Our Exclusive Recap Of The 2019 Taste Of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel!

You could still hear the sound of skates skimming across the ice and children making their way around the rinks, but if you listened very closely on March 24, you might have also heard the sound of delighted taste buds.

“Mmmmm.”

Local food and beverage vendors invaded AdventHealth Center Ice (AHCI) for the third consecutive year, offering samples of some of their most popular dishes and drinks at the 2019 Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel.

“I love Taste of New Tampa,” said New Tampa’s Debra Gilreath. “I love the venue, love the neighborhood, love the fact that it’s indoors. The variety of restaurants and vendors that are here is great and it’s easy to buy tickets online and it’s reasonable. Most tastes are two tickets or three tickets.”

Although the event has been held in the comfortable confines of AHCI for three  years, the Taste has been around since 1995, serving tasty morsels while also serving as a fund raiser for local charities supported by the Rotary Club of New Tampa and college scholarships given out to graduating high school seniors by the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce (NTBC). 

Held at various locations over its more-than-two-decade run, but since a four-year hiatus beginning in 2013 (following the merger between the New Tampa Chamber of Commerce and the Wesley Chapel Chamber), the event has found a convenient, weather-proof home at AHCI.

Roughly 2,000 people attended this year’s event, which co-chair Karen Frashier said was stronger than ever and has become the Rotary Club of New Tampa’s biggest fund-raising event, although the club also puts on a successful Turkey Trot road race Thanksgiving morning every year. 

“Every year in June, the money raised from Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel and the Turkey Trot is given away to the charities we support,” said Frashier, a former president of the Rotary Club of New Tampa. “In 2018, we raised $46,000 (between the events) and donated it to our international foundation, End Polio Now, as well as 36 other local, nonprofit or school-related charities.”

Frashier also said that Rotary Feeds America, Feeding Tampa Bay, Meals on Wheels and the Fisher House residence at the James A. Haley VA Hospital are some of the other charities that will benefit from this year’s event. A 20-person committee of the 72-member club organized this year’s event that featured 38 restaurants and beverage purveyors and 34 non-restaurant sponsors.

The winner of the 2019 Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel People’s Choice Award, which was determined by the weight of the Taste sample tickets collected by each restaurant, was first-time participant Bahama Breeze, followed by Noble Crust (up from third a year ago and a top-three finisher all three years at AHCI) and first-time participant the Ice Dreammm Shop.

According to Frashier, the top 10 restaurants, in alphabetical order, were:

Bahama Breeze

Chuy’s Fine Tex Mex

Ciccio Cali

Cinebistro at the Grove

Fat Rabbit Pub

Ice Dreammm Shop

Noble Crust

Nothing Bundt Cakes

Pomodoro Pizza 

Vom Fass Wiregrass

The four finalists for the beverage division were Blue Chair Bay Rum, The Brass Tap, Time for Wine and Zephyrhills Brewing Co., which repeated its win as the favorite adult beverage provider this year..

Gilreath and her daughter Asha were enjoying some of the samples outside the rink, and had already decided on one of their favorites.

“Noble Crust’s chicken & waffles is my favorite thing so far,” said Asha. “Noble Crust is great because they make everything from scratch.”

Noble Crust events coordinator Brad Elia said his crew was hoping to improve on last year’s third-place finish in the restaurant category. The Italian eatery is now the only restaurant to place in the top three all three years since the Taste returned in 2017, and hungry and eager patrons gobbled up their samples as quickly as Noble Crust’s employees could get them on the table. 

“The chicken & waffles is one of our signature dishes,” Elia said. “When we opened our St. Petersburg branch, it was one of the dishes we opened with.”

Noble Crust, located the Shops at Wiregrass mall, topped the dish with some micro greens from their sister company Fat Beet Farm. 

Last year’s winner, Tampa Palms’ Ciccio Cali, was set up in the center aisle, not out of sight of Noble Crust. Ciccio’s brought the same three items that earned it top honors last year — a hot & crunchy tuna, a spicy Brazilian (blackened chicken) and a Thai chicken bowl, but did not crack this year’s top three.

