Sparkman Wharf is one of Tampa’s most buzzed-about projects right now. A reinvention of Channelside Bay Plaza on the Garrison Channel, the new waterfront destination at 615 Channelside Drive promised to combine exciting bites and beverages with outdoor entertainment throughout the first phase of its park-like setting, and it has.
During a media preview on Monday, Nov. 26, CL received a tour of the mixed-use grounds overhauled by developer Strategic Property Partners. The al fresco dining garden and its street food stalls housed inside 10 upcycled, mural-adorned shipping containers — led by nine of the region’s culinary minds who hope to fill the need for more casual grub in the Channel District — overlook the shaded Fermented Reality Biergarten with 30 Florida-forward taps and the spacious event lawn.
“This will be ever-evolving and ever-growing, but in the meantime, it looks pretty good to us,” said James Nozar, CEO of Strategic Property Partners, “and we’re pretty excited about all the programming and all the things that will be coming that you will see this week.”
The weekend-long grand opening of Sparkman Wharf, which marks the first big debut for the broader Water Street Tampa neighborhood, begins Friday, Nov. 30. Here’s a list of the top five things to know before you go.
1) You step up to each stall to place an order, food hall-style
For the time being, table service isn’t offered at Sparkman Wharf, but no matter — this just adds to the park’s flexibility.
Wondering what a couple of the options are? Edison: Food+Drink Lab chef-owner Jeannie Pierola will occupy two shipping containers with edison’s swigamajig divebar and fishkitchen. Pierola plans to highlight the potato-crusted oysters her flagship Edison serves, but she doesn’t foresee the dish becoming a swigamajig signature. She’s more so excited for feedback on “super fun” items, among them the jerk grouper sandwich.
“I think you’re gonna see something very unique, although very familiar because it is a fish kitchen,” Pierola added. “I think we’ve all eaten fried fish or something like that. But we’re doing our own little spin, our own little je ne sais quoi so to speak.”
swigamajig will spotlight a core menu of Florida seafood, alongside rotating seasonal features such as stone crab and spiny lobster. The dining garden’s Detroit pizza joint, The Corners, has taken a similar approach to its bill of fare, driven by one red and one white pie topped with artisan add-ons like house-made spicy sausage, roasted mushrooms and some flavorful pepperoni from Ohio purveyor Ezzo that chef-partner Noel Cruz says co-chef Branden Lenz worked hard to score.
“We’re gonna quickly, hopefully, move into a daily special that may or may not be pizza. We have a few things on our mind — wings are one of the things on our list,” said Cruz.
2) The biergarten pours something for everyone
Fermented Reality founders Joel Bigham and Dan Charley tell us their craft beer bar will appeal to both novices and geeks (barrel-aged sour, ahem). What’s more, since there’s so much great Florida beer out there, they have every intention of changing up the draft list.
The goal is to heavily swap out the non-local brews while doing some rotation with the homegrown stuff.
“We’re supporting local in pretty much every category,” Charley said.
Special tappings and collaboration suds exclusively brewed for the biergarten are also in store.
3) There’s plenty to explore between sips or snacks
On top of its variety of seating, from bar stools to lounge chairs, Sparkman Wharf has taken the event lawn’s recreational appeal into account. Go for the friendly competition (think shuffleboard, jumbo chess and cornhole), or enjoy the large LED screen slated to project Tampa Bay Lightning games, holiday movies and TED Talks, to name a few.
Gasparilla Music Festival will curate the consistent roster of area live tunes on weekends and one-off performances from time to time. But the best part about the lawn is it’s dog-friendly. Well, OK, that and the view.
4) Don’t worry about parking, either
Adjacent to the park, the Garrison Street surface lot is probably the most convenient place for self parking. Channelside’s garage is fair game, too, and patrons who spend $10 anywhere at Sparkman Wharf — including the recently revamped Splitsville Southern + Social — are encouraged to validate their tickets with the on-site concierge table.
Valet, BTW, is only planned out front at specific times.
5) When can you stop in?
The gathering place will operate 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, plus when the Lightning play at home. Tenants may choose to open in addition to those hours.
