Although we had been previously told to expect some sort of fried or grilled chicken restaurant in the space previously occupied by Wok Chi in the Shops at Wiregrass, the new restaurant that opened there earlier this month is called Teriyaki Madness, which is more of a Japanese experience, whereas Wok Chi was definitely more of a Chinese restaurant.
Please note that in our October 18 Wesley Chapel edition, I mistakenly called this new restaurant by a different name, which also was a fast-Asian concept that closed several years ago. I already have apologized to the general manager at Teriyaki Madness for my mistake, so I hope you will read this and go visit Teriyaki Madness soon. Feel free to make fun of me when you do visit.
Teriyaki Madness specializes in — you guessed it — dishes cooked with a teriyaki glaze (thicker than most sauces) that, to me, is more like BBQ sauce than something you’d get at a Japanese restaurant. This fast, healthier-than-most-fast-casual concept was founded in Las Vegas in 2003 and currently includes more than 100 locations being operated throughout the U.S. and now Mexico by M.H. Enterprises, which is based in Denver, CO.
In addition to beef, chicken and tofu teriyaki dishes, Teriyaki Madness also offers spicy chicken, spicy tofu teriyaki, orange chicken teriyaki, fried chicken katsu and yakisoba noodles with chicken, beef, tofu or all veggies. Appetizers include crispy chicken egg rolls, edamame (soybeans), crab Rangoon, chicken pot stickers and more.
The veggies are very fresh and you can customize which veggies you want, so yes, I’ll visit The Teriyaki Madness (28152 Paseo Dr.) again soon.
For more information, call (813) 803-3749, search “Teriyaki Madness” on Facebook or visit TeriyakiMadness.com.
At 2 p.m. on July 12, more than four hours after it was cancelled, lines to take advantage of Build-A-Bear Workshop’s “Pay Your Age” promotion still stretched around the building. (Photo: John C. Cotey)
The longest lines in the history of the Shops at Wiregrass ended with sadness for many on July 12, as customers had to be turned away when the popular toy company was forced to abandon its “Pay Your Age” promotion in mid-stream.
The promotion sounded great on paper. For one day only, customers could purchase a stuffed animal for the price of their age. For a toy that can run from $15 and (much) higher, it sounded too good to be true.
And for many, it was.
All across the country, and at the Wiregrass location, the promotion had to be cut short, due to overwhelming demand. At Wiregrass, a line of more than 1,000 people stretched around the back of Build-A-Bear, around JCPenney and down past Moe’s SW Grill when the promotion was canceled at 10:30 a.m.
Those who were already there were allowed to stay, but no one else was allowed to get in line.
Even by 2 p.m., the line still went all the way behind Build-A-Bear. It was a sunny and blistering hot day, so the mall was nice enough to bring out a container of green-and-white umbrellas to help customers shield themselves from the elements.
Build-A-Bear has announced that those who join its free “Count Your Candles” program can still pay their age for a “Birthday Treat Bear,” which is usually $14, during their birthday month only.
VROOOM: BMW is hoping to open a showroom at S.R. 56 and Mansfield Blvd., after filing plans with Pasco County and having a pre-application meeting in July.
The BMW showroom would be 32,758 square feet, and bring another luxury auto dealership to Wesley Chapel.
In the last year alone, Wesley Chapel has seen Lexus and Audi luxury brands added to a three-year-old Mercedes-Benz dealership.
The plans filed with the county do not identify the dealership’s owner.
Think you have great ideas about hoe to improve life in Pasco County? It looks like you may have to go online to add your suggestions to Pasco County’s “Neighborhood Notebook.”
The Pasco County Planning and Development Department would like feedback regarding what residents want to see develop in the community.
They’ve taken a novel approach.
The county’s first ‘Neighborhood Notebook’ debuted at the Shops at Wiregrass, located at 28211 Paseo Drive in Wesley Chapel, on June 30, eliciting ideas from passers-by.
Members of the Pasco County Long Rangers built what amounts to an enormous chalkboard where residents can share their ideas with county officials.
One side of the board that was left blank asked what residents would like to see, and the other side of the board asked how they can make it happen. Buckets of chalk attached to the boards allow residents to fill in the blanks.
County officials came by several times a week to photograph the board, take notes in a log and clear it off for new suggestions. The board was initially supposed to leave The Shops at Wiregrass on July 17, but officials extended it until July 20 while they took additional comments and looked for a suitable location in the North Pointe area, near S.R. 54 and the Suncoast Pkwy.
Matt Armstrong of Pasco County planning and development said that during the three weeks it was up at the Shops at Wiregrass, the chalkboard notebook garnered between 150 and 200 comments.
The Neighborhood Notebook is part of the county’s Gateway Crossings Market Area Plan, otherwise known as the South Market Area that covers all of Wesley Chapel and much of southern Pasco County, from U.S. 301 all the way to Little Rd. in the Trinity area. The area also covers the north-south corridors of I-75 and the Suncoast Pkwy.
“We’re here, to hear you,” Pasco’s director of planning & development Kris Hughes said. “We want public engagement from multi-media sources in high-traffic parts of the South Market areas.”
Hughes and his staff come from a diverse background and drew on their experiences to dream up the Neighborhood Notebook.
“The physical board was taken from a staffer’s experience in Mississippi,” Hughes said. “We bring a lot of experience to the project and borrow from the experience we’ve all had.”
If you missed the physical message board when it was at the mall, residents can visit WalkBikePlay.com/copy-of-virtual-notebook. Hughes saidthe online notebook also is getting lots of comments, as is the physical notebook. Residents are encouraged to connect with the “Walk. Bike. Work. Play” initiative via social media.
“We’re getting good suggestions and we’re working with them,” Hughes said. “Information from the Notebook is used to inform the preparation of the market area plan. The Notebook comments will help us focus on specific areas of interest or concern.”
While the online notebook hasn’t done quite as well as the physical board at the Shops at Wiregrass, the comments online have tended to be longer and more descriptive.
Early comments on the physical Notebook at Wiregrass included better public transportation options, more recycling programs and more nature trails.
One resident who advocated for transit options noted that residents could help by voting for transit-friendly candidates and referendums. Another advocating for clean streets said that people could help “Make it Happen” by cleaning up their own street and sidewalk.
Naturally, a chalkboard in the middle of a mall inviting comments is going to have some strange requests. Under things people would like to see, some chalk-toting shoppers included world peace, a million dollars, Justin Bieber, a real live red fox and a dog president.
All suggestions feed into the County’s Comprehensive Plan and associated goals, objectives and policies that will guide Pasco’s future growth.
The Neighborhood Notebook was originally planned to move to the Tampa Premium Outlets near S.R. 56 and I-75, but concerns about teenage vandalism, and governmental red tape, has been holding up that move..
Instead, Hughes said that the physical portion of the project may evolve into postage-paid comment cards.
Pokemon GO is taking over The Shops at Wiregrass mall, new restaurants are nearing completion of S.R. 56, we stop by and talk with PROtential Sports and Gary shares some of his favorite places to get a good meal in the Seminole Heights area.
Thursday night at the offices of the Neighborhood News, the first episode of WCNT-tv was shown to a select crowd of more than 100 at the launch party. Now it’s your turn.
The new YouTube-based video news show is a partnership between Full Throttle Intermedia and the New Tampa & Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News, and also is the exclusive webcast partner of the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. The program will come to you from the Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel Studio, and will be released bi-monthly, featuring local news, businesses and restaurants.