There were certainly some other unique culinary merchants at the event. The Main Ingredient, located off Collier Pkwy. in Lutz, isn’t really a restaurant, but more of a cook-to-order specialty grocer that offered samples of their oils and hot sauces over noodles.

“We sell most everything by the ounce,” owner Christina Sweet said. “People can come in with a recipe and get the exact amount they need instead of getting something and it’s sitting in their cabinet for who knows how long. Everything we sell is organic, non-GMO and gluten-free. We also have a line of specialty spices and tea leaves.”

Helping out at the Main Ingredient table was 11-year-old Sophia Contino, who knows a little about convincing people to try samples, as she has garnered a lot of media attention (including in these pages) for raising money for the Pasco Sheriff’s K-9 Unit. 

Contino said she really liked The Main Ingredient’s noodles and hot sauce. 

Cinebistro at the Grove doled out samples of soft tacos, meatballs and ceviche-style seafood dishes. The Hilton Garden Inn’s chef Frank Skalitza gave out ahi tuna poke spoons and herb-cheese-and-dates Endive Bites.

Other food/restaurant vendors included Vom Fass in the Shops at Wiregrass, offering samples of not only their vinegars, oils and sangria, but also some of the chain’s new gourmet prepared foods. Vom Fass did not have a sign telling you what they were serving, but there were four different unique appetizers, one with prosciutto, bruschetta with strawberries and more. The foods were provided by Vom Fass in conjunction with Kaixo, a local caterer with a food truck, and Walkabout Bakery Café in Lutz, which served a unique-looking Australian pastry.

Taste attendees Ashvin and Kitty Maharaj got a brief respite from their duties— Ashvin as a Rotary volunteer and Kitty with the All County Alliance Property Management table — and used it to sample some of the fare. 

“This is a huge benefit for small businesses and it’s a great community event,” Ashvin said. 

All County Alliance Property Management sponsored the cruise that was given away as one of the 50-50 raffle prizes. 

Kitty said one of the best things about the event was that it introduced local residents to some places they may have previously not heard of, like Ava’s Low Country Cuisine, which provides private chef service, catering and classes and doled out samples of macaroni and cheese, cupcakes and rice bowls. “Ava’s doesn’t even have a store front, and I hadn’t even heard of Walkabout,” she said.

The Schoolfield family of Tampa Palms enjoyed offerings from all of the aforementioned providers. 

Jake Schoolfield works at the CenterState bank in downtown Tampa, which was one of the event’s sponsors. His favorite offering was Ciccio’s crunchy tuna. 

“An event like this brings awareness to local owner/operators,” Jake said. “You drive past all these places how many times in a week? I hope that it translates into more business for them. It’s also fun to see your neighbors out here.”

Dessert items were high on the list of favorites, too. Nothing Bundt Cakes, which was third in 2017 before it even had its current Wesley Chapel location in the Shops at Wiregrass, handed out samples of strawberry, lemon, chocolate and white chocolate raspberry bundt cakes. The strawberry cakes, however, were the most popular of the day, according to manager Crystal Cadet. Also serving amazing strawberry cake was Canterbury Hall, the new catering/banquet hall at Grace Episcopal Church in Tampa Palms.

Adult beverage purveyors were also once again on hand at this year’s Taste, including 2018 beverage winner Zephyrhills Brewing Co., which took first place beverage honors again this year, second-place finisher The Brass Tap, and Time for Wine and Blue Chair Rum, which finished in a tie for third this year. 

Other than playing music, some of Freedom’s marching band members worked on navigating a gigantic ‘Operation’ game brought in by AdventHealth Wesley Chapel, the event’s primary sponsor, which also offered chair massages. And, sponsor Pinot’s Palette, which combines the love of wine and painting, gave the kids some fun art activities to participate in (but no wine!).

Ashley McKibbin of Tampa brought her friend, Amber Cherry, all the way from Jacksonville to enjoy the event.

“I love it, it’s a great event, fun, family-friendly,” said McKibbin.

One Heart

To me, the story of my relationship with the former Jannah Johnson McDonald is so much more than just your usual case of boy-meets-girl, boy and girl fall in love and live happily ever after.

