Owners John Kuemmel and Shawn Diehl have done exactly what they wanted to do when they decided nearly three years ago to fulfill a 25-year dream they shared of opening their own bar. In the heart of Tampa Palms, they have spun an inventive menu, ice cold beer, premium liquor and a unique atmosphere into our readersโ favorite bar in New Tampa to enjoy a night out.
Whatโs not to like (other than the ridiculously hard questions on Tuesday Trivia Nights)?
A bar that has outstanding food โ and The Fat Rabbit finished just behind Acropolis as our readersโ sixth favorite restaurant in New Tampa, too โ is never a bad thing.
The chicken wings are arguably the best around โ make sure you check out the Buffalo Garlic Ranch โ and thereโs even a Real McCoy burger named after former Tampa Bay Buc and Tampa Palms resident Gerald McCoy and a fresh Catch of the Week. And, the crispy tater tots are truly divine.
The Fat Rabbit now even brews a Transplant IPA and Concrete & Gold Pilsner in-house, with more tanks on the way.
And, the decor gives the Fat Rabbit an elegant look with a comfortable neighborhood feel that keeps you coming back for more. โ JCC
2. Stonewood Grill & Tavern has been among New Tampaโs favorite places to drink since the moment it opened, and since our readers obviously also love the food (see previous page), too, thereโs no doubt that Stonewood is here to stay.
3. Mr. Dunderbakโs has never had a full-alcohol bar, but its huge variety of beers from around the world, unique German-inspired menu, gifts and even chocolates keep it one of our readersโ favorite bars year after year, which often makes it hard to find a seat at that bar.
4. Chiliโs Grill & Bar in New Tampa continues to receive lots of votes in our Reader Survey every year. Even though itโs a chain, thereโs no easy access to it from BBD and the restaurants next door to it keep going out of business, it keeps on rolling. โNuff said.
5. Peabodyโs in the Shoppes at Amberly plaza in Tampa Palms is another long-time favorite bar that also has great food (especially pizza & wings). Plus, itโs New Tampaโs adult play place, with tons of TVs, pool tables, darts and a younger-skewing crowd.
A different kind of fair made its way to Wharton High earlier this month.
Although there were no rides or fried foods, the schoolโs gymnasium hosted the first Wharton Technical School & Career Fair on Feb. 11.
Advertised as the first of its kind, the fair provided more than 250 students a chance to meet with various companies, businesses, technical and vocational schools and even recruiters from various branches of the military.
The message? There is a wide range of opportunities that donโt require a traditional college education.
โA lot of times, when I have kids sitting in front of me, theyโre saying they donโt what theyโre going to do after they graduate,โ said Whartonโs Success Coach Roslyn Brown, who organized the event. โThey guess theyโll go get a minimum-wage job.โ
However, Brown says that doesnโt have to be the case. Thatโs why she came up with the idea for the Technical School & Career Fair.
โI try to tell them there are a lot of things they can do that donโt require a four-year (college) degree that will make them a really good income and (allow them to be) happy and successful,โ she said. โTheyโre just not aware of those opportunities, so thatโs why I thought it would be great to provide these kids with one forum to learn about multiple opportunities or options.โ
Roughly 25 vendors were on hand in Whartonโs gymnasium, from Publix to the military branches, as well as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Border Patrol and Busch Gardens.
Paul Mitchell the School, which offers cosmetology and hair styling/barbering programs, as well as technical schools such as Keiser University and Erwin Technical School on E. Hillsborough Ave. were on hand, too, all there to show that a motivated junior or a graduating seniorโs only option isnโt enrolling (or trying to enroll) in a traditional four-year university.
Leaving An Impression…
โI thought it was really good to see different outlooks on what you can do after high school,โ said senior Jahniah Eaton. โIt lets you keep your mind open and it also gives you something to fall back on. Say you donโt want to go to college, then you can just fall back on this or have a way to make money, so youโre not just walking around with empty pockets in a couple of years.โ
For fellow senior Jarell Miranda, the career fair was enlightening and productive.
