25 new restaurants coming to Tampa Bay this spring and summer

Alter Ego

1050 Water St., Tampa
Described as having “energetic vibes and soulful hospitality,” new cocktail lounge Alter Ego, is opening sometime in spring 2024 on the ground floor of Water Street’s Asher building. “Visualize an experience where curated beats blend seamlessly with sleek monochromatic design, offering intimate nooks and social spaces that redefine the nightlife scene,” Water Street writes about the music-focused space. The new concept, which has a DJ booth, will share a wall with Proper House Group’s sibling Italian restaurant Ash.
Photo via watersttampa/Instagram

Casa Cami

2545 N Rocky Point Dr., Tampa
Building permits show that Casa Cami is located on the 10th floor of Tampa’s Current Hotel at 2545 N Rocky Point Dr., right around the corner from the Rusty Pelican and The Rocky Pointe Cafe. Casa Cami will take the place of Rox, which opened in the same space back in 2019. Casa Cami’s social media says that it’s slated to debut in mid-March, although an exact opening date is not yet determined. Construction plans depict Casa Cami's indoor bar, a full-service kitchen and a variety of outdoor seating on its sprawling rooftop terrace. According to casacami.com, Oxford Commons' newest hospitality concept will offer a spread of tacos and salsas, salads, small plates of ceviche, snapper crudo, flautas and blistered shishitos alongside entrees like bistec with mojo butter, shrimp fajitas and green chili chicken over a sweet plantain hash.
Photo via Casa Cami

Ten Rooms

1536 E 7th Ave., Ybor City
El Centro Español de Tampa, at 1536 E 7th Ave., was originally constructed as a clubhouse for cigar industry workers back in 1891, and will soon be home to Ten Rooms, a multifaceted hospitality and retail concept and the newest addition to the Centro Ybor complex. Described as a “dining and retail hub,” Ten Rooms will consist of a 50-seat restaurant called Bar Martinez, craft cocktail hotspot Genevieve the Cat, rotating vendor and art space The Shop at Ten Rooms and The Cafe, a daytime coffee shop and French-inspired bakery. While there's no exact opening date set in stone, Ten Rooms is expected to soft open sometime this spring.
Photo via Google Maps

Glamper

217 Central Ave, St. Petersburg
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. 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.
Photo via glampercle/Facebook

Ash

1050 Water St., Tampa
Ash will debut on the ground floor of Water Street Tampa’s Asher building, the district's newest residential development. The new restaurant is brought to downtown Tampa by a familiar name: Proper House Group (PHG), the minds behind Rooster & The Till, Nebraska Mini-Mart and more. PHG said that its latest concept will specialize in Italian-inspired cuisine and boast an extensive outdoor patio. Originally, the 2,400 square-foot restaurant and its accompanying 1,000 square-foot patio was scheduled to debut in the spring of 2023. As of now, the rumor is it's ready to pop any day now.
Photo via Ash/Instagram

Greenlane

8001 4th St. N, St. Petersburg
St. Pete's first Greenlane is slated to open sometime this spring, although there’s no debut date set in stone. Greenlane—which recently received some TMZ coverage due to regular customer and football star Rob Gronkowski aka "Gronk"—is known for dishing out healthy “salads and wraps at fast food prices.” The local chain opened its first location off of Gandy Boulevard in 2023 and is continuing its Tampa Bay expansion with St. Pete’s upcoming Greenlane drive-thru.
Photo via gogreenlane/Instagram

Zen Noodle Bar

3019 W Waters Ave., Tampa
A popular Asian restaurant is expanding its Tampa footprint this spring. A representative of the restaurant tells Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that its newest location is slated to open sometime this May or June, although the debut ultimately depends on how its build-out goes. Patrons of Zen’s Temple Terrace restaurant can expect a similar menu from its upcoming Tampa location, which includes a variety of East and Southeast Asian fare like dumplings, bao buns, spring rolls, banh mi, stir fried noodles, pork adobo and bulgogi beef bowls.
Photo via zennoodlebargainesville/Facebook

