Restaurant site chosen with growth in mind

The owner of Captain's Italian Restaurant, set to open next year on a rural stretch of State Road 54, thinks homeowners moving to new neighborhoods near the Suncoast Parkway will become his customers.

By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published November 10, 2002

ODESSA -- A Pinellas County restaurateur wants to open an Italian restaurant on a rural strip of State Road 54 known more for its cows than calzone.

Steve Kapetaneas plans to open Captain's Italian Restaurant on the north side of SR 54, just east of Gunn Highway in Pasco County.

The area is mostly cattle country -- the Odessa Rodeo is held nearby -- but Kapetaneas bets suburbanites flocking to new neighborhoods near the Suncoast Parkway will hanker for fresh pizza on an outdoor patio.

Kapetaneas already runs another Captain's in Safety Harbor. He sold two Clearwater restaurants in the chain.

The restaurant, which takes its name from the English translation of Kapetaneas' Greek name, started four decades ago in Connecticut.

"I feel comfortable about the move. There's nothing there now. Just sandwiches from convenience stores," Kapetaneas said of the restaurant he hopes to open in Odessa next year.

Captain's is a family-type restaurant serving pizza, pastas, veal, chicken, hoagies and other Italian dishes. The most expensive item on the menu is about $14.

Kapetaneas initially wanted to build a restaurant with seating for up to 175 people. But the state Department of Transportation bought 40 percent of his property to widen SR 54. So he plans to start with a 70-seater.

Future expansion would enlarge the restaurant with another dining room and an outdoor patio.

The road widening also means Kapetaneas needs a variance from Pasco County to avoid planting the full 10-foot buffer required by the county's new landscaping ordinance.

The nearest restaurant is Renedo's, a tiny Mexican restaurant farther east on SR 54. Kapetaneas doesn't consider the restaurant competition for his Italian offerings.

Other restaurants could arrive in the next couple of years with the development of the Suncoast Parkway/SR 54 interchange.

"I see the growth up there," Kapetaneas said of central Pasco. "I've been trying to find the right place for six years."

-- James Thorner covers growth and development issues in Pasco County. He can be reached at (813) 909-4604 or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4613. His e-mail address is thorner@sptimes.com.

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