ST. PETERSBURG
Pei Wei Asian Diner and BurgerMonger are coming to Fourth Street N
Belleair Development Group is building a 9,000-square-foot building to house the two "fast casual" restaurants and an AT&T store at 14th Avenue N and Fourth Street next to Northeast Animal Hospital.
Pei Wei, a division of P.F. Chang's, has a strong following at its 66th Street location. BurgerMonger has stores that serve up Kobe beef burgers and dogs, veggie burgers and Haagen-Dazs milk shakes in Safety Harbor, Brandon, Tampa and Wesley Chapel.
Construction should start in March and take about six months, said Carlos Yepes, head of Belleair Development. He has razed the assisted living facility that used to sit on the property.
Pei Wei is in between fast food and a full service restaurant. Customers order at a counter, the food is then cooked on the spot then servers bring the meals to their table. Wine and beer are also available.
BurgerMonger also serves beer and wine along with gluten-free buns and premium cheeses such as brie and fresh mozzarella. And don't worry, it has the usual breads and cheeses, too.
ST. PETERSBURG
3 Daughters bartender wins prize
A server at 3 Daughters Brewing won $10,000 in a competition highlighting local customer service. Squaremouth, the online travel insurance company, sponsored the "Thank You Campaign" that started in December with 20 customer service providers receiving $1,000 each as a tip.
From those 20, Melissa Wolf, a 3 Daughters bartender, was chosen to win the grand prize. The community voted online and Squaremouth representatives made secret visits to check out the contenders.
Wolf, who has Crohn's disease, has had six surgeries in two years. She will use the prize money to pay medical bills and take her daughter to visit her grandfather in Colorado.
"This act of kindness makes me want to pay it forward," she said. Squaremouth also gave 3 Daughters $1,000 to share among other employees.
ST. PETERSBURG
Mickey retires; Kahwa to move in
Mickey's Market is leaving Bob's Lee's Tire Co. and Kahwa coffee is moving in. The popular coffee spot will be in at 1631 Fourth St. N next week, according to Todd Murrian, general manager of Bob Lee's.
So does this mean the new Fourth Street store will be known as Kahwa North and the one at 475 Second St. N will become "Kahwa in-between" while the one at 204 Second Ave. S remains Kahwa South?
Mickey's Market owner Mickey Huguet was about to retire 18 months ago when she was leaving her last Fourth Street location next to Being. But Murrian asked her to set up shop at Bob Lee's for customers waiting on repairs. Now she really will retire after operating also at Snell Isle and downtown for many years.
ST. PETERSBURG
Re/Max Metro moves across from Sundial
Re/Max Metro Tampa Bay has moved across the street to bigger and higher-profile offices. The real estate business is the new occupant of the first two floors of the Morgan Stanley building at Second Street and Second Avenue N, across from the Sundial shopping center.
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Explore all your optionsThe new space is 9,900 square feet compared to the 7,900 it vacated, and offers more storefront exposure to pedestrians.
LARGO
Tell city what you want at series of workshops
The city will host a series of roundtable conversations, "What Kind of Community Do You Want to Live In?" throughout March. The small groups will include residents, a notetaker and a city representative.
Here is a schedule: Monday, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Highland Recreation Complex, 400 Highland Ave NE; Tuesday, from 8:30 to 10 a.m., Southwest Recreation Center, 13120 Vonn Road; Tuesday, from 1:30 to 3 p.m. at Largo Community Center, 400 Alt. Keene Road; Wednesday, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Largo Library, 120 Central Park Drive; and March 7, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Largo Wastewater Reclamation Facility, 5000 150th Ave. N.
The city will also be inviting community organizations to participate in conversations. Once the series of discussions is concluded, there will be a followup to share what was heard and how the comments will be used.
Results will also be shared with the City Commission at a work session in April. Largo residents who would like to participate should call (727) 587-6790.
Staff writers Katherine Snow Smith and Piper Castillo contributed to this report