PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce is stepping up to help local restaurants thrive as they deal with the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, the slower summer months and face difficulties in hiring staff.
The organization is putting together the Taste of the Beaches event, which is in its 10th year but will now span a week instead of one weekend.
The $10 tickets are on sale now to use at 40 locally-owned Pinellas County beach restaurants.
The tickets can be used the week of October 4 through October 10 for a special entrée, appetizer or taste at restaurants spanning from Tierra Verde to Clearwater Beach.
Restaurant employees say the event comes at the perfect time. Margo Carson is the General Manager of the Slyce St. Pete Beach location, which just recently opened after several months of delays as staff worked to hire more employees.
“Being a part of the community and coming out and dining with us is imperative to getting things going and solidifying a small local community-based business,” explained Carson.
Andrew Silas agrees. He’s the Executive Chef at 82 Degrees. “It’s nice to see these resilient restaurants still open and still going strong and still giving it their all. It’s really tough right now it’s a hard climate,” he added.
A portion of the event proceeds will also go to Tampa Bay Watch, an organization that works to protect our local waterways.
Organizers hope Taste of The Beaches will drive more traffic to our local restaurants who need our support now more than ever.
“We want to keep that flow of local shopping, local dining and reaching out and helping each other while we need to,” explained Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce CEO Robin Miller.
Here are some of the restaurants taking part in the event: Burrito Social, Castile Restaurant at The Hotel Zamora, CD Roma Restaurant, Crabby’s on the Pass, DJs Clam Shack Indian Shores, VIBES at FUSION Resort & Marina, Giuseppe’s Pizzeria, Island Way Grill, Jake’s Coastal Cantina, Kahwa Coffee, Mangos Restaurant & Tiki Bar, Mastry’s Brewing Co. and The Kitchen, Original Crabby Bill’s, Pesky Pelican Brew Pub, Stamps at Postcard Inn, RumFish Grill, Rumba Grill, Rum Runners at Sirata Beach Resort, Salt Rock Grill, Seabreeze Island Grill, Sloppy Joe’s on the Beach, Slyce St. Pete Beach, Slyce Madeira Beach, Slyce Indian Rocks Beach, The Island Grille & Raw Bar, Twisted Tiki, Vista at the Top at Residence Inn Tierra Verde.
For more information about Taste of the Beaches, click here.