โPersonally, I was going to go to a trade school, not a four-year college, so I got to speak to Erwin Tech and saw more things that I would really like to do,โ Miranda said. โIt was awesome that the school did this for us.โ
Brown said part of putting the fair together was pinpointing who would benefit most from attending and then preparing them to impress potential employers.
Three different sessions were held to determine the best students to attend the fair.
The first session gauged the interest of students who were mostly unsure of what they wanted to do after graduation, or were not specifically interested in attending a university or college.
Once those students were chosen, they were prepped on how to make an impression on potential employers and post-high-school technical programs.
A second session was dedicated to resumรฉ building and during the third session, Brown had a representative from Menโs Wearhouse come to the school to teach the students how to โdress for success,โ right down to how to properly knot a necktie.
โIโm not personally aware of another school that (hosts a career fair like this),โ Brown said. โBut now, a lot of feedback weโve gotten from (the businesses, schools and recruiters) was how impressed they were by the size of it and how many opportunities were available, all at one location.โ
Roslyn Brown
Brown said she was wasnโt sure why more schools donโt also offer career fairs like the one Wharton hosted but did say the Hillsborough County School District does a good job of promoting other events that businesses, companies, organizations and even recruiters might host for students.
In the end, the students were not only appreciative of the fair being held by the school, but impressed, as well.
โYou got to see a lot of different opportunities outside of just going to college,โ junior Jayla Bembow said, โand it was cool that the school made this available to us. And, it wasnโt just about whatโs available, they were also telling us other things to prepare for, like interviews and resumรฉ building.โ
For those who want to learn an applicable skill and begin working sooner, the career fair definitely was an eye opener.
โI thought it was pretty cool to see about different jobs there are without having to go to college,โ junior Heather Johnson said. โBut also like the trade and tech schools โ itโs cool that you can go there for just a year or two and already start working.โ
The Comfort Corner at HGE is the Hillsborough County School Districtโs largest sensory room, thanks to the Sydney Has A Sister foundation.
For students who deal with sensory processing disorders such as autism, having a safe, comfortable space to calm down can make a difference in how successful that child is at school.
At Hunterโs Green Elementary (HGE), to meet this need, a brand new sensory room was unveiled on January 30. While a few other schools throughout Hillsborough County also have sensory rooms, the one at He is housed in a large classroom, making it the largest in the District.
Dubbed the โComfort Cornerโ โ with fabric softening the roomโs lights and translucent curtains dividing it into many separate spaces โ it doesnโt feel like a classroom. Filled with quiet areas with dark spaces, hanging hideaway chairs, and weighted blankets, as well as active areas with fidget toys and fine motor skills activities, the room meets the many varied needs of diverse students.
โSome kids with autism have a sensory overload,โ explains Joni Cagle, HGEโs Exceptional Student Education (ESE) teacher, โwhile others donโt get enough sensory input. We wanted a place for kids who have differences to feel safe and learn coping strategies to meet them where they are so we can help them to be successful at school.โ
But, Joni is quick to add, โItโs not just for kids with labels.โ
She says typical kids who get anxiety before a big test, for example, can come to the room and bounce on a ball for a few minutes to help reduce that anxiety.
David and Veronica Mardo have two kids at HGE, a daughter in third grade and a son with special needs in pre-Kindergarten.
โThis will help my son for sure,โ David says. โI think itโs great the school has something like this for him.โ
To bring the Comfort Corner to the school, more than $8,000 worth of equipment โ from bouncing balls to rope lights to a weighted blanket in the shape of a hamburger โ was donated by a local foundation called Sydney Has A Sister, founded in 2014 by Ernie and Becky Black of Land OโLakes.
Sydney Has A Sister was established to provide scholarships that recognize the sacrifices that typical children make when they have siblings with special needs, such as long hours in doctorsโ waiting rooms.
