At the Clark Elementary Multicultural Fair on Sept. 27, many of the 35 languages spoken by the school’s students and their parents were well-represented. (All photos by Charmaine George)
While organizing a Multicultural Fair at the school with her staff and PTA members, Clark Elementary (located in West Meadows) principal Dr. Delilah Rabeiro says they soon realized that 35 different languages were being spoken at the school.
PTA secretary Meghan Shirey, who helped organize the fair on Sept. 27, says that the goal was to have as many of the different cultures at the school as possible represented at the event.
At least nine different countries — including China, Brazil, The Philippines, Italy, Vietnam. Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Puerto Rico and a large contingent from India provided authentic food from their countries. There also were performances by some of the students, including traditional dances and songs.
After the performances, all of the students lined up to walk the stage for a fashion show that showed off traditional outfits from their culture. All of the kids and parents seemed really excited to show off their food and clothing to each other and many asked questions about the other attendees’ food and cultural traditions.
We are giving you another chance to win a FREE dining prize of $100, $60 or $35! One entry per person, per question. Please name your Favorite Bar in New Tampa OR Wesley Chapel! Mail your entry to “2023 Neighborhood News Dining Contest” at 2604 Cypress Ridge Blvd., Suite 102D, Wesley Chapel 33544. Or, enter by clicking HERE or email the entry form to Ads@NTNeighborhoodNews.com. Even if you already answered any previous questions, you can still enter again by clicking HERE!
We’re just looking for your favorite place to enjoy a few cocktails, beer or wine, whether your favorite Bar or Tavern also serves food or not.
Each time you answer a different Dining Survey question, you’ll receive an additional chance to win one of our FREE dining prizes — to the restaurant of your choice located anywhere in the Tampa Bay area! You all love free dining, right?
Note — Please don’t forget that we include restaurants (and bars) located in Lutz (either on Wesley Chapel Blvd., S.R. 56 or S.R. 54, within two miles of I-75) as Wesley Chapel eateries; and those located in the Palms Connection Plaza on E. Bearss Ave. and the Oak Ramble Plaza on BBD Blvd. (both are located in zip code 33613) as acceptable places to vote for in New Tampa.
Please also be sure to completely fill out the entry forms, whether from our print publications, on our website or by email, because we have had a few people — out of more than 1,200 total entries so far — try to enter with just their first name only, and two others who took the time to send us an entry without naming any restaurants.
Despite those issues, it definitely appears (as we expected) that more of you like this year’s format — with individual questions for you to answer in each issue — than in the recent past, when we asked you to answer a full page of questions across multiple issues all at once.
Remember, whether you enter by mail, email or on our website, there is never any purchase necessary to enter and win, but we do need your first AND last name, the community you live in, your daytime telephone number and a valid email address to be eligible to win any of our FREE dining prizes — and please enter all of your Survey entries by no later than November 1 to be eligible to win prizes! All winners will be announced in our December issues!
If you haven’t yet answered ALL of this year’s previous Survey questions, they are all available again by clicking on their titles below.
Erik Ravenna (left) & Pat Ciaccio are the owners of Johnny C’s Italian Eatery on Cross Creek Blvd. (Photos by Charmaine George)
Even though there are other pretty great options for Italian food in New Tampa, if you like feeling like family as you enjoy traditional comfort food “Italiano,” you need to visit my friends Pat Ciaccio and Erik Ravenna at Johnny C’s Italian Eatery, located in the small plaza on Cross Creek Blvd. at Morris Bridge Rd.
Jannah and I — and photographer Charmaine George — have visited Johnny C’s often since it opened in May of this year and there’s no doubt that the restaurant named for Pat’s father Johnny (a long-time restaurateur himself) is more of a sit-down restaurant than Precinct Pizza, the previous eatery in the same space.
Pat and Erik, who also worked together at Saddlebrook Resort, are long-time friends who both were looking for a new challenge — at least, that’s how Pat tells it.
“Actually, the only reason I’m here doing this is because of Pat,” Erik counters. “I wasn’t really looking to run a kitchen, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t enjoying myself.”
Fried calamari
Former Saddlebrook owner Tom Dempsey and Erik’s brother Seth also helped open Johnny C’s, which has a large selection of seafood options, in addition to the usual calamari, linguine with clams, wings, NY-style pizzas, lasagna and other baked pastas, favorites like fettuccine Alfredo, chicken piccata and marsala and starters like bruschetta and fried mozzarella wedges.
“I saw that New Tampa didn’t have places with a lot of seafood pasta options,” Ravenna says. “We have a mussels posillipo appetizer, plus Frutti di Mare (which translates to “fruits of the seas”) pasta, shrimp scampi, fra diavalo, parmigiana and marinara.”
Ya gotta try the “Yea Babe!” pizza.
Erik also dusts Johnny C’s pizza crusts with garlic and named one of his favorites — the “Yea, Babe!” — after his father-in-law, Grandpa Bill’s favorite saying. The Yea Babe! features pink vodka sauce (instead of traditional red pizza sauce), Italian sausage and mozzarella. The other specialty pizzas on the menu are all named for the five boroughs of New York City, as well as SoHo, but you can get any of the 18 pizza toppings on the menu — from anchovies to sundried tomatoes — on any of the three sizes of pizza and in the calzones. You can even get your pizza made with a gluten-free cauliflower crust.
