Another Chance To Win FREE Dining In Our 2024 Reader Dining Survey & Contest!

So, it seems that the change in format has thrown some of our usual voters for a loop, but here’s the bottom line: There’s only about two months left for you to submit your votes for your Favorite Restaurants in New Tampa & Wesley Chapel — and to win up to $200 in FREE dining to the restaurant of your choice!

If you click HERE, you’ll find lists of every local and small chain restaurant in a number of categories in both Wesley Chapel and New Tampa). We’re asking you to name your favorites in each category. You can skip as many categories as you like, but we’re grouping the lists of restaurants by type. Here are those categories:

1) Your Five Favorite (overall) Restaurants in Wesley Chapel (WC)

2) Your Favorite American Restaurant in Wesley Chapel

3) Your Favorite Pizza Place in WC

These same categories also appear on the New Tampa ballot. Both entry forms also include lists of places that ask you to pick your Favorite places in New Tampa (NT) AND Wesley Chapel (WC). Here are those other categories:

1) You Favorite Mexican Place in NT/ WC

2) Your Favorite Latin (but not Mexican) Restaurant in NT/WC

3) Your Favorite Chinese Place in NT/WC

4) Your Favorite Japanese/Sushi Restaurant in NT & WC

5) Your Favorite Thai or Korean Restaurant in NT/WC

6) Your Favorite Italian Food in NT/WC

7) Your Favorite Greek or Mediterranean Restaurant in NT/WC

8) Your Favorite Indian Place in NT/WC

9) Your Favorite Breakfast Place in NT/WC

9) Your Favorite Ice Cream, Frozen Yogurt or Gelato Place in NT/WC

10) Your Favorite Bakery in NT/WC

11) Your Favorite Coffee Shop in NT/WC

We’re providing the lists of places — although we’ve left out the large national and regional chains (with more than 50-60 total locations), because you still have to type in the names of your favorites in the spaces provided and we’re pretty sure you know those chains if they’re your favorite in a category — and yes, you can still include them (we just wish you would focus more on local).

Fill out as many categories as you like, but please don’t put the same name in every category, because those votes won’t be counted. And, if a restaurant is on our Wesley Chapel list, your vote won’t count if you write the name of that restaurant in any New Tampa-only spaces and vice-versa. You can submit both New Tampa & Wesley Chapel ballots without being DQed. 

We have upped the prizes for this year — the Grand Prize is now $200, plus prizes of $100 and $50, chosen at random from among all correctly-filled-out entries received by email or on our NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net website (Note-no U.S. Mail entries will be accepted for this year’s contest!) by Friday, October 18

Good luck! — GN

Updates On Steak N Shake, The Alley, 3 Natives & Bosphorous

Although some folks online will try to convince you that it’s going to be a different restaurant, I can say with full confidence that the building directly west (southwest?) of The Palms Car Wash will indeed be a Steak ‘n Shake. 

Owner Todd Webb and general manager Jason Good were hoping to have the new restaurant open at 5542 Post Oak Blvd. (off Wesley Chapel Blvd.) by the time this issue reached your mailbox, but Todd says he is now hoping to open sometime around the first or second week of September. 

“It’s definitely been tough,” he says. “But we are confident we will get this place done and open, hopefully soon!”

Todd, who also owns the adjacent Palms Car Wash (5550 Post Oak Blvd.), says that in addition to Grand Opening specials at Steak ‘n Shake, he plans to do cross-promotions between the two businesses.

(L.-r.) General manager Jason Good and owner Todd Webb’s sons Wyatt and J.R. can’t wait until the Wesley Chapel Steak ‘n Shake opens on Post Oak Blvd. 

“We do full detailing at The Palms Car Wash,” he says, “so while your car is being detailed, you can go next door and enjoy a Steak & Shake burger, those famous fries and a milk shake. And, we will have promotions like buy a car wash membership, get a coupon for Steak ‘n Shake.”

He says he and Jason also plan to do kids specials on Thursdays afternoons at Steak ‘n Shake.

“On Thursdays, 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m., we’ll have a balloon artist and face painter. We’ll also do a Facebook Live from Steak ‘n Shake every week, with drawings for about 10 prizes, like a $30 gift certificate for The Palms for a free Car Wash Club, free value meals at the restaurant and more.”

Todd, who has owned more than 30 different businesses, says he is as excited about Steak ‘n Shake as he has ever been about any previous business. 

“I just want to get it open,” he says. 

For more information about The Palms Car Wash, go get your car washed or visit ThePalmsCarWash.com. Until the Wesley Chapel location actually opens, visit the Steak ‘n Shake at 17509 N. Palms Village Pl. in New Tampa or SteaknShake.com.