Ours is the story of two people who have been through a lot in their lives — although not nearly as much as some people we know and love — but who somehow figured out how to be there for each other and became two stronger, better people because of our mutual respect for and support of each other.

This marriage may not be the first rodeo for either of us — and, quite honestly, neither one of us thought we’d ever get married again — but after knowing each other for as many as eight years and being together for more than four, we both just knew it was the right time for us to make this thing official. 

Although we actually met when Jannah was working for the American Cancer Society and was putting on the Wesley Chapel Relay for Life and I was covering it for the Neighborhood News, we first got together when I walked into the now-defunct Stage Left (the music venue on S.R. 54 in Lutz), the night of my birthday in 2015. 

The place was packed. Jannah and I were both members of the Rotary Cub of Wesley Chapel, so when I heard and then saw a group of women, all of whom also were members of that same Rotary Club, invite me, rather loudly, to join them at their table, I didn’t refuse.

So yes, ours is a match made in Rotary heaven, and we know a few other couples who also met through the world’s largest service organization.

But, enough of that mushy stuff. Because we decided to put on our wedding ourselves, I knew I would have to pull together a lot  of the contacts I’ve made through the Neighborhood News in order to put on the kind of wedding we wanted.

I owe these businesses and business owners a lot because only with all of their help, could we have the wedding of our dreams. So, the story that follows is my way of thanking them.   

The Business Side of Gary and Jannah’s wedding

 So, when you decide you’re going to get married, the first thing you have to do is pick a location, then set a date that your chosen venue has available. Jannah and I wanted to get married around Valentine’s Day, but once we decided we were getting married at the St. Pete Beach Community Center on Boca Ciega Dr., the closest dates they had to Valentine’s Day were March 24…and sometime in June. Guess which one we picked.

We wanted the band that was playing the night we got engaged — Restless Soul — to play at our wedding, but when front man James Shepherd was going to be out of town that day, we quickly decided on our second favorite “party” band we had seen at Jimmy B’s at the Beachcomber Resort (where Jannah and I have spent many a night dancing). That band is called New Divide, featuring lead singer/guitarist Colin Hughes. 

The third thing we decided was to hire the folks who own our favorite affordable restaurant on Gulf Blvd. — Skidder’s — to cater the event. We also were fortunate to have the Fratelli brothers John and Mario from Fratelli’s Pizza & Café in the Village Market plaza (see ad on pg 38) offer to provide a tray of my favorite broccoli rabe and a tray of penne alla vodka as our amazing side dishes.

And, none of our choices let us down. People who attended our wedding raved about our venue, the food (grouper Francaise, chicken Marsala and rib lamb chops were the main events from Skidder’s) and the music. New Divide played everything from Cheap Trick and Tom Petty to Bruno Mars and Amy Winehouse and the band agreed to learn two of mine and Jannah’s favorite Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats tunes so we could sing (and she could play the tambourine) along with them.

But, as we soon figured out, a wedding is about much more than just those things. Even if you think you can do everything yourself — and Jannah’s job the last four years at the Pasco Education Foundation is largely about putting on events and I’ve been hosting parties for our office for a quarter-century (see page 3) — you still need a wedding planner. We were blessed to have attended our friends’ Torrie and Keith Weinstein’s wedding in December and long story short, Torrie agreed to help us do our party right.

So, in addition to all of Torrie and Keith’s help, here are some of the Neighborhood News advertisers who provided all of the little touches that made our wedding so special for us:

The Rings: Leiva’s Jewelers, New Tampa — Jonathan and his father Transito Leiva have been customers of mine for years and “Pop” (as I affectionately call him) is a true craftsman who  first designed Jannah’s garnet (my birthstone) and diamond engagement ring, then created a diamond “jacket” for that ring as her wedding band. My picture of our rings above left really doesn’t do them any justice at all.

 Getting in Shape: Samantha Taylor Fitness (her) and Fit 4 Life and the Advent Health Wesley Chapel Wellness Center (me) — Jannah started working out 2-3 days a week at the Samantha Taylor studio in Wesley Chapel in November. She’s lost 17 pounds. I’ve been working out at Fit 4 Life in Tampa Palms with my friends Travis and Fiona Monday for years and also stepped up my saltwater kayaking and swimming at the Wellness Center to drop almost 20 lbs., although you may not be able to tell it from these pics, but Jannah says she can tell and that’s what matters most to me.

