The first time Creative Loafing Tampa Bay met Ashley Suttle aka “Chef Ai” was back in 2018 when the U.S. Armed Forces veteran opened the first Main Course restaurant in West Tampa. The location soon closed in early 2019 and re-emerged later that year at the Grand Sixty Club in Valrico. After she closed down in Brandon because of COVID-19, fans were excited back in November when a photo of the restaurant’s logo was posted on Instagram saying a new location was “coming soon”.

Well, the wait finally ends this weekend when Main Course Restaurant & Lounge opens its doors on Saturday, April 10. Grand opening festivities feature live music from Jay On Sax and Ari Chi and an appearance from Mayor Jane Castor.

“The Mayor LOVES Main Course too!,” said the announcement on Instagram. Until Friday, guests can purchase a variety of grand opening tickets priced up to $100. There are different time slots available, with different levels of pricing, depending on how much food you want.

The menu will still have old faves like egg rolls and chicken & waffles with some new additions like "boujee biscuits", sausage queso, and several decadent desserts like death by chocolate, an Oreo brownie cookie topped with vanilla ice cream. Bottled beers, wines, and cocktails are up for grabs, too.

“The only difference is I had three separate menus in West Tampa but this time brunch is available everyday,” Suttle told CL. “Only on Thursday-Saturday night am I going to do things like the egg rolls, seafood, or specialty fries.”

Healthier menu items include veggie stir fry, the “Animals are Friends Not Food”, or AAFNF, platter, plus vegan from Tampa’s Hello Vegan Bakery.

Main Course Restaurant & Lounge will take up a portion of the space previously held by Roux in the St. Croix Plaza at 4205 S MacDill Ave. Once open, it’ll be open daily 10 a.m.-6 p.m. for brunch and reopen for its late night menu every Thursday-Saturday 8 p.m.-1 a.m.

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