It expanded its mission to help provide sensory rooms at schools after seeing one in Jacksonville.
โThis is our fourth sensory room,โ says Ernie. โSome other sensory rooms are a small room or even a longer hallway. The challenge is they donโt have enough space. This is what we envisioned. And, even though itโs large, weโve created these nooks so itโs not as sterile and the space is intimate.โ
He says every item chosen for the Hunterโs Green sensory room was intentional, based on the recommendations of specialists and what they have learned creating rooms at other schools.
โFor example, the way the room has dividers,โ explains Ernie. โThere can be five kids in here that donโt feel like theyโre in the same room. And, the curtains are transparent so the teachers can still supervise all of them.โ
He and Veronica believe the Hunterโs Green Comfort Corner will be a model for future rooms.
โThis is a place that gets kids geared up to learn and focus and gets them back into the classroom,โ Ernie says. โThatโs the whole point.โ
He says that Sydney Has A Sister was able to fund the room through the generosity of its sponsors and fundraising events.
In addition, a family at the school, who asked to not be named in this story, provided a donation to purchase additional needed furniture and supplies and ensure the ongoing success of the Comfort Corner.
Joni says the total cost of the room is more than $10,000. The good news is that itโs already making a difference.
โWeโve seen attention spans increase,โ Joni says. โWeโve seen social skills increase. Fine motor skills. Gross motor skills. It really affects the whole child in a positive way.โ
From left to right: Sam Becker, a USF graduate student in the School of Urban and Regional Planning, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor and City Councilmember Luis Viera.
A standing-room-only crowd packed Compton Park in Tampa Palms on Feb. 3 for the unveiling of the initial results of a New Tampa business study, and while the presentation did seem to assuage some of the concerns of those in attendance, the results of that survey are far from conclusive.
In fact, because many of the area businesses along Bruce B. Downs Blvd. south of I-75 โ meaning Tampa Palms โ have not reported data, like earnings and number of employees, to the City of Tampa, the study was only based on businesses along BBD from the I-75 interchange north to County Line Rd.
University of South Florida School of Public Affairs director Ron Sanders said the data the study did find south of I-75 โlooked funny.โ
That meant that the closings of Staples, HH Gregg, Bed Bath & Beyond and Casa Ramos, which played a central role in triggering the study, were not included in any conclusions by the USF study, which included input from New Tampa (morning) Rotary Club and North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce members, as well as other local business leaders.
โYou have to take some of the quantitative analysis (from the study) with a grain of salt,โ Sanders told the crowd, which included Tampa Mayor Jane Castor and Tampa City Council member Luis Viera. โItโs limited by the data, and it is what it is. It had to be balanced by some of the real-life observations and anecdotal (evidence).โ
While the study was spurred by community concerns about business closings in Tampa Palms that were pointed out to Viera (as well as to Mayor Castor while she was running for office), at least north of I-75, seems to paint a rosier picture.
According to Sam Becker, a USF graduate student in the School of Urban and Regional Planning, a total of 57 businesses closed in New Tampa north of I-75 between 2015-18, losing an annual sales volume of roughly $122 million.
However, in that same period, 94 new businesses opened, generating nearly $181 million in sales.
That produced a net gain of 37 new businesses, $59 million total sales volume and 1,651 employees.
But without data from south of I-75, Sanders says โit is hard to draw any conclusionsโ about the New Tampa area as a whole.
And, since the study began, the once-vacant HH Gregg and Staples spaces in the Market Square at Tampa Palms plaza have new tenants, and a handful of new restaurants have opened or will be open by the summer, including more than a dozen new businesses in the Village at Hunterโs Lake development.
The study made a host of recommendations, including creating a chamber of commerce-esque Business Retention & Expansion committee, attracting non-chains and marketing and branding New Tampa.
A community slogan โ โSomething For Everyoneโ was floated as an example โ as well as signage would let people passing through know they are in New Tampa.
