“We Go Together” from “Grease. (Photos by Charmaine George)
A few short months ago, we told you about the Wesley Chapel Theater Group (WCTG)’s “Broadway Through the Decades” performance at TrebleMakers Dueling Piano Bar & Restaurant in The Grove.
That performance attracted about 150 people and nobody who attended (including yours truly) went home disappointed.
Well, the weekend we went to press with this issue (Mar. 9-10), WCTG was at it again with another “Broadway Through the Decades: Contemporary Era” show, with the performances this time being held at the Zephyrhills Lions Club.
The Lions Club provided dinner on Saturday night and dessert for the Sunday matinee, so WCTG secretary Samantha Grahn, who also did the publicity for the show, said that the theater group had to provide a hard number of attendees to the Lions Club a couple of days before the two performances.
The WCTG cast from “Broadway Through the Decades: Contemporary Era.”
“That limited us to only about 130 people total for the two shows,” Samantha says. “But, we had a lot of wonderful singers performing and the audiences both days really seemed to enjoy the performances.”
The “Contemporary Era” performances includes many current and recent past Broadway favorites, including the entire company singing “Be Our Guest” from “Beauty and the Beast,” Danielle Warren’s “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Vette Berrian & the Company on “Day By Day” from “Godspell,” the entire company on “We Go Together” from “Grease” and favorites from “Rent,” “Pippin,” “Chicago,” “A Chorus Line,” “Sweeney Todd,” “42nd Street,” “Into the Woods,” “Les Miserables,” “The Phantom of the Opera” and many more.
“A Little Priest” from “Sweeney Todd” performed by Krystian Kopycinski & Danielle Warren.
“We’re now three years in with this group,” Grahn said afterwards. “And every performance we do is a fund raiser so we can afford to rent theaters for our future performances. We’re also writing some grants to try to get some more money to do more shows and we’d like to have them at the (Pasco School District’s) Instructional Performing Arts Center (IPAC) and other venues in Wesley Chapel.” She adds that the School District is looking into building a smaller “black box” theater for community performances.
She adds that in the meantime, however, “We have a great relationship with the Zephyrhills Lions Club. They don’t charge us to rehearse there and the rent to do our shows there isn’t that expensive. We really owe them a big thank-you!”
So, What’s Next? “Office Hours!”
Grahn says that WCTG’s next show will be the comedy play “Office Hours,” written by Norm Foster, which also will be performed at the Zephyrhills Lions Club, this time without food service.
There will be three performances of “Office Hours” — matinees on Saturday, April 20, and Sunday, April 21, and a Saturday (Apr. 21) evening performance. Also coming up April 4 at 7pm, the next performance of “Broadway Through the Decades” at TrebleMakers Dueling Piano Bar.
“We also would love to have feedback from the Wesley Chapel community regarding what shows or types of shows they would want to see,” Grahn says.
For tickets to see “Office Hours” or the April 4 encore of “Broadway Through The Decades” at TrebleMakers Dueling Piano Bar and more info about the Wesley Chapel Theater Group, visit WesleyChapelTheaterGroup.org or search “WesleyChapel TheaterGroup” on Facebook.
Cheryl Abramson performing “On My Own” from “Les Miserables. Jonathan Hogsett performing “If I Can’t Love Her” from “Beauty & the Beast.” “Be Our Guest” from “Beauty & the Beast.”
No one has ever doubted that Jannah and I love to sit at the bar and enjoy a great cocktail with our meal and there are several other favorite places that didn’t make this list, including Miller’s Ale House, Carrabba’s, Bonefish, Grillsmith and Outback, but Grill at Morris Bridge gets this year’s nod for its consistency.
Treble Makers Is Again Gary’s Favorite In Wesley Chapel! The Dueling Piano Bar & Restaurant Beats Out Falabella Family Bistro & Zukku-San For The Top Spot!
Neighborhood News editor Gary Nager checks out a few of his favorite dishes at TrebleMakers, his favorite restaurant in Wesley Chapel again for 2023. (Photo by Charmaine George)
Every year, after our readers’ favorite restaurants in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel are published, I like to provide our readers with my own list of favorites — and there are always many differences between your choices and mine.
