Murph's BBQ Offers Smoked, Tangy Meats At Sparkman Wharf

TAMPA, FL — Boat Run Oyster Company, operated by SaltBlock Hospitality and located at Sparkman Wharf, has transitioned its container restaurant to a new concept – Murph’s BBQ. The new restaurant, which opened Jan. 19, offers a variety of oak-smoked meats, scratch-made sides, in-house crafted sauces and fresh-squeezed lemonade.

Boat Run Oyster Company closed Jan. 4 and reopened as Murph’s BBQ . Employees of Boat Run Oyster Company were re-trained to work at Murph’s BBQ.

“Murph’s BBQ is a new way for us to serve Sparkman Wharf and everyone who comes to enjoy the park. At SaltBlock Hospitality, BBQ is foundational to our beginnings and Murph’s BBQ is a representation of all the things we love. We think it will be a great addition to the park and to our community,” said Scott Roberts, co-founder at SaltBlock Hospitality.

Murph’s BBQ features a no-frills, non-denominational barbecue-style with quality meats and sauces inspired by the best barbecue regions in the United States. The container will serve 12-hour smoked brisket, tender pulled pork and charcoal roasted chicken along with scratch-made macaroni and cheese, barbecue baked beans, fresh slaw and a rotating selection of fresh seasonal sides.

To honor the restaurant’s namesake, a legendary pup named Murph, the container also serves scratch-made dog treats for the furry friends at Sparkman Wharf.

“SaltBlock Hospitality brought such passion, quality ingredients and excellent customer service with Boat Run Oyster Company, and now we are excited to see their team do it again with an entirely new eatery at Sparkman Wharf. As we grow and evolve, it is special to see restaurateurs that have been with us since the beginning grow and evolve too,” said Susan Martin, vice president of retail and place management at Strategic Property Partners, the developer behind Sparkman Wharf.

Sparkman Wharf and its container restaurants were created with the intention of rotating them to continue to introduce fresh, new culinary opportunities to the Tampa Bay community and its visitors. Sparkman Wharf encourages passionate restaurateurs to use their footprint at the park to bring new concepts to life and experiment with passion projects.

When Sparkman Wharf opened in 2018, Boat Run Oyster Company was one of the founding container restaurants bringing hand-raised Cedar Key oysters and other fresh seafood items including conch, shrimp and the famous Nori fries to the park. Boat Run Oyster Company will continue to have a presence at Sparkman Wharf through special events, future programming and more.

Situated on Tampa's downtown waterfront, Sparkman Wharf features 180,000 square feet of spacious loft-style office space, 65,000 square feet of ground-level retail and a 1-acre park. The central park is home to an intimate dining garden, locally sourced biergarten and recreation lawn that is regularly programmed.

Sparkman Wharf is owned and operated by Strategic Property Partners LLC, the partnership between Cascade Investment LLC and Jeff Vinik, owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

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