Russian restaurant Babushka’s opens new location in South Tampa early next month

Temple Terrace Russian restaurant Babushka’s is set to open its second location in South Tampa any day now. The spot’s social media encourages followers to “turn your notifications on as we are still yet to announce our official opening date which is in early December.”

The new place—at 901 W Platt St., the former home of Hyde Park’s Boca—also has an entirely different look than the original Temple Terrace spot. While the East Tampa restaurant has a quaint and cozy vibe, the South Tampa space is more, well, South Tampa-y.

The “Dacha-inspired interior” embodies a vacation house or “A place where relaxation is guaranteed and the concerns of daily life remain back in the city.” Dacha translates to “cottage” in Babushka’s mother tongue, but the space is more of a fancy, well-decorated cottage than Little Red Riding Hood’s Grandma’s space.

There’s a “From Russia with Love” neon sign against a vine-embellished wall with plush velvet, lush ferns, and wicker accents throughout.

Creative Loafing Tampa Bay reached out to find out more about the menu and hours at the new space, but haven’t heard back yet. Differences spotted so far also include a caviar bar and a full liquor bar with infused-vodkas. The eatery also added “Ukrainian and Eastern European plates” to its offerings. To stay up to date, follow @babushkas.hydepark on Instagram.

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This article appears in Nov 25 – Dec 1, 2021.