Tampa, St. Pete restaurants we can't wait to try in 2026
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A food hall, a Michelin-chef-backed meat counter and a beloved burger chain are just some of the restaurants slated to open this year.
Why it matters: Tampa Bay's food scene just keeps getting hotter.
Here are some spots we're looking forward to:
Tastes Pretty Good concepts: The restaurant group behind Bar Terroir, Streetlight Taco and Michelin-starred Rocca is in for a busy year with plans for five new spots, per the Tampa Bay Times:
- Oro, a Spanish restaurant slated for the Rome Collective, a retail and housing village underway in Tampa's North Hyde Park.
- White Wolf, a "rustic encore to Rocca's cuisine" set to open in May off Westshore Boulevard.
- Bar Spuntino, an Italian aperitivo bar headed for White Wolf's rooftop, along with ...
- Carnivore Club, a 28-seat chef's counter specializing in wood-fired meats that's set to open in July, per the Times.
- Kingfish, a sushi bar and Japanese restaurant scheduled for an August opening, also at Rome Collective.
Central Park St. Pete: The long-awaited food hall will offer 10 concepts, including modern Asian restaurant Kojo and tropical-themed Bar Hana, plus burger and pizza joints, a deli, and more.
- Look for an opening early this year in the 500 block of Central Avenue.
Spitz: After a lengthy buildout of its Central Avenue storefront, this wine bar and restaurant from the team behind St. Pete's Bandit Coffee Co. is set to open in February.
- Get a taste of the menu and wine offerings at pop-up Small Bar in the back of Bandit (which will close once Spitz opens).
Con Amor: This taqueria spotlighting nixtamalization — the traditional process of softening corn into dough for tortillas — is coming early this year to Seminole Heights.
Kitty's House of Pizza: The founders of regional favorite Bright Ice are opening a brick-oven pizza restaurant just west of their original ice cream shop in St. Pete's Central Oak Park, per St. Pete Rising.
- The restaurant will have limited indoor seating and focus mainly on takeout. It's set to open early this year.
Treehouse BBQ: The popular catering company will open its first brick-and-mortar restaurant this month at the former Pasghetti in Northeast St. Pete, per a Facebook announcement.
Pete's Bagels Tarpon Springs: The fast-growing local chain is headed to the Sponge Docks with the goal of opening early this year, co-founder Steven Peterman announced last month.
Whataburger: The Texas-based fast food joint is making its triumphant return to Tampa Bay with its initial local location opening this year off Ulmerton Road in Largo.