HaleLifeBakery / Facebook
Halelife's new bistro dishes out breakfast sandwiches and wraps alongside its vegan, gluten-free bakes.
Halelife Bistro One of the leading local vegan and gluten-free businesses is continuing its Bay area expansion. Halelife Bakery announced last fall that its new bistro is headed to St. Pete, and its grand opening has finally arrived. In addition to the gluten-free, vegan, and allergy-friendly food it’s known for, this new full-service location will also specialize in high-end drinks, mocktails with CBD and THC, coffee, and more. If you’ve never stopped into one of Halelife’s many locations throughout Tampa Bay, the bakery specializes in a variety of gluten and allergen-free baked goods, sweet treats, breakfast sandwiches and grab-n-go bites. Popular items include seasonal doughnuts, avocado toast, focaccia bread, cupcakes and unique mocktails courtesy of N/A bottle shop Herban Flow. Halelife Bistro's grand opening happens this Saturday, Jan. 21 from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. and each new guest can receive a free small coffee and participate in a donations-based yoga session at 10 a.m. Halelife owner Laura McCutcheon first launched her business in 2016 with a mission to provide sweet and savory goods to Tampa Bay’s food restricted community. Her and her son both have Celiac disease and are unable to consume ingredients like dairy, gluten, soy, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts, and make sure their products are extremely safe for both themselves and their customers. 11270 4th St. N, St. Petersburg. Halelifebakery.com
5 Bucks Drinkery A highly-anticipated new bar and restaurant has finally set its official grand opening date. Seminole’s newest bar—5 Bucks Drinkery's third location in Tampa Bay—will debut at 7498 Seminole Blvd. out of the former Sea Hags Bar & Grill (which closed its OG St. Pete Beach spot last year). Its grand opening is slated for Thursday, Feb. 1. Like its newly-opened sibling in Pinellas Park, Seminole's 5 Bucks will offer a variety of beers, wines, seltzers, shots and craft cocktails alongside a menu of casual fare like burgers, sandwiches, wraps, tacos, loaded mac and cheeses, salads and more. 5 Bucks Drinkery is also known for its “Big A$$” 32-oz margaritas, mules and Long Island iced teas which shockingly used to be only $5 each. The 6,755 square-foot bar and restaurant will feature a massive, wraparound bar, a large dining room and patio, about 70 TVs, and tons of free parking spaces. And since food and drinks are 5 Bucks’ priority, owner Josh Connell tells Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that his upcoming Seminole location—like its siblings in Pinellas Park and downtown St. Pete—will not be hosting bands or DJs, although he is "not opposed to it." He says that his business' success is rooted in the wide variety of clientele it reaches. 7498 Seminole Blvd., Seminole. fivebucksdrinkery.com
Hyppo Ice Pops & Mayday Ice Cream’s joint storefront St. Petersburg’s Central Avenue is home to one of several Hyppo Gourmet Ice Pops stores, and the newly-renovated location will soon share its storefront with Mayday Ice Cream, becoming a one stop shop for sweet tooth satisfaction. A grand reopening from Feb. 12 - 16 will mark the occasion and offer a 50% off discount on ice cream and popsicles, as well as limited-edition Hyppo x Mayday shirts. Mayday, which focuses on handmade sprinkles and waffle cones, will also offer a limited-time flavor in celebration of the opening: ‘Andalusia’ is a Spanish olive oil ice cream infused with rosemary and topped with flaky sea salt. The combination popsicle and ice cream shop, located at 627 Central Ave., will be open Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Known for eccentric flavors like pistachio rosewater and mango habanero, Hyppo first opened its St. Pete location in September of 2015, and now has locations throughout Florida, including Tampa, St. Augustine and Gainesville. 627 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. @thehyppo on Instagram—Suzanne Townsend
Coming Soon
Glamper While summertime in Florida often means heavy rainfall and borderline unbearable humidity, a new bar and restaurant will soon bring the Midwest's laidback, midsummer vibes to St. Pete. Outdoor-themed bar Glamper will open out of downtown St. Pete's former Caddy's space at 217 Central Ave. Forward Hospitality Group recently told St. Pete Rising that Glamper will be “inspired by camping, backyard cookouts, Fourth of July celebrations, and other summertime activities,” and is slated to debut sometime this summer. In addition to an extensive drink menu of craft cocktails, beers and seltzers, Glamper will also have a full-service kitchen that dishes out burgers, hot dogs, grilled meats and any other backyard BBQ-type grub. In terms of ambiance and decor, Glamper’s Ohio location boasts a variety of beach umbrellas, picnic tables, patio furniture, tiki thatch, tents, astroturf and other Instagrammable photo ops. 217 Central Ave., St Pete. glampercle.com
The Neon Lunchbox As if millennials didn’t feel old enough, a new “retro-themed” bar and restaurant is bringing all of the fun, nostalgic vibes of the late-20th century to Central Avenue this year. According to St. Pete Rising, The Neon Lunchbox is slated to open at 1756 Central Ave. within the next few months and will soon boast a variety of themed craft cocktails, a casual food menu, local DJs and bands and tons of '80s and '90s pop culture-themed decor. James Castetter and Chelsey Andrew, the duo behind casual restaurant Half Baked Potato on the same block, is bringing this new millennial-friendly concept to St. Pete's Grand Central District. SPR also says that Castetter and Andrew are looking for another lease for their potato-centric restaurant, which Creative Loafing granted the stamp of munchie-approval to last year. After 13 years of hosting both local and national musicians, St. Pete’s beloved Hideaway Cafe closed its doors in late 2021 after the building's landlord did not renew its lease and has remained empty until now. 1756 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. @theneonlunchbox on Instagram
