Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Everybody's Business

It's not that kind of office

The Office Cafe & Grill may be downtown, but it's for revelry, not routine.

By SHARON GINN
Published August 25, 2006

The name of Mike Jeckel's new restaurant/sports bar, the Office, seems like a wink at its all-too-staid surroundings downtown.

And for now, its location at 511 N Franklin St. is somewhat sleepy and even temporarily inconvenienced, as renovation wraps up on some new offices going in next door. But Jeckel is betting that when all the new condos are completed, and more restaurants and businesses move into the area, his leap into the downtown market will prove to be a smart move.

Besides, he said, with the loss of favorite South Tampa hangouts such as Mac's Sports Pub, fun-seekers have to go somewhere.

"Hopefully, downtown is the next South Tampa," Jeckel said. "Seeing all the condos going in downtown, the opportunity seemed to arise at the right time."

In the meantime, he's catering to the lunchtime crowd, students and Bucs fans.

The Office Cafe & Grill, which opened in mid June in a spot that has seen a series of restaurants and delis, is open daily from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m., with happy hours from 3 to 8 p.m. and live music on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Tuesday nights is college night, and the Office already is pulling in the University of Tampa crowd with drink specials and a DJ.

And Jeckel said he's all ready for football season. The Office boasts an 8-foot projection screen viewable from anywhere in the restaurant, with 10 other televisions scattered throughout. "Sunday hopefully is going to be the big day," he said.

LOTS TO SEA: If underwater adventures are your idea of fun, the recently revamped and relocated Adventure Outfitters has much more to offer these days.

The outdoor apparel and gear shop, which moved from S Dale Mabry Highway to 4330½ S Manhattan Ave. at the end of May, now has more for the scuba diving enthusiast, from an expanded schedule of certification classes to a full line of products available for rent or purchase. Owner Leon Watts joined forces with friend and fellow scuba instructor Ed White and created a shop-within-a-shop, Tampa Scuba Diving at Adventure Outfitters.

Half the main store is geared toward adventure hiking and camping enthusiasts. The other half is a retail scuba center. White, who runs the scuba center portion of the shop, said he has plenty of customers who stop by to fill their tanks and grab gear before trips to Crystal River, the gulf beaches or the other side of the state.

Adventure Outfitters also arranges adventure trips (by land and sea), as well as dive excursions. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sunday by appointment.

BEAUTY BREAK: Yet another full-service medical spa has arrived in South Tampa. Esteem MedSpa opened this month at 3830 W Neptune St., offering services such as laser hair removal, laser skin rejuvenation, facials, peels, acne treatments and microdermabrasion.

Esteem also offers Botox and Restylane injections and something it calls "live stem cell skin therapy," using stem cells obtained from bovine amniotic fluid. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays.

One-of-a-kind necklace

Glass blower/jewelry designer Jessica Inman strings semi-precious stones, freshwater pearls, Swarovski crystals and her own glass-blown beads to create head-turning necklaces, earrings and bracelets. No two designs are ever alike at prices ranging from $50 to $250. They are exclusive to Soho Spa, Salon and Boutique, 533 S Howard Ave. Call 250-0070.

[Last modified August 23, 2006, 11:36:45]