Tampa Bay continuously welcomes new and inventive bars and restaurants to the area, and in this issue, we’ve curated a selection of the hottest new additions to the Bay’s culinary landscape. From cotton candy cocktails and boozy milkshakes to loaded meatball empanadas and flaming branzino, whether you’re a seasoned foodie or simply looking for your next delicious discovery, these fresh dining spots promise to satisfy your cravings and leave you yearning for more.
The Dan (featured above)
Inspired by the spirit of the Roaring Twenties and located inside the historic Hotel Flor, formerly Floridan Palace Hotel, The Dan is Tampa’s newest speakeasy-style restaurant. Their timeless cocktail menu is an ode to the 1920s with drinks like The Green Door, a prohibition-era term used to signal a booze-serving establishment, and their most popular, Instagram-worthy signature drink, the Champagne Cocktail, which is topped with a cotton candy cloud. The cuisine is also exceptionally elevated with dishes like Lamb Pappardelle or Clams and Linguine. Sweets and dessert cocktails too? Well that’s just the bee’s knees.
905 N Florida Ave., Tampa | (813) 318-9719
Predalina
Since opening, Predalina has impressed guests with elevated dining experience, tableside presentations and a retail store boasting premium dishware and ingredients like gourmet olive oils, seasoning blends and sauces used within the restaurant. Alongside fixed menus for brunch, lunch, intermezzo, dinner and dessert, Predalina also showcases a rotating selection of off-menu specials.
“This is one restaurant of ours that we’re focusing a lot on specials,” explains Jess Anderson, Director of Business Development at Oxford Commons. “You could come in tomorrow and we’ll have a fish special because it was an incredible fish our purveyor was able to bring in that you might not find again.”
1001 E Cumberland Ave., Tampa | (813) 344-3442
Dirty Shirley Bar + Kitchen
Combine Andy Warhol-style décor with elevated American comfort food and you get Dirty Shirley in St. Petersburg. Freshly caught shrimp and grouper from the Gulf, breakfast sandwiches featuring New York-made bagels and rolls imported from Chicago for the big beef sandwich maintain the menu’s authenticity to the regions they represent. Innovated twists on classic dishes, like meatloaf stuffed with a hard-boiled egg and Italian sausage, enhance traditional recipes.
Dirty Shirley also offers an array of boozy milkshakes, cocktails like the eponymous Dirty Shirley, beer sourced from small craft breweries across the United States, and craft-made Florida seltzers exclusive to St. Petersburg, making it an unmissable dining experience.
201 2nd Ave. N, St. Petersburg | (727) 440-4700
Union New American
The newest addition from Next Level Brands, the team behind Forbici and Boulon, Union New American reflects the cultural fusion American cuisine has evolved into. From country biscuits paired with blueberry pepper jam to smoked eggplant enchiladas, a Korean barbecue bowl and exceptional sushi, the menu caters to every palate.
“Everybody just has to come and give it a try so they can understand how carefully curated each dish is and how well-thought out menu items are,” says Ally Prince, the Director of Events for Next Level Brands.
1111 N West Shore Blvd. Tampa | (813) 768-9989
Julio’s Empanadas
With a brick-and-mortar location open in Tyrone and second one set to debut in Gulfport, Julio’s Empanadas has garnered a devoted following for its gourmet empanadas and Latin cuisine with a twist. There are 16 distinct empanada flavors, from garlic, spinach and potato cooked in white wine and served with a mango pineapple salsa to sofrito garlic shrimp with eggplant, zucchini and garlic sauce. Beyond generously-stuffed empanadas, Julio’s specializes in mofongo, las brochas (bowls) and tortas (sandwiches).
7815 38th Ave. N, St. Petersburg | (727) 203-0360
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