From ghost kitchens, to teaming up, to fleeing food halls and sharing kitchens with other concepts, Tampa Bay restaurateurs have been getting creative to stay in business and obey CDC regulations when it comes to the safety of both employees and customers.
For Greg Seymour, owner of Safety Harbor’s Pizzeria Gregario, that path looks a little different than the others.
After initially diverting to takeout once COVID-19 regulations began rolling in, Seymour realized that operations weren’t sustainable, especially while keeping his staff onboard. Instead, he shut down and began focusing on bread.
We know what you’re thinking, what the hell is a pizza guy doing cranking out loaves of bread in the middle of a pandemic? What you may not know is that Seymour isn’t new to the kneading game, he’s true to it. He has frequented festivals, read books, taken masterclasses, and linked up with fellow bread aficionados to devour every crumb of knowledge when it comes to technique and history.
“Baking bread is really inspirational for me. To me, it’s something humans have been doing since the beginning of the agricultural revolution. Bread is a source of food across the globe,” Seymour told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. “To me, bread is really important.”
While Seymour and a handful of local bakeries may share the same sentiment, the restaurateur says that’s not the norm. “There’s not much bread culture in Tampa Bay or Florida. There are some good people baking some really good bread here but not as prevalent as other parts of the country.” he added.
Prior to the pandemic, customers could walk into Pizzeria Gregorio Thursday through Saturday and snag loaves of bread that Seymour had crafted in-house.
In May, to create a source of income, his focus shifted to strictly making bread. Seymour had customers who would put in orders, and he started selling wholesale to Life Farms in Clearwater and Tampa’s Trailbale Farms.
“That kept me going along, and after a few weeks, I reached out the people buying the bread and asked if they would be interested in doing pizza in a different construct,” Seymour explained.
Rather than opening doors back up for seating, Seymour decided to switch to a direct sales business model. Customers could add themselves to a list and receive emails detailing weekly pizza offerings available for purchase and pickup. Those who claim a pie can expect to pick up a whole, uncut pizza, with finishing ingredients in the box to be added prior to consumption in the comfort of their own home—or anywhere else they please, outside of the restaurant, that is.
Regulars who frequent the small pizza shop know that Seymour’s strategy was completely warranted; the pizzeria has limited space for customers to socially distance while dining.
“Once the mask comes off when you’re eating, this is a small space, so even at half capacity I could only have 20 people in here and that’s including my staff members,” Seymour explains. So far, the switch in business models has been successful and has caused a considerably smaller amount of stress thanks to the alternative route of operations.
“I like this direct sale model because I don’t have any waste, and I know what to prepare. I do prepare a little extra because I have some stragglers just in case someone pops in or forgets,” he added.
Seymour said another plus of the new business model during pandemic times is that he doesn’t have to fight with people about wearing masks. (We hear you on that, Greg.)
Because of the positive response, Pizzeria Gregario is able to open for a few days a week to complete orders, which means Seymour has been able to employ a handful of people to assist with operations.
While Seymour is content with how the direct sale model is going, he can’t help but feel his business would be more successful in a different part of Tampa Bay.
“To be honest with you I chose the wrong place to open this, I should’ve opened in St. Pete because it has the right diversity and population,” Seymour shares before explaining that North Pinellas county is a different beast. “I opened it here to be closer to my mom cause that’s where she lives. Not that it’s been unsuccessful—just tough.”
Seymour hopes that come November-December he can add another pizza day to the week. Considering the circumstances, this direct sales business model will be in place for the foreseeable future.
To support local business, and get a pie or loaf of bread to snack on within the comfort of your own home, all you have to do is inquire by emailing pizzeriagregario4107@gmail.com. You’ll be added to Seymour’s list and will receive weekly updates on his offerings. We’re all in this together Tampa Bay, and you can do your part by eating—which is actually pretty ideal.
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This article appears in Nov 5-11, 2020.