Hair & Makeup: New Identities Salon and Facial Accents by Leanne Carter — Although Jannah’s daughter Lauren curled her hair and did her makeup for the wedding, Jannah has been getting her hair styled and cut by Tara at New Identities (see ad on next page) for over a year and she always looks great.

Leanne, who is getting ready to open a new studio near the Fetcher Ave. exit off I-75, is an eyebrow expert who did an amazing job with Jannah’s brows.

Manicures & Pedicures: Touch Nail Spa — I figured I needed a manicure for the wedding and Jannah and Torrie both got perfect pedicures from our friend Timmy Pham and his amazing staff at Touch Nail Spa (see pg. 29).

Spray Tans By Lulu — Jannah and Torrie also had our friend Luisa give them that perfect glow for our pictures.  

Smiles: Pasco Dental — Our friend and dentist Dr. Daniel Hwang at Pasco Dental (below left) has worked on not only myself and Jannah, but also her daughter Kristen and we can all vouch for what an outstanding and gentle dentist he is.

Flowers: A Special Rose Florist — We didn’t go all out for flowers, as some folks do, but every bouquet and arrangement from A Special Rose was more than special.

Cake: Nothing Bundt Cakes — O.K., so they’ve never advertised with me, but Jannah and I have loved Nothing Bundt Cakes since the first time they gave samples out at the Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel (see pages 37-39) three years ago. And, after we priced cakes from other wedding cake folks, we knew we made the right decision.

Videography & Editing: Gavin Olsen & Charmaine George — Gavin, my senior Neighborhood News Online video producer, shot the entire wedding and Charmaine edited two videos that we showed during the event. You can’t do better than these two. Check out Charmaine’s photos from the Taste (pgs. 37-39).  

Photography: Jillian Joseph Photography — I have to tell you that Jillian and her husband Joe are consummate professionals who shoot what you ask and then go above and beyond, and their work — as you can tell from just these few pics — is outstanding, And ladies, if you want boudoir photos (see ad below left), I know she’ll make you look and feel beautiful. 

Thanks also to the Wesley Chapel residents who attended, to my sons Jared and Jake, Jared’s wife Mary and Jake’s fiancée Meghan, and my mom Marilyn for making it so special for us.

A Whole New World For Performers With Special Needs

The joy in the room is palpable as the New Tampa Players’ Penguin Project group practices dance steps for “Prince Ali.” Peer mentor Olivia Carr dances with her Genie, Connor Olsen. (Photos: Libby Baldwin)

The cavernous main hall at the University Area Community Center swelled with a chorus of voices. The booming energy of the song “Prince Ali,” from the classic Disney film “Aladdin” sounded like a seasoned community theater production.

In fact, however, it was just a regular rehearsal for a very special group of New Tampa Players (NTP).

“Aladdin” will open on Friday, April 5, at 8 p.m., with additional performances on Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. 

All performances will be at the University Area Community Center, located at 14013 North 22nd St. in Tampa. Tickets can be purchased online for $15.

The local community theater troupe’s president, Nora Paine, was attending a theater conference in summer 2018 when she learned about the Penguin Project, an initiative that gives children with special needs the chance to perform onstage. 

Established in 2004 by Dr. Andrew Morgan, who spent more than 35 years as central Illinois’ primary medical specialist for children with disabilities, the Penguin Project matches each “young artist” with a peer mentor. These mentors, who  are mostly children the same age as the performers who don’t have disabilities, volunteer their time to work side-by-side through four months of rehearsals and during the final performance.

“The New Tampa Players had been looking for something like this, but didn’t want to re-invent the wheel,” said Paine, herself a mother to three special needs children. “This program is unique because it gives these kids a chance for social networking outside of the special needs community.”

“Aladdin Junior,” which wasn’t modified from the original script, will be the first Penguin Project production not just for NTP, but in all of Florida.

