{"id":207561,"date":"2026-03-26T22:55:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T22:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/207561\/"},"modified":"2026-03-26T22:55:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T22:55:08","slug":"gigglewaters-wants-to-open-more-restaurants-with-tampa-franchiser","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/207561\/","title":{"rendered":"Gigglewaters wants to open more restaurants with Tampa franchiser"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ACredit: Gigglewaters\/Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n

Gigglewaters<\/a>, the Safety Harbor-based restaurant and micro-theater that\u2019s been racking up Best of the Bay<\/a> wins since its 2018 debut<\/a>, could soon open more locations.<\/p>\n

Tampa tire and custom wheels giant RNR Tire Express, which reorganized as multi-brand holding company DX3 Brands, has acquired the franchise rights to the 1920s-inspired eatertainment spot, signaling plans for Florida-wide expansion.\u00a0<\/p>\n

RNR CEO Adam Sutton told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that he\u2019s been a Gigglewaters regular for years, buying into the big cheesys, old fashioneds and cinema supper clubs before considering franchising.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re not too far from our office [in Clearwater],\u201d Sutton told CL. \u201cWe found this hidden gem. The staff was amazing, and the food was amazing\u2026it\u2019s a unique experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEventually, we looked at each other and said, \u2018This is a really good partnership,\u2019\u201d said Gigglewaters owner Rachael Fine Wilson. She and Sutton phoned CL from a multi-unit franchising conference in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n

Fine Wilson and her husband and co-owner, Richie Wilson, brought their Brooklyn sensibilities to Florida in 2015, eventually opening Gigglewaters at 737 Main Street in downtown Safety Harbor. The flagship combines comfort food, craft cocktails and a 32-seat movie theater that screens classic films, tucked behind the dining room.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since opening, Gigglewaters has built a loyal following, capturing multiple Best of the Bay<\/a> awards, including Best Burgers, Best Grilled Cheese, Best Whiskey Bar and Best Underground\/Independent Theater.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The restaurant has also made a mark on the community. During the 2025 SNAP benefits disruption<\/a>, Gigglewaters headed the project responsible for offering free meals to children affected by the lapse.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sutton told CL he was also drawn to Gigglewaters because \u201cThey make more money than average for your typical restaurant.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

He and Fine-Wilson are seeking franchise partners to expand throughout Florida and eventually the Southeast.<\/p>\n

The expansion strategy includes both traditional brick-and-mortar locations and the GiggleTruck<\/a>, a mobile unit that debuted in Pinellas in 2024 with Hilary Hawks as the first franchisee. The GiggleTruck brings a selection of the restaurant\u2019s most popular dishes to local events, weddings and office gatherings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got big plans,\u201d Fine-Wilson said.<\/p>\n

This article appears in Mar. 26 \u2013 Apr. 1<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Credit: Gigglewaters\/Facebook Gigglewaters, the Safety Harbor-based restaurant and micro-theater that\u2019s been racking up Best of the Bay wins…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":207562,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[19378,135,137,136],"class_list":["post-207561","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-gigglewaters","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207561","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=207561"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207561\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/207562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=207561"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=207561"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=207561"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}