Nibble and Bytes

It’s Raining Berries…And It’s Not What We Thought!

Do you ever drive around Wesley Chapel and wonder what some of the new places will be like that you’ve never heard of before?

No? OK, maybe it’s just me. One of the places that fooled me with its name is the beautiful new Raining Berries, located in the outparcel building set in from S.R. 56 between Earth Fare and Walk On’s Bistro & Bar (at 25595 Sierra Center Blvd.) that also includes two not-not-yet-open businesses — Five Guys Burgers & Fries and Bijous Beauty Bar.

If you’re like me, you were thinking “another frozen yogurt place” (like CherriBerri, MochiBerri, LaBerry, etc.) and you’d be wrong.

I know being able to Google search everything has made mystery mostly a thing of the past but when a first-ever location of a new business hasn’t yet opened and their website wasn’t up (until recently)…but, would you have guessed that Raining Berries’ signature product is (drumroll, please)…ethically and sustainably sourced coffee (and hot and cold coffee drinks) — and really delicious coffee at that? There’s some pretty great-looking baked goods, too.

So, where do the berries come in? Raining Berries does have a variety of açai berry bowls, dragon fruit “pitaya” bowls and coconut bowls, but RainingBerries.com didn’t yet have pictures or descriptions of all of these bowls at our press time. See, still a little mystery!

At any rate, the place itself is very cool modern, but after sampling a most delicious (not sweet) “traditional” (not caramel) macchiato on my first visit, I was very happy knowing that Jannah and I live less than a mile from the place.

For info, call (813) 949-8299 or stop in and try Raining Berries for yourself and tell them I sent you! 

• Managing editor John Cotey says other businesses getting ready to build in the Cypress Creek area include Zukku Sushi, Woofgang Bakery and a Charles Schwab office. These may or may not be located in the same building just west of Bahama Breeze along S.R. 56 as the European Wax Center, which does have its sign up, but look for details next issue. 

Coffee Speaks N’ Tea Talks Opens!

Speaking of delicious coffee, congratulations to our friend Arlene Brooks (on the left in photo above) on the opening of her long-awaited Coffee Speaks N’ Tea Talks at 19651 BBD in the Pebble Creek Collection (behind Kobe Steakhouse, in what was the original location of Las Palmas Cuban Café).

Arlene hosted a North Tampa Bay Chamber ribbon-cutting event in November, which was well attended by her friends, neighbors and fellow Chamber members, as well as members of the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel, of which she is a member.

I personally missed the actual ribbon cutting, but have still enjoyed some delicious Ethiopian coffee at Coffee Speaks N’ Tea Talks since then and I look forward to checking out Arlene’s live jazz on Fri. and now Sat. nights (due to demand), especially because she’s a talented entertainer herself. Arlene sings with the Wesley Chapel Rotary’s Strictly Business Band.

“The smell of good coffee reminds me of my mom,” Arlene told us when we recorded a video at her opening for Neighborhood News Online. “She was the inspiration for this place.”

For more information, call (813) 528-8863 or search “Coffee Speaks N Tea Talks” on Facebook. 

Congrats, Ben!

Congrats go out to Ben Hobe (3rd from left, with yours truly, Charmaine George and John Cotey). Ben’s a talented video editor we first were presented by Hands On Educational Services, Inc., a Tampa nonprofit that felt he would be a perfect fit for the Neighborhood News. And, after a no-risk, 80-hour trial run, we happily hired Ben as a permanent employee For more info, visit HandsOnEducation.net. — GN