Closings
Florida Cane Distillery’s tasting room It's no secret that Ybor City's food and drink scene is constantly changing, but the bustling, historic district unfortunately lost another mainstay last week. Florida Cane Distillery’s tasting room and bar located inside Ybor City's historic El Encanto building at 1820 N 15th St. quietly closed its doors last week. “The constant decline in Florida Tourism, coupled with the closing of so many other Ybor music venues/bars/restaurants and the recent shootings have pushed us to this decision,” the owners of The Florida Cane Distillery wrote on social media last week. “Although we are saddened by having to close to the public it’s been such a great joy to host all of you in our tasting room, on our behind-the-scenes tours, and hands-on whiskey classes—this was only possible because of your loyal support.” The Tampa-based spirits distributor debuted its Ybor City location—which it boasted as “Florida’s first vodka tasting room”—in 2012, mere months after launching its production space in Brandon. In addition to providing a laid-back environment to sip liquor and craft cocktails in, Florida Cane’s tasting room also provided tours of the distillery (complete with samples), organized events and themed game nights, and even hosted whiskey-making classes last year. 1820 N 15th St., Ybor City. floridacane.com
Events
7th annual ‘Food Fight’ fundraiser Each year, local nonprofit Metropolitan Ministries hosts its annual fundraiser, which has evolved into an intense, action-packed culinary competition where St. Pete and Tampa’s top chefs defend their city and battle for bragging rights. All proceeds raised from Food Fight's ticket sales and sponsorships help the Tampa-based nonprofit continue its variety of educational programs, particularly culinary arts. Tickets to attend 2024’s Food Fight—happening on Tuesday, Jan.30—are now available on Ticketmaster for $250 each. Besides watching the action-packed cooking competition, attendees can participate in a silent auction, enjoy an array of food and drinks or grab a photo with longtime Food Fight supporter Titus O'Neil. The competition between the two teams will be divided into several rounds where the chefs will have to create various entrees using secret ingredients. St. Pete has taken home the trophy over last several years, so only time will tell if Tampa finally secures a dub in 2024. First hosted at the Coliseum in St. Pete in 2017 inside an actual boxing ring, Metropolitan Ministries’ annual competition and fundraiser has naturally grown over the years, now raising more funds than ever. 5223 Orient Rd., Tampa. tampabayfoodfight.org John’s Pass Seafood Festival Hosted each year by the Madeira Beach Recreation Department, John Pass’ annual seafood festival turns the already-packed tourist area into a hotspot for live music, local vendors, and of course, freshly-caught gulf seafood. In addition to a wide variety of vendors dishing out fish, shrimp, mussels, crabs and more, this three-day festival will also feature a stacked lineup of live music, family-friendly activities and local vendors slinging arts and crafts and other artisan goods. Both cover and original bands playing at the festival throughout the weekend include The Spazmatics, classic rockers The Fulcos, Firefly, Twisted Revolvers, Social Fabric and Alex Whalen. Since parking may prove to be difficult, event organizers are providing free shuttle service to and from the seafood festival. There's no cover to attend this year's John's Pass Seafood Festival, happening from Friday-Sunday, Jan. 19-21. 12902 Village Blvd., Madeira Beach. @JohnsPassSeafoodFest on Facebook ICYMI
Wicked Sweet Boutique—a new bakery that specializes in loaded cupcakes, macarons, cookies, whoopie pies and cake pops—just celebrated its grand opening at 2209A E 7th Ave. in Ybor City. The New Hampshire -based business soft opened in December 2023 and is now open from 11 a.m.-7 p.m. on Wednesday and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.
Rene’s Mexican Kitchen hosts a multi-course Valentine’s dinner on Wednesday, Feb. 14 and it’s fine dining-style dishes are definitely one step up from its daily taco offerings. The specialty dinner features courses like creamy goat cheese and caviar tostaditas, carne seca and fideo soup, and beef filet mignon and bone marrow tacos. The dinner happens at Southern Brewery (4500 N Nebraska Ave.) and $85 tickets are now available on Eventbrite.com.
V.M. Ybor bakery Elevenses is celebrating its one year anniversary by paying homage to its whimsical name with an entire menu inspired by the “Lord of the Rings” universe. Its LOTR-themed menu items—which range from Bilbo's birthday cake and banana-caramel pavlovas to savory items like "one ring" pretzels and Polish potato handpies—are available Wednesday-Saturday until Jan. 27.
Gulfport's historic Pennisula Inn at 2937 Beach Blvd. S has completed its extensive renovations and is now open as "Peninsula Bed & Cocktails." The Gabber says that each one of the 16 rooms in the boutique hotel offers a different cocktail theme.
Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.
Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
