Restaurant News: Food + Beer, Hot Chikn Kitchen, Toasted Yolk Café

SARASOTA-BRADENTON, FL — Here's the latest restaurant and bar news in Sarasota and Manatee counties:

Nashville-Style Hot Chicken Chain Comes to Sarasota

Hot Chikn Kitchn, which serves Nashville-style hot chicken, opened in Sarasota at 2045 Bahia Vista Street.

The chain serves up everything from spicy chicken sandwiches to chicken tenders to chicken and waffles.

The brand was founded by father-and-son, Mike and Anthony Sarago, and their partner, Chef Frederic Gilmore, according to its website.

There are currently seven Hot Chikn Kitchn locations, either open or coming soon, across the U.S. This includes two Florida restaurants, Sarasota and Brandon, which is in the works.

Owner of the Sarasota franchise, Jon O’Driscoll, a food service professional who helped open the Cheesecake Factory at the Mall at University Town Centre, told Sarasota Magazine that he was drawn to the brand’s menu.

“I’m a chicken guy and eat it five to six days a week,” he said.

Fish and Chips Shop Opens on Anna Maria Island

In September, Kiwi Style Fish and Chips opened on Anna Maria Island at 3608 East Bay Drive in Holmes Beach.

Owners Wayne and Nicole Tagelagi moved to the U.S. to open this new location after watching a video about Sarasota on YouTube, they told Sarasota Magazine.

“And three days later, we were here,” Wayne Tagelagi said.

They own two other locations of the shop, one in Laie, Hawaii, the other in Australia.

Breakfast at Victoria’s Closes Sarasota Eatery After Hurricane

Because of damages sustained during Hurricane Ian, Breakfast at Victoria’s has closed and sold its Sarasota location, according to a Facebook post from the restaurant.

The owners are moving forward with the opening of a new location on Anna Maria Island. The new eatery will open at 5315 Gulf Drive in Holmes Beach on Monday. Plans for this new location have been in the works.

They’re not done with Sarasota completely, though.

“We are planning to relocate our Sarasota location in a better spot for us, so stay tuned,” they wrote.

Indian Restaurant Opens in Downtown Sarasota

Turmeric Indian Bar & Grill recently opened in a 10,000-square-foot building in downtown Sarasota at 1001 Cocoanut Ave.

Co-owner Vishal Patel told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune that the restaurant will also have a full-liquor bar and event space.

"We were looking for some big-size buildings, so that we can have on the first floor the dining experience, events and those kinds of experiences on the second floor, and full bar area," he said. "We were looking for that kind of building, and we found the perfect building and perfect location.”

Toasted Yolk Café Expands to Florida

The Toasted Yolk Café brunch chain is opening its first Florida locations at 3750 S. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota and at 6564 University Parkway in Lakewood Ranch.

The Sarasota location will open by December or January while the Lakewood Ranch eatery should be open in late spring or early summer, according to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

The Houston-based chain, which has about two dozen locations throughout Texas and one in Alabama, has plans to expand to other states.

Chris Milton, the company’s co-founder and CEO, was born and raised in Bradenton.

Seattle Pizza Chain Expanding into Manatee County

MOD Pizza, a Seattle-based chain founded in 2008, is expanding into Manatee County with a new location planned for the White Eagle Shopping Center at 13220 State Road 64 E., according to the Bradenton Herald.

The chain was more than 500 locations throughout the U.S., including seven already open in Florida.

The new Manatee County location will open in early 2023.

Mochinut Opens in Sarasota

A new dessert shop in Sarasota, Mochinut, celebrated its grand opening earlier this month. The eatery is open at 8433 Lockwood Ridge Road.

The unique chain serves mochi donuts and Korean rice hot dogs.

Food + Beer Opens Venice Location

The local restaurant and bar chain Food + Beer expanded into South Sarasota County with its new Venice location, which recently opened. It took over the former Clock Restaurant space at 301 S. Tamiami Trail.

"I think Venice Island is really unique," co-owner Mike Whalen previously told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. "It’s just a fun, neat little area with a lot of great restaurants, and a lot of growth in that area. So we’re excited to just hop in there and put the Food + Beer concept in there.”