“We have an open kitchen, and a dining room that might be a little louder than what you’re used to,” Erik says, “because we want you to enjoy our food the way Italian families do.”
You can’t go wrong with a Johnny C’s Italian grinder. Momma’s lasagne
We already have quite a few favorites. The Momma’s lasagna is spot-on, the hand-breaded, fresh mozzarella wedges are delicious (“We weren’t going to do frozen string cheese sticks like a lot of places do,” Erik says), the calamari is made with Mike’s hot honey and parmigiana cheese in the batter and served with banana peppers, the tasty Johnny C’s Italian grinder features capicola, salami, ham, provolone, tomato, onion, banana peppers and roasted red peppers, plus creamy Italian dressing (“The way my dad would make it at home,” Pat says) and there also are hot grinders like meatball and chicken parm. I also love Erik’s linguine vongolé (with fresh clams). You also can’t go wrong with the penne vodka, chicken or eggplant parmigiana, baked penne or spaghettini & meatballs.
We honestly have only ever tried the house and Caesar salads (both very good), but there’s also a blue cheese wedge, antipasto and caprese salads and you can add chicken or shrimp to the salads for $4 more.
Finish off your meal with delicious cannolis.
Save room for dessert, too. From delicious cannolis to the tartufo gelato bomb with hot fudge and whipped cream, there’s no better way to top off a great meal, and Johnny C’s recently added beer and wine, too. And yes, there’s also a kids menu, with all items just $6.95.
And, Johnny C’s has daily specials, like “Manic Monday” (free mozzarella wedges with purchase of a large pizza); “Take-Out Tuesday” (15% off all take-out orders); also on Tuesday, one kid 10 & under eats free with each adult entrée purchased); “Wednesday is a Pastability,” when you get a second pasta entrée 1/2-off with the purchase of a pasta entrée, and “Thursday Night Out,” when you can buy one entrée and get the second 1/2-off.
Johnny C’s Italian Eatery (10970 Cross Creek Blvd.) is open 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m. every day. For info, call (813) 278-8020, visit JohnnyCsItalianEatery.com. Catering also is a specialty and your Booster Club can hold its Spirit Days at the restaurant. Call during business hours for details.
Mozzarella wedges Johnny C’s linguine vongolé If you like mussels, try the mussels posillipo appetizer.
The City of Tampa’s Fiscal 2024 budget includes $75,000 in funding for the New Tampa Players’ Penguin Project, whose production of “Beauty & the Beast” was the first performance at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center. (Photo credit: Angie Schneider)
The City of Tampa’s Fiscal 2024 budget passed unanimously on October 3 and, according to District 7 City Council member Luis Viera (whose district includes all of New Tampa), a number of New Tampa projects were included in the budget allocations.
1. K-Bar Ranch City Park — “I was able to put the plans for the city park in K-Bar Ranch in the Community Investment Tax (CIT) for future consideration,” Viera says. “This puts us in the dugout so to speak, and ready to bat when the time comes. That’s a big change and major movement forward for us there. This is the K-Bar Ranch Park I have been talking about with my constituents for a really long time. My idea was to move it into potential projects with plans ready to go in concrete.”
2. Penguin Project Funding — “I was able to get $75,000 for the New Tampa Players (NTP) theatre troupe, for their Penguin Project, for an adult version arts program for people with intellectual disabilities,” Viera says. “Presently, when persons with intellectual disabilities in the Penguin Project (an effort by NTP to give persons with ID a first-class theatre opportunity — like ‘Aladdin,’ ‘Beauty & the Beast (photo), etc. — “age out” (at age 18), they are done with the program. This funding will allow NTP to create another program for adults. It’s wonderful. This project is spearheaded by NTP president Nora Paine, who is an amazing disability advocate who also is a Heritage Isles resident.”
3. Street Repaving — “We were able to get about $7 million in new funding for repaving,” Viera says. “This will create opportunities for streets like New Tampa Blvd. in West Meadows, which desperately needs to be resurfaced, and 30th St. (Bruce B. Downs Blvd. south of Fowler Ave.). Nothing is set in stone yet regarding which planned repaving projects will get what, but it moves us faster forward for New Tampa Blvd. for consideration. I believe the Tampa Palms Blvd. repaving is just about done.”
4. Fire Station & Public Safety Funding — “I also was able to secure $1.5 million in design funding for Tampa Fire Rescue (TFR) Station No. 25, which will be on Fowler Ave,” Viera says. “This will allow for better response times for the areas around Fowler Ave., but it also will allow Station No. 20 on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. (serving the Tampa Palms area) to better serve areas north of Fowler, especially zip code 33647. The design of the new station will take about a year, and then, we will get construction funding. I have a motion coming in a month or so to look at government bonds for our new fire stations. So, while this budget item is not directly funding for New Tampa, it will allow areas in North Tampa south of Tampa Palms to be taken care of by this new forthcoming station, so that Station No. 20 can better focus on the areas to the north of Tampa Palms. So, it is a piece of the puzzle.”
