LARGO — Largo’s business scene recently received a boost after Eddie’s Bar and Grill officially opened in the East Bay Plaza at 3665 E. Bay Drive in mid-October.
The latest offshoot of the popular Dunedin-based sports bar occupies the old home of the Fat Cat Tavern. With a spacious bar and dining area, game room and patio, it should prove to be a popular draw for the area.
Eddie’s menu features nightly food and drink specials including Taco Tuesdays, Burger Wednesdays and Fish and Chips Fridays, as well as offering Happy Hour from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The new eatery also advertised a 15% discount for military and first responders on Eddie’s Facebook page, an amenity that did not go unnoticed in a post from the restaurant’s soft opening on Oct. 11.
“As a firefighter and a nurse thank you for recognizing the hardest working most caring people,” Maggie Baber wrote on the post, while Ruth Hobbs added, “Thank you for honoring our first responders and our military!”
According to the bar’s website, Eddie’s is open from 11 a.m. until 11 p.m. seven days a week.
Drive-up coffee shops and chicken place coming to the corridor
While Eddie’s East Bay Drive is now open, a couple of businesses nearby appear to be in the final stages of development, including a pair of drive-up coffee shops and a fried chicken joint from the owners of Fray’s Donut House in St. Petersburg.
Dutch Bros, a coffee chain founded by two brothers in Oregon in 1992, appears ready to open soon in the Keene Plaza at 2250 E. Bay Drive based on the recent status of the building’s construction and the buzz on social media.
According to reports, Dutch Bros. shops are known for their upbeat music and quick service while the grand openings are typically highly attended events that are well-publicized through the chain’s social media sites.
A couple of miles away, Caribou Coffee, a drive-thru coffee, tea and specialty drink kiosk now owned by the Panera Bread Co., is preparing to open a new location at 4445 E. Bay Drive.
The brand, which was founded by a Minnesota husband and wife in 1992, has reportedly become the second-largest coffeehouse chain in the United States and is known for its handcrafted drinks and roasted coffees.
Caribou will have its share of competition in an area that sports a Starbucks, a Dunkin’, and others, including the incoming Dutch Bros. and the existing spot, the Blend, located a few blocks away at 3150 E. Bay Drive.
Next door, the owners of Golden Fried Chicken said in late October they hope to open in time for the holidays, as they were awaiting final permitting now that the restoration of the old Pizza Hut is complete.
According to the drive-thru menu, the sit-down buffet and take-out eatery will offer chicken nuggets, tenders, wings and sandwiches as well as meals featuring homemade sides and fresh rolls.
The spacious restaurant at 4535 E. Bay Drive will also serve chicken livers and gizzards as well as fish, and they are now accepting applications for employment opportunities.
More Largo business notes
A recent drive down Missouri Avenue revealed a new German restaurant is setting up shop in the vacant property next to Walmart. When and if it does, it could draw a lot of attention from fans of Bavarian food and delicacies.
The Schnitzel Haus, or “Hous,” according to a sign in the window of the building, is “coming soon next to Walmart.”
Down the road a couple of miles, an entrepreneurial family from Palm Harbor recently opened Sunny Sip, a new “drink-thru” at 1764 N. Missouri Ave. that offers unique sodas, teas, coffees, teas and energy drinks.
According to Matt Mayberry, he plans to use his new business venture to help build a bridge between the Clearwater and Largo communities.
“This is our own brand, built from the ground up,” Mayberry, a former software salesman who ditched his corporate job to pursue an entrepreneurial dream, said.
“I wanted to get out of the office and get involved in the community in a real way, to have a place that people want to come to and that can contribute to the community in a positive way.”
And while many new businesses continue to sprout up all over town, there is a significant closing to report, as the Wawa drive-thru at 2530 E. Bay Drive that opened to much fanfare last year has quietly closed its lanes, according to reports.
Wawa’s standalone Largo location was expected to draw the legion of snowbirds inhabiting the region who grew up on the brand, but the unique concept that featured only select food and drink items from the popular Pennsylvania chain’s menu never caught on with fans following an over-the-top grand opening in June 2024.
“The limited menu was disappointing,” read one comment on the now shuttered location’s Facebook page.
“Seemed like a poor concept to begin with,” wrote another.
Wawa’s initial standalone drive-thru concept that opened in Morristown, Pennsylvania, in 2021, reportedly closed last year. The one in Largo was the company’s first standalone drive-thru location in the state of Florida.