The performing artists and their mentors attend 3-4 rehearsals per week that run for no longer than 90 minutes, to ensure attention spans don’t run out. Each peer mentor learns every line, every dance move and every blocking move, along with his or her artist. 

Rehearsals are no slower-paced than regular children’s theater; peer mentors are expected to keep their artists on task.

If a special needs child becomes upset, the show still must go on.

“The young artist and their mentor go off to the side until they are able to calm down,” Paine said. “Then, they come back and join us. No big deal.”

The special needs actors get plenty of support from the all-volunteer New Tampa Players’ staff if they become overwhelmed. Music director Brad Roberts and choreographer Charis Lavoie comfort a young artist. 

Paine has years of stage managing experience, a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Master’s degree in Montessori Education, but she and her staff of choreographers, costume designers and musicians are all volunteers.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to see the happiness that it brings these kids,” said Brad Roberts, the music director for NTP’s “Alladin Junior,” who says he previously has worked with special needs children.  “A lot of these kids, despite working at a different speed than I’m used to, have really impressed me with their raw talent and ability to learn and retain.”

While some of the artist-and-mentor pairs rehearsed, others sat patiently off to the side, using the time to run lines or go over dance steps. Even the youngest mentors, some under the age of ten, offered only smiles and  gentle encouragement to their artists.

“They’re just so open and ready to go for it, and that makes them be a really supportive family for each other, which you don’t always see in groups of ‘regular’ kids,” said Roberts.

Truly A Special Bond

The young mentors don’t seem to mind that all their hard work will lead to someone else getting the spotlight.

Olivia Carr works with Connor Olsen, who is playing the Genie, on his lines.

“I’ve found a really good friend, and an understanding for how these kids think,” said 13-year-old Olivia Carr, who peer mentors the young actor playing Genie. “I have a lot of fun with him because he’s very energetic, and we have the same personality.”

Olivia’s mom, Tami Carr, enjoys watching her daughter be part of such a selfless undertaking.

“She looks forward to rehearsals all day; being a kid in general is rough, so seeing anyone struggle makes her want to help,” said Carr. “I wish everyone would come and see how much joy they have. It’s contagious, and hopefully, it will ignite a spark here that will catch fire.”

Paine said she plans to put on one Penguin Project show each year, and said the response from the community has been overwhelming. She credits District 7 Tampa City Council member Luis Viera, who is very involved in the special needs community, with helping her secure local sponsors, including Pepin Academies, the Arts Council of Hillsborough County, MOSI and more.

Paine’s 12-year-old son, Sebastian, mentors Jaden Figueroa, also 12, who landed the title role of Aladdin. Jaden said he wants to be a movie star when he grows up.

“He (Sebastian) helped me with my lines; we’re good friends,” said Jaden.

Paine’s 7-year-old daughter also Zoe is a peer mentor, and although the mentors don’t get the spotlight, Paine believes they gain something much more meaningful from the experience.

“She’ll come home after mentoring her friend Jack, and she’ll be so excited and proud that she helped him learn his lines and perform well,” she said. “They get a very special relationship.”

Get On The Guest List Now To Celebrate My 25 Years Of Neighborhood News!

So, even though I’ve also had a lot of haters over the 25 years I have owned and been the editor of the New Tampa & Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News, the fact is that I get the most amazing feedback from all of you — our readers — about what we do to bring our communities together.

A case in point is our now-finalized plan to celebrate my 25 years at the helm of the primary news and information source for New Tampa and Wesley Chapel residents and businesses. Even though we didn’t (at that time) yet know when the celebration would be held, we’ve still have at least 60 people register to be part of that celebration — and another 30 or so of our advertising business owners who say they plan to attend.

So, let’s see how many of you will register to be on our guest list now that we are officially announcing the details of that little shindig.

Although my 25-year anniversary was actually February 25 of this year, the celebration will be held on Friday, April 12, at the awesome Bayscape Bistro at Heritage Isles Country Club (off Cross Creek Blvd.), with heavy hors d’oeuvres being put out at around 6 p.m. and karaoke with my friend Gary Carmichael of Heart & Soul Karaoke kicking the musical festivities into high gear by 7 p.m.

