Yelp Tampa Bay Podcast

The Yelp Tampa Bay Podcast will be taking a hiatus while we transition Community Managers. Stay tuned for more episodes interviewing people who make Tampa Bay a great place to live. 

7th & Grove was created to provide a space for creatives to feel inspired. Part of creating that community atmosphere is good food. Chef Rudolph Clark, Executive Chef, and Chef James Roberts, Executive Sous Chef were integral in the creation of that menu. Topics in the podcast include:

• Surprising family relationships
• Lives before working for 7th + Grove
• Describing Big Mama cuisine
• Putting a spin on family recipes
• Where the names of the dishes came from
• How they came up with Saturday and Sunday brunch
• Transitioning from brunch to a day party
• Opening soon for lunch
• Their paths to becoming chefs
• The creation of their shrimp and grits recipe
• Their favorite dishes 

Find 7th & Grove at 1930 E 7th avenue, Tampa, Florida

7th & Grove Instagram: @7thandgrove

Yelp Tampa Bay Instagram: @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song royalty free.

Joe Dodd, King of the Coop owner, sits down to muse about how he went from owning a food truck to selling out of 1500 lbs of chicken a week! This podcast contains some adult language. Topics in the podcast include:

• How his obsession with fried chicken started
• Going through 1500 lbs of chicken a week
• What makes Nashville Chicken so unique
• Perfecting the recipe
• Getting into Armature Works
• Difficulty of operating a food truck
• The story behind their logo
• Creating hype before the opening

Find King of the Coop at 6607 N Florida Ave, Tampa, FL 33604

King of the Coop Instagram @kingofthecooptampa

Yelp Tampa Bay Instagram @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!

Jay Andujar, Snobachi’s owner, and Chelsea Lopez, Snobachi’s manager, sit down to discuss the rise of rolled ice cream’s popularity and the creation of their business. Topics in the podcast include:

• Bringing rolled ice cream to Tampa
• The creation of Snobachi
• Choosing Ybor City
• Learning curve of opening their first business
• Working with family
• Franchising versus expanding on their own
• What makes rolled ice cream so special
• Including vegan options
• Coming up with new menu items
• Avocado, bacon ice cream
• Mentorship in the business community
• OJ Howard visiting the shop

Find Snobachi Handcrafted Ice Cream at 2206 E 7th Ave., Tampa, FL 33605

Snobachi Instagram @snobachi

Yelp Tampa Bay Instagram @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!

Tara Matheny, VP of Branding of 23 Restaurant Services, sits down to discuss Ford’s Garage, Yeoman’s Cask & Lion, Sake 23, and their soon to be opened restaurant, Tikki Docks. Topics in the podcast include:

• How 23 Restaurant Services was started
• The growth and future of Ford’s Garage
• The entire process of rebranding Yeoman’s Cask & Lion
• Going to London to get inspiration for bathrooms
• Tracking down a muralist to create art for Yeoman’s
• The story behind the British Lion neon light in Yeoman’s
• How Yeoman’s Cask and Lion got its name
• How managing Sake 23 differs from the other concepts
• Tailoring Sake 23 to Tampa Bay
• Their newest concept, Tikki Docks

Ford’s Garage Instagram @fordsgarageusa

Yeoman’s Cask & Lion Instagram @yeomanscaskandlion

Sake 23 Instagram @sake23fl

Yelp Tampa Bay Instagram @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!

Nikki Finney, owner of Finney’s Tiger-Rock Martial Arts, sits down to talk about how she came to own her own martial arts studio. Topics in the podcast include:

• Raising two young children while opening a martial arts studio and working a full-time job
• What it takes to become a fifth degree blackbelt
• Overcoming adversity
• Providing a place for children with special needs
• Her start as a financial analyst
• Expanding to a larger location
• Learning how to forecast class demand and survive the slow season
• Home schooling a child while owning a studio
• What it’s like to be a Tiger Rock franchise
• Her brief stint in education
• Misconceptions about owning a business
• How to step back to combat burnout

Check out Finney’s Tiger-Rock Martial Arts at https://www.finneystigerrock.com/

Find Finney’s Tiger-Rock Martial Arts at 13863 West Hillsborough Ave, Tampa FL 33635

Yelp Tampa Bay Instagram @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!

Taylor Schalk, Director of Business Development at Toffee To Go, and Courtney Schalk, General Manager of The Dessert Spot at Toffee To Go, sit down to talk about their family business. Topics in the podcast include:

• What it’s like working with family
• 17 years in the toffee business
• How they got on Oprah’s Favorite Things list
• Growing from cooking in their own kitchen to now being sold in thousands of stores
• The beginning stages of promoting their toffee
• Opening up The Dessert Spot at Toffee To Go
• The process of finding a chef for The Dessert Spot
• How they approach Yelp
• Work life balance

Check out Toffee To Go at https://toffeetogo.com/pages/the-dessert-spot

Find The Dessert Spot at Toffee To Go at 3251 W. Bay to Bay Blvd, Tampa 33629

Toffee To Go Instagram @toffeetogotampa

The Dessert Spot Instagram @thedessertspot_tampa

Yelp Tampa Bay Instagram @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!

Natalia Lima, owner of Curious Cat Bakery, opened a vegan bakery to change the world one cookie at a time. Her bakery offers delicious baked goods without any eggs or dairy. She also has a gorgeous Instagram page that showcases her eye for the magical and whimsy. Topics in the podcast include:

- How Curious Cat Bakery started

- Why she became vegan

- Being vegan versus vegetarian

- Favorite Tampa Bay vegan restaurant

- How to bake without eggs and dairy

- How Curious Cat Bakery got its name

- Developing her baked goods recipes

- How she keeps her goods affordable

Check out Curious Cake Bakery at https://curiouscatbakery.com/

Curious Cat Bakery instagram: @curiouscatbakery

Yelp Tampa Bay instagram: @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!

Jillian Brugal is co-owner of BRU Florida Growler Bar in Odessa. BRU works to stay hyper local and only serves Florida beer (along with kombucha and nitro coffee for you non alcohol drinkers). Jillian brings her beautifully quirky sense of humor to the podcast to discuss many things, including death and taxes. Topics in the podcast include:

- How BRU has a five-star rating on Yelp

- Creating a family atmosphere at the bar

- Hiring the best staff

- Jill's progression from a CPA to bar owner

- Why Odessa

- How they determine which beer to serve

- Learning to love craft beer

- Juggling two young children and owning a bar

- Who goes to a bar at 3 p.m. on a weekday

Ray Lampe, better known as Dr. BBQ, has lived a fascinating life starting as a truck driver to being so well known for his BBQ that he is an inductee in the BBQ Hall of Fame. Most notably, he has recently opened a restaurant in Downtown St. Petersburg with Roger and Suzanne Perry of Datz fame (Suzanne Perry was interviewed in the first ever Yelp Tampa Bay podcast) named after him - Dr. BBQ. Topics in the podcast include:

- Cooking BBQ from the back of a trailer

- How he ended up writing nine cookbooks

- The business side of being a famous BBQ guy

- Building the Dr. BBQ brand

- How he appeared on the Food Network and continued to be asked to come back

- The three dishes he named when he appeared on The Best Thing I Ever Ate 

- How he became a chef at Justin Timberlake's New York restaurant

- Why did he decide to open a restaurant

- What is it like to own a restaurant

Dr. BBQ the person instagram: @realdrbbq

Dr. BBQ the restaurant instagram: @drbbqs

Yelp Tampa Bay instagram: @yelptampabay

And thanks to Genghis Flan for providing our theme song, royalty free!