Food + Beer is preparing to open its Lakeland restaurant next week off South Florida Avenue. Lakeland’s Merchants Walk at 3615 S. Florida Avenue, Ste 1350.
Its name may be simple, but it hopes to prove its food is anything but.
Owners Casey Daniels and Mike Whalen are expanding their Sarasota-based sports bar into a sixth location in Lakeland’s Merchants Walk.
“We’re a sports bar in a lot of ways, but not in the frozen food kind of way,” Whalen said. “We have a lot of unique dining options and everything is made from scratch.”
Food + Beer will have a seasonal aspect to its menu with specialty dishes and cocktails that rotate four times a year, Whalen said. It will have 16 beers on tap, a full wine list, and a liquor license to serve up cocktails people have come to expect at weekend brunches. Vegetarian and vegan options are also available, including the plant-based Impossible Burger.
“That’s the beauty of a sports bar, we can be a sports bar when it’s convenient,” Whalen said. “We are the neighborhood spot.”
Football fans will find 38 flat-screen TVs inside the restaurant to watch the big game. Whalen said the focus shifts to taco and tequila Tuesdays before trivia contests take over on Wednesday nights.
The restaurant will take over the storefront briefly occupied by HomeCourt, a restaurant opened by NBA Hall-of-Famer Tracy McGrady. It opened in February 2021 during the COVID pandemic and shut down 11 months later.
Food + Beer will open at 4 p.m. Aug. 21 serving dinner on the first day. The restaurant will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. 7 days a week to start, according to Whalen, with changes possible over time. It hopes to attract a late-night crowd with an arcade featuring Skee-ball, basketball and driving games. Sunday brunches will kick off at 10 a.m. and feature bottomless, build-your-own mimosas.
Guests will have the option for outdoor seating along the storefront screened off by planters. There may be a small outdoor lounge section, Whalen said, as the area was in the process of being set up and designed.