Pepper Lunch

Address Yet To Be Announced
Japanese “experimental” fast-casual concept Pepper Lunch is expanding into Florida with three cities confirmed—and one of those cities is Tampa. Currently boasting 500 locations in 15 countries, Pepper Lunch—a teppanyaki concept where customers grill their own meats and veggies on an iron griddle—hopes to establish a permanent presence in Florida.
Photo via Pepper Lunch USA/Facebook

The Huntsman

200 Central Ave. No. 100, St. Petersburg
The Huntsman—a new American concept that focuses on ethically-sourced wild game and "farm & stream-to-table" fare—hopes to debut out of The Mill’s former space during the third or fourth quarter of this year. With an appetizer menu of small plates like wood-fired bone marrow, grouper tartare, and fire-roasted oysters alongside entrees like boar and rabbit cacciatore, moulard duck cassoulet and seafood jambalaya, the upcoming restaurant will feature a wide spread of familiar dishes with an eclectic, wild bent.
Photo via The Huntsman/Facebook

Ling's Dumplings and Han Hand Rolls

1910 N Ola Ave., Tampa
There's always different food stalls moving in and out of Armature Works' Heights Public Market, but one local restaurant company is responsible for quite a few new concepts. As you probably noticed, there’s construction happening on Cru Cellar’s recently-closed space and Zukku Sushi’s previous location. After these renovations, there will be enough room for Zukku Sushi 2.0 and its new sibling concepts Ling's Dumplings and Han Hand Rolls. In addition to its three upcoming concepts inside of Armature Works, Zukku Sushi also operates Zukku-San in Wesley Chapel and burrito and bowl restaurants Āto in Lakeland and Wesley Chapel. There's also a Zukku Sushi location in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo via zukkusushitpa/Facebook

The Neon Lunchbox

1756 Central Ave., St. Petersburg
The Neon Lunchbox is slated to the old Hideaway Cafe spot 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. When The Neon Lunchbox makes its debut it will join Tampa Bay’s other nostalgia-themed concepts like GenX Tavern, Central Avenue neighbor Lost & Found and 70s’-themed club Good Night John Boy.
Photo via Hideaway Cafe/Facebook

Smalls Sliders

Address Yet To Be Announced
Popular franchise operating group Purple Square Management (PSM) is bringing Smalls Sliders—a new, Louisiana-based burger chain—to the greater Tampa Bay area. A press release states that the group will debut the first local Smalls Sliders at the end of 2024, and is planning to open 8 more locations over the next few years. While no specific locations have been announced just yet, PSM is looking to open future Smalls Sliders in cities like Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Lakeland, Spring Hill, Sarasota, Cape Coral and the greater Naples areas. Sliders, of course, are the star of its menu and can be upgraded with add-ons like bacon or extra meat. Other items include milkshakes, waffle fries, grilled cheese and a spicy queso dipping sauce.
Photo via Smalls Sliders

Rainbow Cone

Address Yet To Be Announced
Rainbow Cone, a popular Chicago-based ice cream franchise for people who can't decide what flavor to order, will soon open a new location in Tampa Bay. Founded in 1926, Rainbow Cone specializes in their "world famous" five flavor "Rainbow Cone," which features orange sherbet, pistachio, Palmer House, strawberry, and chocolate flavors "sliced" on top of each other. The menu also spans a variety of sundaes, cakes, doughnuts and milkshakes. The company did not give any specifics on exactly where or when the new Florida locations will debut. But if you can't wait, Rainbow Cone's first Florida location opened in Bradenton last September.
Photo via Rainbow Cone

Lucky Tigre

81713 Albany Ave., Tampa
Best of the Bay-winning Filipino sari-sari store concept Lucky Tigre is looking forward to opening a new location in West Tampa in the next month or two. Owner Julie Sainte Michelle Feliciano and her team have signed a lease on a property at 1713 Albany Ave. (across the street from a private park owned by Tampa's strip club king Joe Redner), according to Lucky Tigre social media and public records, but the building on the lot needs plenty of love before its doors open. Until then, Feliciano has also purchased a food truck which will reside on the same property to fund build-out costs for the actual building.
Photo by Rickey Kim