He adds, however, “As for direct fire station funding for New Tampa, we got money for a new rescue vehicle for TFR Station No. 22 on Cross Creek Blvd. (a little west of Morris Bridge Rd.) to help with response times for the K-Bar Ranch area. This is big news for that area.”
And finally, Viera says, “The budget also allocated $50,000 to fund the city’s Public Safety Master Plan I have been pushing for three years. This means that we will have a citywide assessment of emergency response times and needs for both fire and police — which, of course, acutely affects New Tampa when it comes to fire safety.”
(L.-r.) NerdsToGo New Tampa operations supervisor Angie Bosley, owner Michael Varnadore and certified IT tech Abhishek Singhai look forward to serving your personal and business technical needs at the store in the Pebble Creek Collection. (Photos by Charmaine George)
In the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel area, there is no shortage of places that claim to be able to fix a broken device, such as mobile phone, laptop or computer.
But, NerdsToGo is the only one owned and run by Michael Varnadore, a U.S. Air Force veteran with four decades of experience and education that have all dovetailed into his latest endeavor.
Michael enlisted in the U.S. Air Force right out of high school, four days after his 18th birthday. Of his 20-year military career, he says that 15 were spent in computer service, including teaching his entire squadron how to use personal computers when they received them while stationed in Korea.
Along the way, he earned a Bachelor’s degree and went on to receive a Doctorate degree in information systems management.
After retiring from the military, Michael started his second career at an aerospace corporation. He served as director of personal computing, responsible for 80,000 end points (personal computers and laptops). After nearly two decades, he retired again, and that’s when he decided to take all of the knowledge he had gained to start something new, as the local franchise owner for NerdsToGo, located in the Pebble Creek Collection plaza on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.
“Everything I’ve done — starting with working on my first Tandy 1000 in 1986 — has led to where I’m at today,” Michael says, “it’s been a progression of skill sets and responsibilities, and I’m still learning.”
He teaches, too, as a college professor teaching introductory computer classes at Hillsborough Community College and University of Maryland online.
Those decades of experience and extensive education have given Michael the expertise to help both consumers and businesses with any computer or IT issue that may arise.
Since opening the business in 2019, Michael says he’s proud that his small business has served the needs of the New Tampa area and has racked up more than 150 5-star reviews on Google, and an average of 4.9 stars out of 5.
“As a small business, I don’t have any way to brush off bad reviews,” he says. “We have very few untrue or unfair reviews.”
NerdsToGo is a growing franchise, with about 35 locations nationwide.
Michael explains that when you hire NerdsToGo, you’re hiring an IT specialist, and he and his staff provide the expertise to fix your problem.
Got a cracked phone screen? Bring it in. NerdsToGo can fix most devices and even has a special laser to remove the back glass off iPhones. Without that laser, Michael says, it can take hours to try to pry it off by hand because of the strong glue that holds it in place. At NerdsToGo, repairs are quick and you can generally get your phone back within a couple of hours.
Virus on your computer? Michael says this is a big issue these days. You clicked on something you didn’t realize was a scam and now you’re having all kinds of problems with your computer? He and the other “nerds” at NerdsToGo know exactly what to do to get rid of any signs of the problem you encountered.
Michael says he also often helps people upgrade computers that are running slow. It can cost hundreds if not thousands of dollars to replace a computer, but Nerds ToGo can offer upgrades that will keep your computer running efficiently for years without having to buy a whole new system.
NerdAssure For Business
But, don’t just think of NerdsToGo for your own personal needs.
As a small business owner, Michael knows all too well just how many hats have to be worn and how many things small business owners have to become experts in just to get by.
He promises that those who own small businesses don’t have to learn to be IT experts, as Nerds ToGo’s exclusive NerdAssure program will manage all information technology services for you.
He says the service uses software to monitor machines for performance and fix hardware before it breaks, along with providing antivirus services, cloud backup to ensure all data and email is backed up and recoverable in case of a problem, and the administration of some kind of office productivity software, which could be Office 365 or something else.
He says this includes making sure everyone has access to the things they should and not to the things they shouldn’t.
“For businesses that have no IT department or person, we can remotely manage and monitor the environment,” Michael explains. “For those who have a person or small department, this service complements that and takes a lot of work off their shoulders.”
That’s how it works at Ridge Manor Christian Academy, where assistant principal Nathan Puentes is responsible for the school’s IT but can’t do it by himself.
“We’ve worked with five different companies over the last 13 years, and before NerdsToGo, no one was as accessible to us as we needed them to be,” Nathan says. “When something goes wrong, we can’t wait days for it to get fixed. Our students need their devices working immediately.”
He says that, for the past three years, working with NerdsToGo has met all of the school’s needs and has performed beyond their expectations.
“These guys are amazing,” he says. “They are performing updates, identifying issues in the system, getting the right people right away to solve problems.”
NerdsToGo is located at 19651 Bruce B Downs Blvd., Suite C6. The store is open Monday-Friday, 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m., and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday. For more information, visit NerdsToGo.com, call (813) 321-1700.
