After bidding the neighborhood farewell three years ago, GrillSmith is bringing the heat back to South Tampa. The Tampa-based American restaurant brand — established in Clearwater in 2004 and known for grill-forward, refined-casual comfort cuisine — has started taking over the former site of Grille One Sixteen at 612 N. Dale Mabry Highway.
GrillSmith, at one time, ran six restaurants with its “Craft By Fire” tagline, including a location at the Westfield Brandon mall that closed in 2014. But the return of GrillSmith South Tampa now marks the fifth outpost for the locally owned and operated brand — which didn’t shutter its original location at 1108 S. Dale Mabry because of the community.
So don’t get it twisted.
“We definitely missed being in South Tampa. It was a great location, as far as the community,” said Tara Fallo, GrillSmith’s local store marketing specialist, last week. “The South Tampa community has welcomed us back with open arms for sure, which is great, but the actual physical location was just not really working for us.”
Fallo attributed the closure of the neighborhood’s OG GrillSmith, opened in 2007, to a not-so-surprising culprit. The parking situation wasn’t ideal, she tells CL (when in South Tampa, though, is it ever?), and that could be one reason why the restaurant was reported to be “underperforming,” according to a March 2015 article from the Tampa Tribune.
Nonetheless, the team is confident about their new, forthcoming home.
“We just found this location, and we really think it’s gonna work a lot better for us. We’re looking to thrive and do really well here,” Fallo said.
GrillSmith chef-president Joe Guli added: “We’ve put things in place where everybody can be satisfied, whether it’s a family or it’s date night or you wanna go out for a late-night dinner.”
The 6,351-square-foot, 224-seat space will follow the look and vibe established by the most recent rebrand GrillSmith experienced a few months back. Lots of metal and brick, earthy tones and reclaimed barn wood are among the restaurant’s rustic-meets-industrial decor elements.
“We’ve already rebranded the New Tampa location,” said Corie Hill, construction and design manager for Scratch Concepts, the parent company of GrillSmith and Burger 21, “and then after we open this one, we’re gonna be rebranding the Lakeland and Clearwater locations.”
Another feature is a long bar with full-liquor offerings such as specialty cocktails, as is a wood-fired grill that sets GrillSmith South Tampa apart from the existing locations in Clearwater, Lakeland, New Tampa and Carrollwood. Although the kitchen — about 1,500 square feet — is smaller than what the brand is used to working with, the grill will allow the restaurant to take a bit of a different approach to some of its dishes.
Example? GrillSmith is looking to do all of its fish and steaks on oak at the moment.
“We have, like, nine different samples of wood, so today we’re gonna be spending all day just cooking proteins — looking at the wood, how it burns,” Guli continued. “Just putting a lot of detail into everything.”
For the uninitiated, the restaurant showcases something-for-everyone eats, featuring popular starters like spicy Thai shrimp and crunchy ahi tuna, alongside the crowd-pleasing chicken Milanese and the gluten-free lemon feta chicken.
Yet the brand’s seasonal menu is gaining steam, too, most notably for its best-selling item: cast-iron meatballs, based off of a Sicilian recipe from Grandma Guli. Launched on April 2, the selection of limited-time plates, titled “Craft Comfort,” rotates every three months with a mix of old and never-before-seen favorites.
Oh, and get this — Guli confirmed there’s a full vegan menu scheduled to roll out in July. One dish in development is the ubiquitous cauliflower steak.
“What we do is we look at trends and what’s hot right now with items, and then it just comes down to making the item great. It takes a lot of work,” he said.
GrillSmith also aims to evolve by pairing more cocktails and other beverages with the grub. Beer and wine dinners — possibly even cigar dinners — are being considered for the near future, accompanying weekly highlights that include Saturday and Sunday brunch, happy hour and Tito’s Thursday with $6 martinis.
In addition to GrillSmith South Tampa, Scratch Concepts is gearing up to premiere the first Burger 21 in St. Petersburg, where Justhai didn’t work out along Fourth Street North. The fast-casual gourmet burger chain expects to open May 21, but GrillSmith is shooting for a debut a little before that on May 14.
What’s more, diners can look forward to additional GrillSmiths around the greater Tampa Bay area. As Guli puts it, the gang has solidified locations in both St. Pete and Sarasota. While he couldn’t talk specifics on the expansion yet, the openings will take place by the end of the year.
“We’re really excited,” the chef-president said. “I mean, South Tampa’s been growing, it’s evolving, it’s a very trendy area, and I think we’re gonna bring a lot of value.”
