St. Pete’s Nueva Cantina, now employee-owned, announces new downtown Tampa taco spot

St. Pete’s Nueva Cantina is opening a second location in downtown Tampa—fresh off converting to employee ownership.

The Old Southeast spot, at 1625 4th St., is known for its freshly squeezed margaritas and Mexican street food like its birria barbacoa taco. Its flavors are influenced by ingredients imported from Mexico and much of its team from Jalisco and Mexico City.

The Tampa location will open in May at 903 N Franklin St., beneath the Nine15 residential high-rise apartments in the former Bello spot.

The restaurant has become entirely employee-owned over the last six months, according to a release. CEO and owner Raul Medina and executive chef Danny Jimenez plan to expand throughout Tampa Bay, with all employee-owned locations. Top employees at each spot can become partners, a spokesperson told Creative Loafing.

“The people in the restaurant industry that do the most significant day to day work are inside the restaurants, not in a corporate office,” Medina told Creative Loafing. “I want to ensure that those high performing employees have an opportunity to be directly tied into the success of our restaurants.”

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This article appears in Mar 20-26, 2025.