New Food & Beverages At The Mall

If you’ve been hoping for some new food and beverage options to open in our area, the Shops at Wiregrass is getting ready to welcome two new places to replace two that closed.

The first is The Alley Tea • Café • Life (photo right) at 28211 Paseo Dr., Suite 180, in the former location of PhoLicious. But, where PhoLicious was more of a fast casual restaurant with Vietnamese cuisine, The Alley is strictly a place for a variety of boba (bubble) tea drinks (although some locations of the 17-store West Coast-based chain do list desserts on their menu, too). The Alley is expected to open on or around Aug. 15

Speaking of beverages, the former location of Clean Juice (and a previous juice/smoothie place) at 28216 Paseo Dr., Suite 170, in the mall is getting ready to reopen as 3 Natives Açai & Juicery, which is a Florida-based chain with more than 30 current locations. What appears to be promising about 3 Natives is that in addition to the usual pressed juices and açai bowls, the online menu also includes nice-looking wrap and pressed sandwiches, as well as salads (photo below). 

According to 3Natives.com: “We source the finest and freshest ingredients possible for all of our menu items…Whether you’re on a lunch break, looking for a quick snack, or just in the mood for sweet and healthy — we’ve got you. Our diverse, fresh and extremely delicious menu items are made to order and hand-crafted to satisfy.” 

3 Natives also is expected to open later this month but also is looking for members to join the team.

There’s a sign out in front of the place with a QR code to scan if you’re interested.

But of course, the new restaurant many people are excited about is Bosphorous, the Turkish cuisine eatery with six existing locations (including one  expected to open soon at 714 S. Howard Ave. in Tampa). Unfortunately, according to a spokesperson for the mall, Bosphorous isn’t likely to open much before the end of this year.

We also hope to have an announcement about the replacement for Irish 31 soon.— GN

KRATEs & More Featured On ABC Action News’ ‘Good Morning, Wesley Chapel!’  

Scenes from ABC Action News’ “Good Morning Wesley Chapel” segments on June 14: (above) Anchor Deiah Riley visits with our friends from Retro Dogs and Bakery X at the KRATE at the Grove Container Park (below right). (below left) Roving reporter Sean Daly visits Pasta di Guy. (bottom right) Co-owner Adel Youussef of the Garden of Eden Olive Oil Co. at the KRATEs was featured in a segment. (bottom left) Daly interviews the owners of Sorbo Wesley Chapel coffee shop. (Above photo by Charmaine George; the others are screenshots from the “Good Morning, Wesley Chapel” segments).

Great job, Deiah & Co.! On June 14, WFTS-TV “ABC Action News” anchor Deiah Riley brought her roving “Good Morning” show back to Wesley Chapel, as she set up on the main stage at the KRATE at The Grove Container Park from 6 a.m.-10 a.m. 

There were the usual great previously recorded segments with the likes of North Tampa Bay Chamber president & CEO Hope Kennedy and members of the Boyette family (one of the original citrus farming families that settled in the Wesley Chapel area) being interviewed, as well as a discussion of whether “Downtown Wesley Chapel” will actually be located in Avalon Park or the Wiregrass Ranch community and a feature about the increased amenities at the Wesley Chapel District Park. 

But of course, what got our attention the most were the live dining segments with Riley interviewing the owners of several of the KRATEs, and roving reporter Sean Daly (right) visiting with some of the better- and lesser-known eateries in Wesley Chapel, including (top photo) the new Retro Dogs, Garden of Eden Olive Oil Co., Bakery X (middle right), Sorbo Wesley Chapel coffee shop (bottom left), Moschella’s Italian Eatery & Market, Florida Ave. Brewing Co., Pasta di Guy (top left photo) and several more. 

Although there are, of course, so many other places in Wesley Chapel, I really enjoyed this full morning of local businesses being featured on TV. Again, great job! — GN

2024 New Tampa Neighborhood News Reader Dining Survey & Contest!

Click HERE To Enter Our 2024 New Tampa Reader Dining Survey & Contest & To Win $200 In FREE Dining! 

Although our 2023 Reader Dining Survey & Contest was super successful, we’re changing up the format for this year’s contest yet again. 

