Best pet-friendly restaurants in Tampa Bay

Mad Dogs and Englishmen

Wilton Morley once had to fire a young Russell Crowe in an Australian production of Blood Brothers. (Crowe got in a fight, and fellow thespians said he had to go.) Morley’s maternal grandmother was a three-time Oscar nominee; his father, Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, a famous English character actor; his brother Sheridan also a notable actor, director and writer. How Wilton ended up a restaurateur in Florida is a bit of a long story (it involved mulling over a chain of Australian-themed restaurants and needing to check out Outback), but he has made Mad Dogs a longstanding South Tampa favorite since 1991. I go for the classic British bar staples - fish and chips, chicken tikka masala, shepherd’s pie - and live music on the patio. Because my dogs are obedience-school flunkies, I do not bring them, but other human-dog parties swear by the convivial patio dining. maddogs.com

Address: 4115 S MacDill Ave., Tampa

Phone: (813) 832-3037

Price: $$

Nebraska Mini Mart

Ferrell Alvarez says to Ty Rodriguez: shuffleboard, bocce. Rodriguez and partner Chon Nguyen say back: dog-friendly, kid-friendly. I don’t know how it went down, but the owners of Rooster & the Till had an ache to do something different in Seminole Heights, something less foodie and more neighborhoody. Yes, the space was a minimart in the 1950s; now it’s an indoor-outdoor lunch-and-dinner casual spot that attracts local families who have a hankering for Korean cheesesteaks and vegan-friendly fried snackies. I didn’t review it when it opened in 2018 because it was still getting its footing (I had way-overbattered tempura oyster mushrooms and fries with far too much gunk on the top), but it feels more assured now. Dogs and their owners around Tampa Bay are howling about the Pig Mac and dark rum butterscotch ice cream, and parsing the rules of bocce. (Dogs say we can pick the “pallina” back up.) Also: affordable food, live music on Fridays and fun slushies and canned adult beverages. nebraskaminimart.com

Address: 4815 N Nebraska Ave., Seminole Heights

Phone: (813) 231-9522

Price: $

Ulele

Richard Gonzmart always has new stuff going on. Right now, it’s getting the long-time-coming Casa Santo Stefano up and running in Ybor City (they’ve been tinkering with its Sicilian menu items for a while at the Columbia nearby), and after that it’s bringing back the fabled Buccaneer at the old Pattigeorge’s spot on Longboat Key. The Columbia Restaurant Group is his family’s four-generation flagship, Goody Goody harkens back to the burgers and butterscotch pie of Gonzmart’s youth, but Ulele is something different. It was really a lodestar of sorts, the anchor for business growth in Tampa Heights that connects that revitalized neighborhood with Curtis Hixon and Riverfront parks. In a space that was the 1906 Water Works Building, this is a Native American-inspired restaurant with its own on-site brewery and a 10-foot-diameter barbacoa grill especially well suited to charbroiled oysters. Additionally, it has been fully canine endorsed: Kids can work up a sweat at the adjacent Water Works Park, dogs can leave their calling cards at the attached Queenie’s Dog Park, then everyone can compare notes on Ulele’s patio and marvel at the gorgeous views. ulele.com

Address: 1810 N Highland Ave., Tampa

Phone: (813) 999-4952

Price: $$-$$$

The Dog Bar

You can’t talk about dog-friendly spots without getting swoony about St. Petersburg’s Dog Bar. For my purposes, it’s an odd choice because they don’t serve their own food - but you can order in from elsewhere in the neighborhood. The first one was in Charlotte, N.C.; this one is a shambling Grand Central indoor-outdoor affair with a bunch of big televisions tuned to sports and lots of cornhole, Jenga and other games.

There are on-leash and off-leash spaces, the latter separated into small dog and large dog areas. Play areas include ramps, tunnels and pools if your dog is more the American Gladiators type. You can rent out a private space for dog birthday parties (of course, then I will mock you, especially if hats and costumes are implemented), and live music is scheduled frequently. There’s a smart craft beer list, perfectly nice wine selections and a full bar. Dogs must be up to date on shots and there’s a one-time membership of $40 to join. dogbarstpete.com

Address: 2300 Central Ave., St. Petersburg

Phone: (727) 317-4968

Price: $

Olde Bay Café and Dunedin Fish Market

I’ve followed Walt Wickman’s trajectory for most of the past decade, from his ambitious fish-forward fine-dining space Walt’s Seasonal Cuisine (now-defunct) in Dunedin to the opening of Olde Bay Café at his family’s fish house at the Dunedin Marina to Hog Island Fish Camp several years later. See a theme? Wickman knows and cares about locally sourced finfish and shellfish. At Olde Bay, you sit out on the rough-hewn wooden deck, watch the boats bob and work your way through a hogfish sandwich or a pound of peel-and-eat shrimp. (There’s nothing fried on the menu.) Wash that down with something nice from the extensive craft beer list, and then ruminate on what a lovely city Dunedin is. Also, look around and you’ll probably think: Dunedin really loves dogs. (Some call it Dogedin, plus check out Dogtoberfest and the Running of the Wieners.) Olde Bay is one of dozens of local dog-friendly cafes, but the food here is better than at most. oldebaycafe.com

Address: 51 Main St., Dunedin

Phone: (727) 733-2542

Price: $$