I also always have a few haters every year who say that my reviews aren’t “real,” that I only pick my favorites based on which restaurants advertise with me and/or give me free food, that I have no taste whatsoever, etc.
The primary thing these haters don’t seem (or want) to understand or believe is that the restaurants I tell you about in my annual “Gary’s Favorites” are not just the places I like the most, they’re also the places where I spend the most of my own money. And yes, when you consider that there are literally dozens of restaurants named on of this issue, Jannah and I do spend a lot of our money dining out (and taking out food) — I’m betting more than just about anyone else in our distribution areas, especially when you consider our combined annual income.
The “trolls” also don’t seem to “get” the other reason I give my opinions on local eateries every year is that I so appreciate the feedback — both positive and negative — I get after “Gary’s Favorites” are published each year.
I can’t even tell you how many people come up to me and Jannah when we’re sitting at the bar at The Grill at Morris Bridge, TrebleMakers, Stonewood, Zukku-San, Azteca D’Oro or any of our other favorite eateries to tell me what they think of my opinions. The vast majority of them say things like, “I only tried this place because of what you wrote about them” or “I didn’t really love this place the first time I tried it, but I decided to give it another try because of you.” If you’ve never felt that kind of love from strangers, I promise you that it’s one of the things that most makes the long hours I still put in 30 years since I first started this job worthwhile.
And yes, a few people also come up to me to tell me that they totally disagree with my assessment of one restaurant or another. Others also tell me that they read my reviews “even though I know they aren’t real.”
But, the fact is that whether my haters believe it or not, my dining reviews are 100% real. And, unlike the online trolls who think they’re dining “critics” because they tell their few followers that they hated something they ate (or the service they received) at a particular place, I still tell every restaurant owner in our area that when I write a review of their eatery, I will tell more than 170,000 of my “closest friends” (that’s the total possible number of readers we reach in print) everything I like about their place. Anything I don’t like I will tell the restaurant owner about — and pretty much all of them appreciate this approach a lot more then online trolls who cause their overall online ratings to drop.
Despite all of the new restaurants that opened in the area I call Wesley Chapel — which includes everything from west of the Tampa Premium Outlets to Oak Grove Blvd. in Lutz — the only newcomers to make my top-25 are Azteca D’Oro and Cooper’s Hawk. And, even though we had never dined at any of family-owned Azteca’s previous locations, Cooper’s Hawk had a bit of an unfair advantage for me because Jannah and I have been eating and enjoying the huge varieties of wines at the Tampa location for the last nine years, so we’d already sampled most of the menu. Other newbies that received consideration but didn’t make my top-25 cut include Slim Chickens, Shuckin’ Shack, Crazy Sushi,Rice N’ Beans Express and even the Leonidas Chocolates Café which only added sandwiches and salads in Oct. of 2023.
1. TrebleMakers
6034 Wesley Grove Blvd., The Grove at Wesley Chapel
TrebleMakers continues to be my Favorite Restaurant in Wesley Chapel, and all you’d have to do to know this is true is check my bank records to see just how many times Jannah and I have eaten there every month since it opened. We just love sitting at the bar to enjoy a craft cocktail and we often share a Caesar salad and the always-fresh coconut curry grouper or a tender 8-oz. filet mignon.
Whenever we’re not sharing, I will usually get one of the following: the lollipop lamb chops shown here, the 16-oz. prime rib or the diver scallops, and the seared ahi tuna or potato gnocchi appetizer (although co-owner Jamie Hess says the Baked Imperial Crab Dip is the most popular app). Try any of these and let me know what you think!
2. Falabella Family Bistro
6027 Wesley Grove Blvd., The Grove at Wesley Chapel
Any of my top-10 favorites could have made it to this spot, but one of the main reasons, for me, that Falabella Family Bistro nails down the #2 spot is because of its amazing weekend dinner specials, which can be anything from a honey bourbon pork chop to tender veal parmesan or Marsala and so many more.