Instead of putting up different categories every issue, we’re going back to showing you the lists of every local or small chain restaurant in a number of categories in both Wesley Chapel and New Tampa and asking you to name your favorites in each category. One difference is that unlike previous years, you can skip as many categories as you like, but we’re grouping the lists of restaurant by type. Here are those categories: 

1) Your Five Favorite (overall) Restaurants in New Tampa (NT)

2) Your Favorite American Restaurant in New Tampa

3) Your Favorite Pizza Place in NT 

These same categories also appear on the Wesley Chapel ballot. Both entry forms also include lists of places that ask you to pick your Favorite in New Tampa (NT) AND Wesley Chapel, often (but not always) because there aren’t enough in a certain category in just one of our distribution areas. Here are those other categories: 

4) Your Favorite Mexican Place in NT/ WC 

5) Your Favorite Latin (but not Mexican) Restaurant in NT/WC 

6) Your Favorite Chinese Place in NT/WC 

7) Your Favorite Japanese/Sushi Restaurant in NT & WC 

8) Your Favorite Thai or Korean Restaurant in NT/WC 

9) Your Favorite Italian Food in NT/WC 

10) Your Favorite Greek or Mediterranean Restaurant in NT/WC 

11) Your Favorite Indian Place in NT/WC 

12) Your Favorite Breakfast Place in NT/WC 

13) Your Favorite Ice Cream, Frozen Yogurt or Gelato Place in NT/WC 

14) Your Favorite Bakery in NT/WC 

15) Your Favorite Coffee Shop in NT/WC 

We’re providing the list of places, although we’ve left out the large national and regional chains (with more than 50-60 total locations), because you have to write (or type) the names of your favorites in the spaces provided and we’re pretty sure you know those if they’re your favorite in a category — and yes, you can still include them (we just wish you would focus on local). 

Fill out as many categories as you like, but please don’t put the same name in every category, because those votes won’t be counted and if a restaurant is on our Wesley Chapel list, your vote won’t count if you write the name of that restaurant in any New Tampa-only spaces and vice-versa. You can submit both New Tampa & Wesley Chapel ballots without being DQed. Click HERE to fill out the Wesley Chapel Reader Dining Survey & Contest form!

We have upped the prizes for this year — the Grand Prize is now $200, plus prizes of $100 and $50, chosen at random from among all correctly-filled-out entries received by email or on our NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net website (Note-no U.S. Mail entries will be accepted for this year’s contest!) by Friday, October 18

Good luck! — GN 

2024 Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News Reader Dining Survey & Contest!

Click HERE To Enter Our 2024 Wesley Chapel Reader Dining Survey & Contest & To Win $200 In FREE Dining! 

Although our 2023 Reader Dining Survey & Contest was super successful, we’re changing up the format for this year’s contest yet again. 

Instead of putting up different categories every issue, we’re going back to showing you the lists of every local or small chain restaurant in a number of categories in both Wesley Chapel and New Tampa and asking you to name your favorites in each category. One difference is that unlike previous years, you can skip as many categories as you like, but we’re grouping the lists of restaurant by type. Here are those categories: 

1) Your Five Favorite (overall) Restaurants in Wesley Chapel (WC) 

2) Your Favorite American Restaurant in Wesley Chapel 

3) Your Favorite Pizza Place in WC 

These same categories also appear on the New Tampa ballot. Both entry forms also include lists of places that ask you to pick your Favorite in New Tampa (NT) AND Wesley Chapel, often (but not always) because there aren’t enough in a certain category in just one of our distribution areas. Here are those other categories: 

4) Your Favorite Mexican Place in NT/ WC 

5) Your Favorite Latin (but not Mexican) Restaurant in NT/WC 

6) Your Favorite Chinese Place in NT/WC 

7) Your Favorite Japanese/Sushi Restaurant in NT & WC 

8) Your Favorite Thai or Korean Restaurant in NT/WC 

9) Your Favorite Italian Food in NT/WC 

10) Your Favorite Greek or Mediterranean Restaurant in NT/WC 

11) Your Favorite Indian Place in NT/WC 

12) Your Favorite Breakfast Place in NT/WC 

13) Your Favorite Ice Cream, Frozen Yogurt or Gelato Place in NT/WC 

14) Your Favorite Bakery in NT/WC 

15) Your Favorite Coffee Shop in NT/WC 

We’re providing the list of places, although we’ve left out the large national and regional chains (with more than 50-60 total locations), because you have to write (or type) the names of your favorites in the spaces provided and we’re pretty sure you know those if they’re your favorite in a category — and yes, you can still include them (we just wish you would focus on local). 

Fill out as many categories as you like, but please don’t put the same name in every category, because those votes won’t be counted and if a restaurant is on our Wesley Chapel list, your vote won’t count if you write the name of that restaurant in any New Tampa’-only spaces and vice-versa. You can submit both New Tampa & Wesley Chapel ballots without being DQed. Click HERE to fill out the Wesley Chapel Reader Dining Survey & Contest form!

We have upped the prizes for this year — the Grand Prize is now $200, plus prizes of $100 and $50, chosen at random from among all correctly-filled-out entries received by email or on our NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net website (Note-no U.S. Mail entries will be accepted for this year’s contest!) by Friday, October 18

Good luck! — GN