The food will be outstanding, as Bayscape owners Eddie and Lourdes Bujarski (who ran the culinary arts program at New Tampa’s Wharton High for nearly two decades) will put out everything from fruit and cheese to some of Bayscape’s Friday Fiesta fare like tacos, fajitas and more. We’re still working on an exact menu (and Bayscape’s complete menu will still be available for purchase) and the bar will be a cash bar, but this is a unique opportunity to hang out with not only my amazing staff at the Neighborhood News, but also the owners of many of the businesses you see advertised in every issue of this publication.     

So, all you have to do to be part of the celebration is email us from a valid email address with your first and last name, the community you live in (Tampa Palms, Live Oak Preserve, etc.) and the first and last names of any other people you plan to bring with you.

There is no admission fee to attend my “25 years of Neighborhood News” celebration, but you’re not officially on the guest list until you receive a confirmation email from us. If you want to get an idea of how crazy Jannah and I and some of our friends are about karaoke, check out my article on page 44 of our latest New Tampa issue. 

And no, you don’t have grab a mic to sing at all to attend, but you do have to email us at Ads@NTNeighborhoodNews.com and put “Neighborhood News Guest List” in the subject line! See you there!

The Latest On Google…

It’s been almost exactly two months since we were among only 23 news organizations in the U.S. and 87 worldwide to receive funding support from Google — and lead video producer Gavin Olsen, our new in-house videographer/video editor Charmaine George and managing editor John Cotey and I are all pretty excited  about how things are going. As you’re receiving this issue, you have the opportunity to watch a new “Neighborhood Dining News” segment with owner Steve Falabella of 900° Woodfired Pizza at the Shops at Wiregrass mall, our second “Chappie Chatter” segment with Wesley Chapel Community Facebook page administrator Jennifer Ames and even a new video about Liberty Middle School’s human hot fudge sundae.

Many of our latest videos have done very well for us, both on Facebook and on our WCNT-tv (Wesley Chapel & New Tampa television) YouTube channel.

Of the videos that we have released since my last update in these pages, our video about the new Twistee Treat in Wesley Chapel has been viewed 8,500 times, our story about the Pasco County School District’s planned purchase of property for a new school in Wesley Chapel has been viewed 5,600 times and our video about Wharton’s boys basketball team defeating the Freedom boys in the Regional playoffs has been viewed 4,600 times.

And, although I wasn’t available to go myself, Gavin and I were invited to travel to New York City to be part of a global conference call among all of the news organizations who received funding from Google. He surely will report about that conference in our next issue.

And, by the time this issue reaches your mailbox, most of our existing print advertisers and many people who have requested information about our video and online subscriptions will have received that information. 

So, if you’re interested in having a Featured Business video produced about your business, or you’re interested in the only truly multimedia advertising opportunity for businesses in New Tampa & Wesley Chapel, please email us at Ads@NTNeighborhoodNews.com ASAP!

And, look for more info in these pages about our soon-to-launch new website — NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net! 

Our Exclusive Taste 2019 Preview — What’s New? A Lot!

Congratulations to the Rotary Club of New Tampa, which will host the annual Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel for the third year in a row, again at what is now being called AdventHealth Center Ice (AHCI) on Sunday, March 24, 2019, noon-4 p.m.

The club (which meets Fridays at 7 a.m at Tampa Palms Golf & Country Club) did an excellent job of rounding up not only many of your returning favorite eateries from the last two years, but also some outstanding newcomers among the 29 restaurants and eleven beverage purveyors that had signed up to participate in the Taste by our press time on March 15.

We caught up with Taste co-chairs Karen Frashier and Jennifer Cofini and asked them about what new and old favorites attendees will be enjoying at this year’s Taste:

NN: How excited is everyone about this year’s Taste of New Tampa event?

TONT: We’ve had the pleasure to give away Taste tickets at several North Tampa Bay Chamber and community events. We always ask the crowd if they know why we’re there and what’s coming up. A large percentage of the crowd shouts back “Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel.” Hearing that crowd response makes our day! 

The Rotary Club of New Tampa is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) hosting this event with the Chamber to support scholarships and our charities. Our committee has grown to 20 Rotarians and Chamber volunteers. We’re invested.