Cheeky's

2823 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg
A new raw bar & seafood grill is coming to St. Petersburg’s Grand Central District, and it's from local restauranteur Nate Siegel, co-founder of new American restaurant Willa’s in North Hyde Park. Cheeky's, which is expected to debut sometime in in mid-2024, plans to offer up "fresh seafood, including East Coast oysters, shrimp, fish and daily specials from local waters and the Gulf, along with piping hot bowls of chowder, fried chicken, salads and more," according to a press release.
Rendering Courtesy of Cheeky's

Florida's first drive-thru Wawa

2530 East Bay Dr., Largo
Florida's first Wawa drive-thru will soon debut in Largo. The new concept will not have gas or pre-packaged items found at typical Wawas, but instead feature a limited menu centered around the chain's deli sandwiches, wraps and breakfast Sizzlies. Florida 's first Wawa drive-thru is part of the chain's plan to double its footprint and open 100 new locations around the country by 2030.
Photo via Loopnet

Kinjo

226 S Blvd., Tampa
Noble Rice and Koya will soon get a third sibling, creating a trifecta of high-end Japanese fare in South Tampa. While Italian-Japanese food might be a new concept to Tampa Bay’s foodies, Wafu-Italian or “Itameshi-style” cuisine has been a fine dining trend throughout Europe and Asia for quite some time. Kinjo's full-service bar loaded with wine, sake and spirits will be joined by an intimate menu of fresh pastas, crudo, sashimi, and a variety of meats and cheeses cured in-house.
Rendering via MICO Works

Lara

Address Yet To Be Announced
Seasoned Tampa chef Suzanne Lara, who was widely known as Suzanne Crouch before getting married, recently announced the opening of her upcoming, bar, from-scratch kitchen and artisan marketplace. The multifaceted concept deemed “Lara” (an ode to her newly-acquired last name), is set to open sometime in 2024. Although a building for this exciting culinary and hospitality concept has yet to be secured, Suzanne tells Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that Tampa Heights is the ideal neighborhood due to its centralized location. Lara will offer three unique experiences—a bar, a bazaar full of locally-grown produce, artisan goods and hard-to-find ingredients and supplies for chefs, and an intimate kitchen which Suzanne describes as Lara’s “supporting member.” Suzanne stresses that Lara’s bar won’t draw the typical late night, rowdy crowd one might expect. She tells CL that it will be more of a well-rounded beverage bar inspired by the Greek word “pharmakeia,” which was once used to describe a wide range of elixirs, remedies and apothecaries.
Photo via chef_suz_lara/Instagram

Perry's Porch

600 2nd Ave. NE, St. Petersburg
The folks behind some of St. Pete's best bars are opening a new concept that will surely boast one of the most scenic waterfront views in all of The Burg.' Perry's Porch is a new restaurant that will open adjacent to the St. Pete Pier and the St. Petersburg Museum of History — a space that was most recently occupied by craft beer spot Hops and Props. This upcoming concept will be a combination of open-air and indoor seating, since its name is a homage to the 20th century developer Perry Snell, who’s known for revitalizing several St. Pete neighborhoods with his unique approach to architecture, nature, and walkability. No exact opening date has been announced.
Photo via St. Petersburg Museum of History

Dutch Bros

3616 W Ballast Point Blvd., Tampa
One West Coast-based coffee chain (with a cult-like following) has its sights set on the Sunshine State, and recently filed permits to open its first outpost in South Tampa. A 950-square-foot, drive-thru Dutch Bros is in the works for South Tampa’s Sun Bay South neighborhood. Currently, Ballast Point Car Wash occupies that parcel of land, but if Dutch Bros’ plans are approved, the wash will be razed for the coffee shop’s new development. The popular coffee brand is known for its iced lattes, smoothies, teas, sodas, milkshakes, frozen blended coffees and energy drinks—all from the convenience of its drive-thru. Signature drinks include the “Golden Eagle” Dutch freeze blended with vanilla and caramel and the aptly-named “9-1-1” loaded with six shots of espresso, half and half and Irish creme syrup.
Photo via DutchBros/Facebook