Anytime I miss a possible new favorite special (like on my deadline weekends), I always check with owner Steve Falabella to see if I can still get the special after the weekend. Of course, when your regular menu includes crispy zucchini chips, Sam’s meatballs,short rib ragu and the tender chicken parmesan shown here, plus one of our area’s best dessert displays — and the recent addition of full liquor to go with the Bistro’s already popular wine and beer options — helped make it even more popular with the Nagers.
Although I love the fresh sushi, there’s no doubt that the reason Jannah (who really only enjoys California roll) and I always have to come back to visit Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill is because of the amazing Starters — like deep-fried pork gyoza, steamed Zukku dumplings, veggie spring rolls, the incredible assortment of veggie tempura options (try the sweet potato and/or zucchini) and the chicken (photo) and tenderloin yakitori. The Japanese fried rice, grilled short ribs, crafted bowls and lychee martinis also are favorites.
Like Lima in New Tampa, there’s only one place in Wesley Chapel serving authentic Peruvian-style fish ceviche de pescado with giant corn kernels (photo) — Pisco Express. But, Jannah and I also crave other dishes at this unique Peruvian-Chinese fusion restaurant, including the fried pork chicharrons, tallarin saltado (with chicken or steak) and lomo saltado (steak sautéed with onions, tomatoes & peppers).
From our first visit to the new Azteca D’Oro, Jannah and I agreed that its Mexican food was significantly better than Cantina Laredo, the restaurant Azteca replaced. We love Azteca’s huge menu of authentic dishes you won’t find at other local Mexican restaurants, including the borrego (lamb shank) shown above, the taquitos appetizer, the bar area and the place’s “vibe.”
Although it opened in Wesley Chapel too late in 2023 to earn votes in our Reader Survey, Cooper’s Hawk has been a solid chain restaurant in the Westshore area of Tampa for years, so Jannah and I already had a few favorites, including the pan-roasted mahi (photo), parmesan-crusted filet mignon & others,. But, we’ve also found a few new faves since it opened here.
Grillsmith, the “mini-chain” with five Tampa Bay-area locations, has consistently finished in my top-10 favorites in Wesley Chapel, in large part because of its “Daily Catch,” which can include anything from mahi and grouper to pompano, amberjack and the Mediterranean-style corvina shown above. We do enjoy other entrées at Grillsmith, including the lemon feta chicken, port wine filet, as well as the crunchy ahi tuna appetizer and the great service.
As our readers’ Wesley Chapel Favorite the last three years, Noble Crust also appeals to yours truly, but it seems that several of the dishes that have been my favorites get removed from the seasonally-changing menu or it would finish higher with me, because I love the place. The chicken fried chicken parm, ricotta gnocchi and steak frites (photo) are among my current faves.
Despite its 20% service charge, the second location of The Living Room has been a welcome addition to the Wesley Chapel dining scene, although Jannah and I differ on our favorite dishes. She loves the beef tenderloin empanadas and pan-seared crab cakes (and the house white cosmo), while I’m partial to the brown butter scallops (photo), adobo-braised pork ossobuco and “You Bet…Churrasco.”
If Jannah were a fan of Thai food, I’d eat at (and take out from) Arroy Thai a lot more. Still the only place in Wesley Chapel for crispy duck, soft shell crabs, and Thai-style chicken with garlic and black pepper sauce, as well as Thai-style house fried rice, Arroy Thai is a little hidden gem in the same plaza as Joe Whiskey’s.
Gary’s 2023 Favorite Restaurants In Wesley Chapel #s 11-25
TrebleMakers’ co-owners (l.-r.) Joe Hess, Lee Bevan & Jamie Hess.
I’ve said this before but, as much as we love live music, Jannah and I don’t visit Treble Makers Dueling Piano Restaurant & Bar in the Village at The Grove every week for the weekend dueling piano shows. Don’t get me wrong, the shows are great — as are the free solo piano shows beginning at 6 p.m. every Thursday-Saturday.
The shrimp tacos are served with house-made crispy potato chips.
You can enjoy TrebleMakers’ delicious chicken bruschetta for brunch or dinner!