NN: What do you have planned?

TONT: We’ve got 40 food and beverage vendors that will start tummies grumbling the minute guests enter Rink C at AdventHealth Center Ice. 

The Freedom High Naval Junior ROTC flag corps will kick off the festivities, along with: Denyse Bales-Chubb, the CEO of AdventHealth Wesley Chapel; Dist. 7 Tampa City Councilman Luis Viera; and Mike Wells, the chairman of the Pasco County Board of Commissioners. 

Then, the Freedom High School drum corps will get the party started by marching throughout the venue. Attendees have told us they want tables spread throughout the venue so they can hang out with friends and neighbors. Done!

NN: So, what’s new at this year’s Taste?

TONT: We’ve added cookie decorating to the photo booth and kids painting/art booth located in the family fun area. A Dash of Salt ‘n Pepper, DCA Media Consulting and Pinot’s Palette Wesley Chapel are sponsoring the fun for kids. 

Our presenting sponsor is Advent Health Wesley Chapel. The Taste of New Tampa & Wesley Chapel focuses on friends, family and food — three important building blocks to whole, healthy lives. Building blocks that inspire both the Rotary Club of New Tampa and AdventHealth Wesley Chapel to serve our North Tampa Bay neighbors.

NN: What restaurants are you particularly excited to see that you think the locals will be happy to see?

TONT: Taste attendees will be particularly interested to see how the chef showdown between past winners Ciccio’s Cali, Noble Crust and Nothing Bundt Cakes shakes out. Pincher’s, Vom Fass, Blondie’s Cookies, Fat Rabbit, Cinebistro, Chuy’s and Top Shelf Sports Lounge were crowd favorites, too.

Earth Fare, a green grocer which newly opened on S.R. 56 (across from Tampa Premium Outlets) and Bahama Breeze are bringing their chefs’ A games.

NN: What about any under the radar places? Maybe some eateries that aren’t located nearby or are new to the area that many will be getting a first taste of?

TONT: Taste foodies will be especially interested in locally owned food and beverage purveyors such as Ava’s Low Country Cuisine, Pomodoro Pizza and the Ice Dreammm Shop. They can have their cake and eat it too from the newly opened community venue called Canterbury Hall at Grace Church Tampa Palms. And, Batter & Dough is offering yummy filled mini-pancakes.

NN: Other than food samples, what else can people look forward to at the Taste?

TONT: There will be big competition in the beverage category this year with Coppertail Brewing competing with 81 Bay, Zephyrhills, Time for Wine. The Brass Tap and PRP Wine International. New beverage options include Blue Chair Bay Rum and Buttermilk Provisions sangria. Chamber chair Karen Tillman-Gosselin with Berkshire Hathaway Home Services is sponsoring the water again this year and we’ll have a booth for soft drinks.

NN: What do you expect or hope for in terms of attendees? Talk about the growth of the event over the past two years, and how Center Ice has proven to be an ideal facility.

TONT: The event has a 20-year history as one of North Tampa Bay’s premier events.

Last year we hosted 2,000 guests. Based on history and the growth we’ve seen over three years, we expect 3,000 guests this year. AdventHealth Center Ice is a perfect location because the event is indoors — no worries about the weather. The parking is free and plentiful in front and behind the building. We’ll have volunteers in the lots helping guests locate parking and directing people to open parking. Plus, Taste-goers who present a Taste ticket the day of the event can get free ice skate rental to glide off the calories after snacking their way through the restaurants and beverage purveyors.

NN: What charitable organizations receive the proceeds that are raised?

TONT: Proceeds support high school scholarships through the North Tampa Bay Chamber and charities supported by the Rotary Club of New Tampa. In 2018, the Rotary Club of New Tampa donated more than $46,000 to local and Rotary International Foundation signature projects, including End Polio Now, Feeding Tampa Bay and the Fisher House at the Haley VA Hospital.

Signature youth programs such as Interact, Rotaract and Seminar for Tomorrow’s Leaders help young people develop leadership skills. Find the complete list on TasteOfNewTampa.org/nonprofitsbenefit.html.