Both Azteca DâOro in the Shops at Wiregrass (see ad below) and the two Don Julioâs locations (see ad below) will host huge celebrations â with mariachis, food & drink specials and more â for Cinco de Mayo on Saturday the 4th, and the celebrations also will continue on Sunday, the 5th, at both Don Julioâs locations.
We received word earlier today that two Irish pubs with Wesley Chapel addresses â Irish 31 in The Shops at Wiregrass and the Beef O’Brady’s on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. in the Shoppes at New Tampa at Wesley Chapel, just south of the mall â had closed.
Irish 31 posted the following notice on its Facebook page on April 29:
“Thank you, Wesley Chapel, for 7 wonderful years! Sadly, our Wiregrass location has officially closed its doors, but we hope to raise a pint with you some day soon at one of our other Tampa Bay pubs.”
Meanwhile, although we saw no such announcement for the Beef O’Brady’s on BBD, the location was no longer included on the store locator on the Beef’s website and the manager who answered the phone at the Beef’s location on Wesley Chapel Blvd. (next to Winn-Dixie) â which is still open and under new ownership â confirmed that the BBD location had indeed closed.
In case you were wondering, the O’Brien’s Irish Pub in the Wesley Chapel Village Market on BBD is definitely still open, as is the new 40 Thieves Irish Pub on County Line Rd. at Livingston Rd. in Lutz.Â
Get ready for an exhilarating blend of southern charm, high-stakes excitement and philanthropic fervor as the Tampa Derby Day + Casino Night Fundraiser returns for its third annual edition.Â
Hosted this year at The Venetian Event Center on Cross Creek Blvd. in New Tampa, this Kentucky Derby-themed extravaganza promises an unforgettable experience, seamlessly blending the glamour of the races with the thrill of casino-style gambling.
Before the sun sets on May 4, guests will step into an atmosphere buzzing with excitement. This highly anticipated event has sold out each year, becoming a staple on Tampaâs social calendar. This enchanted evening kicks off at 3 p.m., offering a unique fusion of sophistication and entertainment until 8 p.m.
The Venetian Event Center at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church will set the stage for a night of elegance and celebration. A haven for bow ties and big hats, the venue echoes the grandeur of the Kentucky Derby itself. This will be the first year that this event is held in New Tampa.
Event Highlights:
âą Premium Entertainment: Saxophonist Manzell Bledsoe headlines the event.
âą Gaming Excitement: Casino-style gaming will elevate the stakes.
âą Culinary Delights: From 3 p.m.- 5 p.m., guests will indulge in complimentary premium food and non-alcoholic beverages, setting the stage for an evening of refined enjoyment.
âą Race Day Thrills: Experience the heart-pounding moments of the âmost exciting two minutes in sportsâ with real-time viewings of the Kentucky Derby.
âą Philanthropic Impact: All proceeds from the event will directly benefit the Tampa Alumni Guide Right Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to empowering local youth through a variety of programs, including the Kappa Leadership & Development League for young males ages 12-18, scholarship, education and outreach programs.
âą Sponsorship Opportunities: The Tampa Alumni Guide Right Foundation invites businesses to align their brand with this noble cause.
This is an affair of style and sophistication. Attendees are urged to leave casual attire at home. The event dress code requires a step-up from jeans and tees, embracing a more refined elegance.
So, don your best Derby hats and attire, fasten those fascinators, and be part of an event that transcends entertainment, leaving an indelible mark on the community.
For sponsorship details and ticket info, visit TampaDerbyDay.com or see the ad above.Â
TJF USA LLC, the parent company of Central Florida-based Tijuana Flats Tex-Mex restaurants, has been acquired by a new ownership group (Flatheads, LLC), but the company concurrently announced that it has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which has resulted in the closing of 11 of its 26 franchise locations (there also are 65 company-owned Tijuana Flats), including the one in New Tampa at 17501 Preserve Walk Ln. in the Highwoods Preserve area, which is already closed.
The Wesley Chapel Tijuana Flats, located at 27709 S.R. 56, is one of the locations that is remaining open. All of the Tijuana Flats restaurants are located in Florida, North Carolina, Texas and Alabama.
In addition, the Island Fin Poké Co. (located next to Winn-Dixie, in the same plaza as LA Fitness south of County Line Rd.. off Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in New Tampa) is expected to be closed by the close of the business day tomorrow (Apr. 30).
Island Fin owners Brenda and Jeff Sproat â who also were known for posting photos featuring their fresh pokĂ© bowls and Dole whip desserts pretty much every day â posted a message on the fast-casual pokĂ© bowl restaurantâs Facebook page.Â
Here is the Island Fin announcement:
To Our Ohana,
With sadness we announce the upcoming closure of our Island Fin Poke location in New Tampa/Wesley Chapel on Tuesday April 30.
Our leased space is up for renewal, pushing us to a decision point. After careful consideration, we are choosing to finally slow down a bit, travel and enjoy our grandchildren.
We will miss our amazing team of young people, the opportunities to meet so many wonderful people in this great community, and offering delicious and healthy food on a daily basis.