But, for those who still have never enjoyed a meal at TrebleMakers, I can’t urge you strongly enough to check it out for everything from its delicious fresh fish (the coconut curry grouper is one of executive chef Kevin Maggard’s true masterpieces) and seafood (love the diver scallops and many rave about the shrimp tacos), plus excellent steaks (the filet mignon and thick-cut prime rib are my favorites), great chicken options (like my latest favorite, the bruschetta chicken shown left), delicious pastas and starters like the seared ahi tuna, the fried calamari in sweet Thai chili sauce, the potato gnocchi, crispy Brussels sprouts and their most popular appetizer, the baked Imperial crab dip.
And, even though Jannah and I have been frequent visitors for lunch at TrebleMakers from the moment it opened in Sept. 2020, we now have a new reason to visit and enjoy it — the super-yummy Sunday brunch!
When all three of Jannah’s kids came to visit recently, we got her entire family together at TrebleMakers so that yours truly could check out the different brunch items being offered by TrebleMakers co-owners Jamie and his brother Joe Hess and Lee Bevan.
One piece of good news is that if you’re not a fan of bottomless mimosas for only $15 per person (or bottomless champagne for just $20 per person) or eating eggs at lunch time, no matter what day of the week it is, most of TrebleMakers’ entire delicious menu also is available during the Sunday brunch hours — 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m.
And, it appears the word about the brunch has already gotten out, as our party of 13 was only the second largest the Sunday we visited and there were a number of other tables on hand, all raving not only about the food, but also the recently added robot server (photo, below, and more on that below).
About The Brunch Menu…
The brunch specialty that isn’t on the regular lunch or dinner menu at TrebleMakers that most appealed to yours truly is the “Feather & Waffles,” which features super-crispy, house-brined chicken breast, served atop a Belgian-style waffle and served with applewood-smoked bacon, two eggs served your choice of sunny side up or scrambled, and real maple syrup.
Another brunch-only option sampled at our table was the fried egg smash burger, which features sausage-infused brisket smash patties on a brioche roll, cheddar cheese, that crispy applewood-smoked bacon, with lettuce, tomato, onion and garlic aioli, topped off by an over-easy fried egg and served with TrebleMakers’ super-crispy fries.
One option we didn’t try that I look forward to sampling in the future is the Treble Classic Platter, featuring TrebleMakers’ exclusive 12-hour espresso-rubbed brisket, roasted garlic hash, with Cuban toast, two sunny-side-up or scrambled eggs, bacon and maple sausage links. Also available on the brunch menu are Cuban avocado toast, featuring a La Segunda Bakery Cuban loaf, fresh Haas avocado smash, cherry tomato, everything bagel seasoning and local micro greens (you can even add two fried eggs to this one), brioche French toast, fried deviled crab Benny (with a honey deviled crab cake and potato hash on an English muffin) and the brisket skillet Treble hash with bell peppers, Brussels sprouts and a fried egg. All of the brunch menu items are only $13-$16 each. Kids menu items (including penne marinara, chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks and a kids cheeseburger) are all just $7 each. There’s even a solo piano show every Sunday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
TrebleMakers also served a special, “not your typical” Easter buffet brunch on Apr. 9, with chef-inspired stations for $44.95 per person ($39.95 for those aged 65+ and $19.95 for kids ages 5-12, 4 & under free). Jamie says many of the same items will be repeated for Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 14, so make your reservations now!
And yes, after seeing how efficient a robot server was at an Asian restaurant in New Tampa, Jamie, Joe and Lee decided to invest in a robot server for TrebleMakers.
“And, rather than replacing our servers,” Jamie says, “it’s helped them and our busboys work more efficiently, as the robot brings the food to the table, so the server only has to put the plates in front of each patron.” The robot also politely asks for people to move out of its way and even plays ‘Happy Birthday!”
TrebleMakers (6034 Wesley Grove Blvd.) is open every day for lunch and dinner. For more information, call (813) 406-4371, visit TrebleMakersofWC.com.
Wesley Chapel Theater Group Takes Over TrebleMakers! If you missed the performance of WCTG yesterday, Neighborhood News Online has a quick look back. Great Broadway-style show…perfect venue! (Photos By Charmaine George)
