LALA, Black Radish, Baked In The Burg: St. Pete Restaurant News

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Here's the latest restaurant and bar news in the St. Petersburg area:

LALA to Open Second Location in Tampa

LALA St. Pete, a karaoke bar and restaurant in the Grand Central District, will open a second location in Tampa by the end of the year, The Tampa Bay Times reported. It will move into the space formerly occupied by Cask Social Kitchen at 208 S. Howard Ave.

“We love the energy in Tampa ... especially in SoHo,” owner Lucas Herreid said. “It’s exciting for us because we are offering a high-end karaoke experience and a food and drink menu as well. So, I think it’s going to be a great fit for this area.”

Baked in the Burg Opening Grand Central Shop

Baked in the Burg is opening a storefront in the Grand Central District this May, according to I Love the Burg.

The bakery, which previously focused on wholesale and specialty orders, will open at 3021 Central Avenue. It will open every weekend, Thursday to Saturday.

Previously, Baked in the Burg had a storefront for about a year in the Edge District before focusing solely on wholesale orders.

Crislip Café Reopens Weeks After Closure

After announcing its immediate closure in March, The Crislip Café at The Merchant gift shop in downtown St. Pete reopened weeks later.

“That’s right, the coffee shop you all know, and love is back and better than ever,” the owners wrote in an April 1 Facebook post. “We've heard your pleas and we're bringing back your favorite coffee drinks you've been craving for so long. We know this might sound too good to be true, but trust us, we've been working tirelessly to make this happen.”

Initially, owners said the café closed because of “rising prices, staffing shortages and other myriad reasons.”

The owners wrote following the shop’s reopening, “Our team of expert necromancers have used their dark magic to bring our coffeeshop back to life. Thanks to some magical beans and a sprinkle of fairy dust, we have successfully resurrected our beloved café from the dead!”

Black Radish Closes in St. Pete

The vegan grocery store Black Radish, which also served made-to-order sandwiches, closed its downtown St. Petersburg location for good on Monday after 16 months in business.

Its original shop in Tampa will remain open.

“We’ve loved having the opportunity to share our dream with you and are abundantly grateful to every person who has supported us in any way along this journey,” the owners wrote in an Instagram post.

“You may be wondering what’s next. To this we can honestly say, we have no idea. But our intention is to keep our really special concept and store in Tampa alive and we’ve got a ton of ideas on how. We will share all of our plans in time and are confident we will be able to fully dedicate ourselves to our goals by covering a smaller footprint."

The owners also encouraged their followers to support other vegan businesses.

“I did want to drop one small line about working your favorite vegan businesses into your routine when it makes sense for you,” they wrote. “Small businesses need your support and constructive feedback to survive this corporate climate that we’ve found ourselves in. Please also support your local farmers! St. Pete has so many ways to show up and get truly local produce every single week, it’s beautiful and worth the extra effort.”

New Café Opens in Central Oak Park Neighborhood

Tasty Treats Café recently opened its doors in the Central Oak Park neighborhood at 4130 5th Ave. N. It held its soft opening on April 10, according to a Facebook post from the eatery.

The café offers breakfast and lunch sandwiches, salads, pastries and baked goods, and flatbread pizzas, as well as coffee, tea, and other drinks.

And be sure to ask about vegan-, diabetic, gluten free- and pet-friendly options.