Thank you for your support and we hope you will come by for a poke bowl or Dole Whip so we can personally thank you. â Jeff and Brenda Sproat, Owners
Also, although Smallcakes Cupcakery & Creamery (in The Shoppes at The Pointe plaza in Tampa Palms, off BBD, next to Cali Tampa Palms) owners Marissa and Justin Dewdney had not yet made any formal announcement as to when their business would close, they did confirm to the Neighborhood News that it was closing. Marissa said that although they had decided to close the cupcakery, “We are still open and ready to serve our community fresh baked cupcakes like we have been for the past six years.â
I, for one, will be sad when Smallcakes does close its doors for good. The icing on those super-moist cupcakes is the best Iâve had in the area.Â
I also plan to try the new Korean BBQ poké bowl at Island Fin before it shuts down. Sorry to see both of these locally-owned franchise businesses go.
And finally, although we told you way back in our Sept. 19, 2023, New Tampa issue that Potbelly Sandwich Works was taking over the former Oronzo space in The Walk at Highwoods Preserve plaza on BBD, we had no idea at that time how long it would take for Potbelly to open in the plaza.
Well, we now know that the answer is “No time soon.” Yours truly was able to stop in at the under-construction location and what I saw was a still-completely-gutted space with a dirt floor. In other words, no remnant of what once was Oronzo remains and even the construction workers at the site (who said they didn’t know and certainly couldn’t speak officially about any projected opening date) said that it would be “months” before Potbelly could possibly open. I didn’t take any pictures inside, but based on what I saw, it could be until the end of the year before we see the new Potbelly opening in that space.
In the meantime, feel free to visit the Potbelly Sandwich Works at 4738 N. Dale Mabry Hwy. (near Raymond James Stadium) or the 2520 S. Falkenburg Rd. (near Brandon) for the Chicago-based chain’s famous “toasty sandwiches, soups, salads, fresh-baked cookies and hand-spun milkshakes.” â GN
On April 21, Stacker.com, a nationwide website started in 2017, published a list of the Top-21 Pizza restaurants in Tampa, using data from Yelp. Here is how Stacker, which says that its mission is to, âprovide approachable journalism that combines rigorous data analysis with rich editorial insights,â introduced this pizza feature:
âData is as of March 29, 2024. Businesses were selected using Yelpâs ranking system, which calculates an adjusted rating value that takes into account the number of ratings as well as the rating score itself. Only restaurants with at least 25 reviews were considered.â
As you read this feature, please recognize that the rankings of the eight New Tampa-area pizza places shown here â four that made Stackerâs Top-21 list and four that didnât â are not our rankings or even our readersâ ratings. Stackerâs list was compiled using data culled from reviewers on Yelp.com.
The only reason weâre providing them for you in this space is because four of the Top-21 (out of literally hundreds of pizza places with Tampa addresses) are located in zip code 33647 â which makes the story news for us and, we believe, for our beloved readers.
A few other things to consider when reading these rankings is that:
1) For this feature, Stackerâs list does not include any restaurants that do not have Tampa addresses (so no Wesley Chapel, Lutz, St. Pete, etc.),
2) That the feature itself doesnât say whether the rankings are for the restaurants overall or just for their pizza, but Yelp ratings usually take into account each restaurantâs overall menu, as well as ambience, service, prices, etc.
3) That there appears to be at least one New Tampa restaurant â Johnny Câs Italian Eatery â that actually had a higher overall rating on Yelp â 4.3 stars out of 5, compared with 4.2/5), than at least one of the Top-21 (Via Italia), even though Johnny Câs has 45 Yelp reviews and Stackerâs criteria were that each ranked restaurant had to have at least 25 Yelp reviews.
Also not explained is why Stacker chose the Top-21, instead of the Top-20 or Top-25, as at least three other New Tampa-area restaurants that feature pizza also had overall ratings of at least 4.0 stars out of 5 â Woodfired Pizza & Wine Bar (2822 E. Bearss Ave., 4.1 on 389 reviews), Taste of New York Pizza (17503- C Preserve Walk Ln., 4.1 on 165 reviews) and Cappyâs Pizzeria (16019 Tampa Palms Blvd. W., 4.0 on 152 reviews) and therefore might have made a Top-25 list.
Anyway, Congratulations to each of the places that made Stackerâs Top-21:
#4 – The Grill at Morris Bridge (10920 Cross Creek Blvd., 4.5/5 on 120 reviews)
#11 – Capri Pizza-N-More (10359 Cross Creek Blvd., 4.4/5 on 88 reviews)
#15 – CALI Tampa Palms (17004 Palm Pointe Dr., 4.3/5 on 751 reviews)
#21 – Via Italia (8644 Hunters Village Rd, 4.2/5 on 250 reviews)
Again, these are not our rankings or yours, although some of you may see your reviews of some or all of these places on Yelp. We just thought that including these ratings on our pages would be another great conversation starter for our readers.
Here are some of the other pizza places in New Tampa and their ratings on Yelp: Westshore Pizza (3.4/5 on 59 reviews); Marcoâs Pizza (3.2/5 on 49 reviews); Papa Johnâs (3.1/5 on 28 reviews); Dominoâs (2.9/5 on 32 reviews); Hungry Howieâs (2.3/5 on 23 reviews); Pizza Hut (1.6/5 on 28 reviews).