuable land, putting a car wash on them and, many times, selling the land at a huge profit a few years later.” 

However, Glen Stygar, a partner in Woodie’s Wash Shack, which has 16 Florida locations, including one that opened in Feb. 2022 on S.R. 54 in Lutz (less than a mile west of the Tampa Premium Outlets), says there are more reasons why car washes keep popping up in affluent areas across the country. 

“For one thing,” Stygar says, “people in today’s fast-paced world no longer want to have to wash their cars themselves or pay someone a lot of money and spend many hours detailing their vehicles, and they don’t have to as much anymore because they can get a membership at a local car wash and have their car washed as many times a month or a week as they want, for one low price.” 

He adds that memberships are the biggest reason places like Woodie’s and big chains like Mister Car Wash (with more than 400 locations nationwide, including several in our area) and Tidal Wave Auto Spa (with nearly 200, including one between Zaxby’s and Aldi near Costco) continue to proliferate everywhere. 

In fact, Woodie’s has another location planned (but not yet under construction) on Oakley Blvd. in Wesley Chapel, which will one day be a neighbor to the new Super Target store in The Grove. 

Mister Car Wash has 400+ U.S locations, including this one in New Tampa and three more in & near Wesley Chapel. 

As I mentioned on page 1 of this issue, it is very much like the fitness facility model that has worked for decades. Many people who buy a membership at an initially very low price (that goes up after a 1-3-month trial period) rarely or even never use that membership, but continue to pay month after month until they finally either cancel or begin using it enough to get their money’s worth. Stygar wouldn’t say that Woodie’s hopes you’ll never use your membership — and he did say that the company’s policy is to never give you a hard time to cancel — but as someone who paid for a membership for three months and only used it twice in that time, I certainly can understand how this can be a profitable business model. 

Car washes also aren’t as labor-intensive as they once were — fewer people insist that someone dry their cars after they come out of the machine (and most offer you free cloths to dry your car yourself) — and while the vacuums also are free when you get your car washed, they no longer have people vacuuming your vehicle for you. 

Mister Car Wash is the current local market leader, having taken over two local Clean Machine locations on BBD in New Tampa, and with two local locations on S.R. 54 (one in Wesley Chapel and one in Lutz), but there are currently ten drive-through membership-based car wash places in and around Wesley Chapel — and more are on the way. 

Tidal Wave Auto Spa has 194 U.S. locations, including this one next to Costco and 12 total in Florida, with five more coming soon. 

And of course, the list in the next column doesn’t include the wash-it-yourself car washes, hand auto detailing places or drive-through car washes at local gas stations. 

As for pricing, the cheapest prices we found among the membership car washes were at The Palms Car Wash on Post Oak Blvd., where a single “Express” wash costs just $5 and an Express membership is just $14.95 a month. The most expensive prices we found were at Tidal Wave, with the cheapest single wash being $12 and the most expensive being the Graph-X4 wash for $30. Monthly memberships at Tidal Wave range from $23.97 to $49.97 per month. 

We’ll look into another local favorite — self-storage places — in a future issue. 

Local Drive-Through Car Washes 
NameLocation
Mister 29891 SR 54, WC 
Mister 24124 SR 54, Lutz 
Mister(Clean Machine) 20306 Trout Creek Dr, NT 
Mister(Clean Machine) 17501 N Palms Village Dr, NT 
Top Edge 28221 SR 54, WC 
Top Edge (coming) 27186 SR 56, WC 
Woodie’s 24749 SR 54, Lutz 
Woodie’s (coming) Oakley Blvd, WC 
Tidal Wave 2209 Sun Vista Dr, Lutz 
The Palms 5550 Post Oak Blvd, WC 
Jammin (coming) BBD Blvd., WC