If you're looking for a Key West vibe on North Redington Beach, the Conch Republic Grill has been here for years.
The restaurant sits at the site of a former Howard Johnson's on Gulf Boulevard.
The Conch Republic Grill has been going strong for about 20 years now.
Everything is made from scratch — from cutting their own fish to their salad dressings.
"We are experiencing, you know, sales like we've never seen them before. You know, we continue to see our regulars come in and new people," Eric Stuczynski, Procurement said. "You know, as Canada opens, I'm sure we're gonna see a lot of Canadians come down. It's just been great support throughout the last 15-16 months."
Like most restaurants across Tampa Bay, supply chain demand has impacted them. So, if you're out and stop by, expect some slight menu changes.
"I've been in the restaurant business all my life, and never really thought I would see something new. But COVID was definitely a new experience. You know, for us, we really just focused on doing what we do every day. I like to say we're fortunate in the restaurant business, because we got to continue to do the stuff that we did before COVID, we just had to do it a little differently. It's definitely been tough. From a staffing standpoint, we have some really great team members that have worked really hard, especially these last 12 months, you know, whether it's managers back in the kitchen cooking, or, you know, our cooks that are working, you know, 60 to 80 hours a week just to make things happen. But they've done a fantastic job, we're blessed to have the team that we have," explained Rob Hensmann, President of the Conch Republic Grill.
"And it's really been overall for us a fairly positive experience was a little scary in early 2020 right after buying into the restaurant, but it's turned out great. And it really is because of the people, whether it's our team members or our local customers, or the folks who just come down here on vacation, they loved they love to be here, they love to visit and it really is what makes the Conch special," Hensmann added.
