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By CHRIS SHERMAN
© St. Petersburg Times, published March 15, 2001
IN THE OVEN
Big as the restaurant boom is, the hubbub at International Plaza in Tampa this week isn't the half of it:
WestShore Plaza's new Restaurant Row gets its upscale family-style Italian chain Mangiano's in mid-June. Plus a big name next door -- to be announced soon.
Samba Room, a high-energy South Florida chain for eats, drinks and dance, opens April 23 in Old Hyde Park Village. Second big restaurant planned for old Selena's space.
Island Way Grille, a big Pacific Rim seafood restaurant in Clearwater Harbor, should open its doors in April.
Rita Carlino and chef Jon Eric Kern are leaving Ybor City's Don Vicente Hotel for two new projects. She has rescued the 1923 Seabreeze (3409 Causeway Blvd. Tampa; (813) 247-2103) on McKay Bay. It reopens March 27 with fresh paint job and familiar deviled crabs and modest prices. . . . Carlino's on 7th will open April 12 in the former Boca where Kern made his mark. The menu will be eclectic Mediterranean.
Seat outside. Summer and the hum of the AC will be here all too soon. Find a place on the beaches or the docks with outdoor seats. Better yet, grab a hot dog and a spring training game. They'll be gone all too soon.
-- CHRIS SHERMAN, Times food critic