โI still think it comes down to having a community identity that is amenable to everybody here in New Tampa,โ Viera said. โItโs something we should work on, as the study pointed to.โ
The studyโs results, while inconclusive, seemed to be met with enthusiasm by most of the 100 or more people in the crowd at Compton Park.
โI still miss my Bed Bath & Beyond, but I do feel better about the business climate,โ said longtime Arbor Greene resident Noreen Luetteke. โI think itโs improving. I just hope it stays that way.โ
According to a report from the renowned Johns Hopkins Medicine, the novel coronavirus, formally known as Covid-19, has spread to 28 countries and regions since it was first identified in mainland China in December last year. Globally, it has now infected more than 73,000 people and killed more than 2,000 (at our press time), the vast majority still in mainland China.
Influenza, or โthe flu,โ and Covid-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus, are both infectious respiratory illnesses. Although the symptoms of Covid-19 and the flu can look similar, the two illnesses are caused by different viruses. And, the fact remains that although the coronavirusโ rapid spread and the number of people it already has killed in a very short time โ who had ever even heard of it six months ago? โ is frightening, the flu currently affects and kills 100-300 times more people (anywhere from 250,000 to nearly 650,000, depending upon whose numbers you use) every year, not just the last few months, the world over.
And, the fact remains that the easiest way to avoid getting either of these two potentially fatal illnesses is getting a flu shot and proper, frequent hand-washing, especially immediately after coming in contact with someone you suspect might have more than โjust a cold.โ
No, considering how debilitating both the flu and Covid-19 can be, youโre not being rude if youโre not so quick to shake the hand of every stranger you come in contact with (much less want to stand near anyone who is sneezing, even if they say โItโs just my allergiesโ), especially when this yearโs flu season continues to be such a doozy.
On the other hand, the recent worldwide backlash against people who appear to be Chinese to those of us who arenโt Asian (even though the majority of Americans donโt think people from China look any different than people from Thailand, Japan, Korea or Vietnam) makes no sense at all.
First of all, the World Health Organization and other governmental agencies around the world are tracking every known case of the coronavirus. Second, anyone who has been on a cruise ship or airplane from anywhere near the new illnessโ epicenter of Wuhan, China, is being quarantined and then closely monitored for any sign of Covid-19. Third, absolutely no one is closely monitoring the more than 120,000 people of all races, religions and ethnic groups who have been hospitalized for the flu during the 2019-20 flu season, or the hundreds of thousands more who were treated by doctors without being hospitalized or the thousands more who somehow were able to beat back the disease without even seeing a doctor.
People getting sick enough to die from their illnesses during the cold and flu season isnโt a Chinese problem. This scary new malady may have started in one particular area of one particular country, but that doesnโt mean that anyone of Chinese or Asian descent, especially if they live anywhere but in the Hubei province of south central China, is any more likely to be afflicted with Covid-19 than you are, especially if they havenโt visited their native country since the virus started.
Oh, and here in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, we can rest a little bit easy (for now, at least) knowing that none of the few cases of Covid-19 that have been confirmed in the U.S. have found their way to Florida.
But, I know there are a lot of seemingly normal people who are losing their minds over the coronavirus outbreak, just as they have over many other issues that donโt need to be debated here.
But, when I read that Chinese restaurants from Australia to Florida have lost 20-70 percent of their usual business โ or had to close their doors altogether โ in the less than three months since the outbreak first hit, well, thatโs where this lifetime Chinese food lover has to draw the line.
This isnโt the time for anti-Chinese sentiment, much less for hating Chinese-Americans or…Heaven help me, Chinese food.
So, whether your favorite local Chinese restaurant is Liangโs Bistro, Ho King or my favorites โ Fushia Asian Bistro here in Tampa Palms and Yummy House on E. Hillsborough Ave. โ or any other, now is the time to do yourself and the family that owns that eatery a favor and get yourself some egg rolls and Yang Chow fried rice.
