Helen Freund

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Helen Freund

Late last week, as news of President Donald Trump’s tariffs began to sink in, Tampa Bay restaurateurs and wine merchants started crunching numbers. Calculator apps popped up on smartphones. Restaurants and markets held impromptu meetings, consulting with suppliers and dialing in distributors.

3 weeks ago | tampabay.com | Helen Freund

Mark Hoefer remembers the line cook who was back at work three days after their partner gave birth. He recalls the pastry chef who was working the line while going through chemotherapy for breast cancer, afraid that if a health inspector paid the restaurant a surprise visit, they’d see her port as an open wound and give them a bad score. And there are the countless people Hoefer has encountered over the years who got sick or injured while working service industry jobs.

1 month ago | tbnweekly.com | Helen Freund

PASS-A-GRILLE — From up high on the rooftop of the Berkeley Beach Club hotel, it’s easy to forget about the destruction below. Tops of buildings glisten in the sunlight, while the Pass-a-Grille Channel dazzles a dreamy turquoise blue. Locals and tourists toast cocktails at sunset. But a few floors down it’s a different scene, with destroyed buildings and ever-present construction crews serving as a reminder of the catastrophic damage incurred during last year’s back-to-back hurricanes.

1 month ago | tampabay.com | Helen Freund

It’s a wildly controversial subject: Where is the best pizza in Tampa Bay? The answer can be divisive, depending on who you ask. New York-style or Neapolitan? Thin and crispy crust or chewy, puffy and foldable? New Jersey slices or Detroit squares? And does Chicago-style deep dish even count? (It does.)There’s an adage that goes something like this: “All pizza is good pizza — when it’s good, it’s really good. When it’s bad, it’s still pretty good“.

1 month ago | tampabay.com | Helen Freund

After more than six years in business, popular Seminole Heights restaurant Nebraska Mini Mart will close. But the space won’t stay vacant for long. On Tuesday, the owners of Nashville-style hot chicken concept King of the Coop announced they will take over the building at 4815 N. Nebraska Ave. “Reopening King of the Coop at the former Nebraska Mini Mart site is coming home,” owner Joe Dodd said in a prepared statement.