The LAKER
ee r F
EAST PASCO EDITION
LAKERLUTZNEWS.COM
DECEMBER 16, 2015
Pearl in the Grove wins ‘golden spoon’ By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
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The farm-to-fork menu at the Pearl in the Grove is a winning combination of creativity and freshness that earned the Dade City restaurant a 2015 Golden Spoon award. Florida Trend magazine highlighted its annual Golden Spoon winners in a 13-page special section of its December edition. Curtis Beebe, chef and owner of the Pearl in the Grove, said he works with local producers and growers to select the best food to put onto the plate. “It’s (farm-to-fork) the core of our philosophy,” Beebe said. He also noted that the farm-to-fork concept isn’t just a trend. “It’s a component of dining in Florida now,” Beebe said. Pearl in the Grove opened in Dade City in 2010 in a small 1950s house at 31936 St.
bold idea. Florida farm-to-table in a crossroads far away amid real farming: The kumquat capital of the world. Catfish meuniere and fried okra, Florida chicken and pork are paired with smart wines.” Florida Trend’s restaurant editor, Chris Sherman, is a well-respected food critic, Beebe said. Sherman favorably reviewed Pearl in the Grove when it first opened, and Beebe said COURTESY OF PASCO COUNTY the critic generally looks to see if a restauPearl in the Grove won a 2015 Golden rant can maintain standards over four or five Spoon from Florida Trend magazine for its years before awarding a Golden Spoon. fresh, original take on the farm-to-fork move“We were very, very happy to hear about ment. This is one of the restaurant’s meals. the award,” Beebe said. Another Pasco County restaurant located Joe Road. Beebe and his wife, Rebecca, also in New Port Richey – Dulcet - also received operate LOCAL Public House in San a Golden Spoon as best new restaurant. Antonio, and Rebecca’s at City Market, in Dulcet is a high-end restaurant and night downtown Dade City. club in downtown New Port Richey, praised In singling out Pearl in the Grove, Florida by Florida Trend for its eclectic menu and Trend noted, “Small menu, small place, but a fresh ingredients.
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Downtown Dade City adds to its ‘eclectic mix’ By Kathy Steele
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Guide
holiday
2015 gifts, eats and entertainment
INSIDE, PAGE 6A
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
New storefronts in downtown Dade City are creating a buzz. One of the newest additions is Flint Creek Outfitters, which opened nearly three weeks ago at 14129 Seventh St., at the intersection with Pasco Avenue. The prime retail spot had been vacant more than two years following the closing of Remember When Antiques Mall. A grand opening is planned for January. Business owners Gordon and Kathy Comer of Dade City also operate Flint Creek Outfitters in Ocala. A store in the Westshore district in Tampa recently closed. “We felt like for Dade City this is something that’s not been seen before,” said Ian Baldwin, manager of the Dade City store. John Moors agrees, and the executive director of the Greater Dade City Chamber of Commerce can point to at least two other new businesses filling a niche in downtown – Truly Mediterranean Grill and Rolando’s Cigar Lounge. “Those particular businesses are really welcome,” Moors said. “It’s adding to the eclectic mix of historic downtown.” Moors believes the city, and even new development in Wesley Chapel, set the stage for the retail uptick in Dade City. “It started with the city,” he said. “The city put its money in a new city hall.” The 22,000 square-foot building will be completed in early 2016 at a cost of about $5.9 million. It replaces an aging structure dating to the 1920s. “But, some of it has to do with growth to the south in Wesley Chapel,” Moors added. The chamber has more than 440 memSee ECLECTIC, page13A
COURTESY OF DEANNA GUDE
Shopping local on Small Business Saturday San Antonio Citizens Federal Credit Union encouraged members to shop ‘small’ on Small Business Saturday by giving them free gift cards to local businesses. Employees randomly chose members as they walked into the credit union offices in San Antonio, Dade City and Zephyrhills and greeted them with a gift card to shop on Small Business Saturday or any day. The credit union gave away 33 gift cards. Alanda Capps, left, rewards member Becky Rinaldo with the giveaway.
Pasco schools planning more construction projects By B.C. Manion
bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
As Pasco County Schools gears up to open an elementary school in Wesley Chapel next school year, it’s also planning to open a school for students in grades six through 12 in Wesley Chapel and an elementary school in Land O’ Lakes in the fall of 2017. It’s also planning to open a kindergarten through eighth-grade school in Starkey Ranch, though no opening date has been yet specified, said Chris Williams, director of planning for Pasco County Schools. District officials also are seeking bond money against revenues from Penny for Pasco proceeds so the district can get to work sooner on projects at Land O’ Lakes High School, and Woodland Elementary in Zephyrhills, he said. And, those are just a few efforts under way, as the district experiences the most growth it has seen since the housing market flattened during the recession, Williams said. The Land O’ Lakes High project hasn’t been designed yet, but it will be significant and will involve adding capacity, Williams said. “We have Connerton and those developments around there, so we definitely want to look to add capacity to Land O’ Lakes (High School),” Williams said. “The biggest issue is going to be: ‘What do we do with all of the kids?’ ” When Quail Hollow Elementary School
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Chris Williams, director of planning for Pasco County Schools, said the district is seeking additional school sites to accommodate increasing enrollments.
was redeveloped, the district could reassign its students to other elementary schools. “But, that’s a different ballgame when we start talking about Land O’ Lakes High School,” Williams said. While it’s possible to do construction with students on campus, it’s more complicated and time consuming,Williams said. A portion of the bond money also would be used for a remodeling at Woodland Elementary, Williams said.
“Woodland is just an older school. It has a really small cafeteria, plus they’re well over capacity,” he said. The district has to be careful about how much capacity it adds, because it also owns property for an elementary school on the north end of Zephyrhills,Williams said. In Land O’ Lakes, the district has acquired an elementary school site near the entrance of Tierra del Sol. There’s no timetable yet for building that school, Williams said. The district also is working to secure another high school site in the State Road 54 corridor, between U.S. 41 and Trinity, he said. A high school is planned in Bexley Ranch, but an additional high school site is needed in the State Road 54 corridor to accommodate anticipated growth, Williams said. The high school in Bexley Ranch won’t be accessible for three to five years, because of its location within the development, Williams said. In addition to the elementary school site planned in Bexley Ranch, the district is looking for an additional elementary school site in the State Road 54 corridor, Williams said. As the district grows and adds more schools, it will need to draw new boundaries for the schools, a process that tends to arouse controversy. See SCHOOLS, page13A