Former Rocca, Meliola chef heads up cafe in St. Petersburg’s Warehouse Arts District

ST. PETERSBURG — A large white wall will display carefully selected artwork from a frequently rotating cast of local artists. Some days include breakfast, and others you can enjoy wine by candlelight. There’s music, art shows, and occasional dinner pop-ups.

At Eat Art Love, a new cafe and art gallery opening next week in St. Petersburg’s warehouse district, the A unique, hybrid approach to hospitality.

This is the first restaurant and art gallery for owners Jose and Natalie Martinez, who also run Sartorial Inc. and Style clothing stores in downtown St. Pete. For their new business, the couple wanted a place to showcase local artwork in a space that celebrated their love of music and food.

We currently have a collaborative piece between artist Shawn Rainey (aka Fabstraq) and The Artist Jones. However, in the coming months, the plan is to open up the space to a variety of local artists who can display and sell their work.

As well-known restaurateurs and national franchisees continue to expand their Tampa Bay footprint, Eat Art Love is taking a decidedly smaller approach. Inside the cafe he can seat 25 people, but the owner plans to add several tables in the outdoor restaurant. A few months from now. The menu is small, with just eight items during the day and a few snacks in the evening. You can also stop by for a coffee or purchase take-home items like Mexican Coke, Kombucha, and fresh produce bags from Sarasota’s Blumen Berry Farm.

At the helm of the kitchen is local chef Mario Brugnoli. His impressive resume includes stints at the now-closed Farm Table Cucina in the Sundial development in St. Petersburg, the modern Italian restaurant Rocca in Tampa, and most recently at Meliola in Sarasota. We are doing

This is Brugnoli’s first solo venture, and he says the cafe’s focus will be primarily on breakfast and brunch, with some lunch items also planned.

Dishes include grilled cream cheese in phyllo dough (a spin on Brugnoli’s savory toaster strudel), topped with salt and pepper peanuts and spiced honey and mint. Poached egg dip with poached eggs and cream potatoes in a glass jar and garnished with sourdough toast points. Sweet and sour ricotta pancakes with cinnamon whipped cream and blueberry syrup. The Mother’s OG is named after a sandwich Brugnoli’s mother used to serve him as a child, consisting of garlic butter bread topped with honey ham, basil, and tomato.

“I’m really looking forward to people being able to eat what I grew up eating and create their own menus,” Brugnoli said.

The menu leans heavily toward breakfast and brunch, but there are some dishes that will appeal to late-time visitors, such as a fried chicken sandwich served on a potato roll with warm honey, mayonnaise, and pickled cabbage. Duck leg confit with whipped feta grits, roasted red pepper, garlic and tomato. Charred broccoli salad tossed with Caesar dressing and garnished with breadcrumbs.

First, the cafe is open primarily for breakfast and lunch, with wine, beer and European-style snacks served by candlelight once a week late at night. Brugnoli said the space will eventually be open on more nights, with an eye toward hosting art shows and pop-up dinners.

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How the space will evolve is still up in the air and will depend on the community, Brugnoli said. If there is enough interest, a more permanent dinner scene could develop. For now, if daytime guests feel like it, the entire breakfast and brunch menu is available to him for $95.

The cafe, located at 2209 Sixth Ave. S, will have a soft opening this weekend and a grand opening on February 2nd. Eat Art Love will be open Thursday nights from 4 to 9 p.m., and Fridays for breakfast. , Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.