Chad Norton
Ideas. Words. And such.
St. Pete/Clearwater
WHEN IT’S HOT OUTSIDE, COOL OFF AT THESE TASTY, TEMPERATURE-FRIENDLY SPOTS. / St. Petersburg and Clearwater have lots of delicious places to “chill out.”
You may never think of ice the same way again. Rita’s Italian Ice famously blends ice, fresh fruit and other ingredients to create refreshing, daily flavors like blue raspberry, Georgia peach, key lime… and peanut butter and jelly. But the chilly choices don’t stop there. At Rita’s, you can also enjoy up to six flavors of old-fashioned frozen custard served in cups, on cones or as sundaes with your favorite toppings. And when the Italian ice meets the frozen custard, things really get crazy-cool. The Gelati is all Italian ice below and a swirl of custard on top and the best-selling Misto® blends ‘em both together for a drink of custom, cold deliciousness. Sorry ordinary ice cubes. Your days may be numbered.
If you’ve never had ice cream served to you from a larger than life ice cream cone – now’s your chance! Twistee Treat® has been a St. Petersburg landmark and tribute to all things ice cream for over 30 years. Today, the tradition continues with 66 flavors of ice cream – including 10 homemade, hard ice cream choices, along with frozen yogurt, super sundaes, malts, shakes, smoothies and other chilly treats. And if you’d like a snack before dessert, hot dogs, chicken fingers, nachos, funnel cakes and soft, homemade pretzels are also on the menu. The iconic, “Best on the Beach” spot is a favorite with locals and visitors from around the world who know there’s no cooler ice cream than ice cream that’s served from an even bigger serving of ice cream.
Popsicles are fine – but they’ve really got nothing on The Hyypo Gourmet Ice Pops. That’s because traditional popsicles aren’t made from fresh, seasonal fruit, spices and herbs, evaporated cane juice and “sometimes” dairy before being flash frozen to seal in freshness. Grocery store popsicles also don’t come in flavors like blueberry lavender lemonade, cucumber lemon mint, granny’s apple pie, mango habanero or watermelon hibiscus. And, with an old-school popsicle, you wouldn’t be able to hang out with friends in the chill setting that is The Hyypo in St. Petersburg – which all makes these gourmet ice pops a lot better than fine.
LARRY’S OLDE FASHIONED ICE CREAM & GELATO
Larry’s “Famous” Olde Fashioned Ice Cream Parlor is famous in the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area for literally hundreds of reasons. The family-run business has been around for over 30 years and serves, scoops and creates deliciously cool favorites with over 100 flavors of ice cream, more than 35 flavors of gelato and sorbet, and 35 flavors each of frozen yogurt and custard – which can all be covered with 20+ different toppings! But that’s not all. Handmade mini donuts popped up on the menu in 2017, and not just one or two of them. 9 classic flavors and 26 specialty flavors range from plain, glazed or chocolate to maple walnut, cookies and cream and a peanut butter and bacon tribute to Elvis. That’s at least 290 reasons to go to Larry’s – though all you probably needed to hear was “ice cream.”
Snowballs aren’t the first thing to come to mind when you think about the beach – but one visit to Beach Snoballs could change all that. The “authentic, New Orleans-style snoballs with a beachy, island twist” are offered with 65 flavors (including natural and sugar-free options) that can be mixed, matched and combined to create over 25,000 flavor toppings for soft and surprisingly smooth, shaved ice treats. Try a sweet, refreshing Signature Snoball or create one of your own. You can also choose an all-ice take on a sundae, banana split or root beer float from the Specialty Snoballs menu or get an extra kick of rum, vodka or tequila with a Spiked Snoball. Whichever way you go, you’ll never think of snowballs – or snoballs – the same way again.
Ice cream has been popular for hundreds of years, but these days, you could say – “it’s on a roll.” IceBurg Rolled Ice Cream brings the newest, cool and tasty trend in ice cream to happy customers in St. Petersburg. Originating in Asia, the “Thai rolled ice cream” process starts when a liquid ice cream base is poured onto a temperature-controlled ice pan. As the liquid base freezes, it’s mixed with fruit or other ingredients and spread thin across the pan before being scraped off with a spatula, forming quarter-size rolls. The colorful rolls of ice cream are then stacked neatly in a cup where additional toppings can be added. The Instagram-friendly results are as eye-catching as they are delicious, but you can also post IceBurg’s refreshing, fruit-filled smoothies and acai bowls – if that’s the way you want to roll.
Everybody seems to have super things to say about Super Scoops on Treasure Island. The family-owned and operated shop has legions of ice cream loving fans who helped convince Trip Advisor to name it the #3 ice cream shop in the country! Customers rave about the hand-dipped ice cream, apple crisp, floats, milkshakes, reasonable prices, and the friendly owners and staff – but there’s even more to love. The menu is filled with favorites from homemade ice cream, waffle cones and bowls to sundaes, banana splits, fruit smoothies and nostalgic candy for old-school sweet tooths. And though this may be the first time you’re hearing all of this, once you visit, you’ll have plenty of your own super things to say.
SOMETIMES A QUICK DAY TRIP CAN BE THE TRIPPIEST PART OF YOUR TRIP. / From St. Petersburg, these worthy destinations are all doable in a day.
MANATEE VIEWING CENTER – TAMPA, FL
Power stations aren’t generally at the top of anyone’s list for must-do destinations while traveling. But if your travels take you near Tampa, a visit to the Manatee Viewing Center at Big Bend Power Station is almost mandatory. About 30 years ago, people began to notice large numbers of manatees gathering in the plant’s discharge canal where Tampa Bay saltwater used to cool one of the power units was released to flow clean and warm back to the bay. Tampa Electric and everyone else soon realized that whenever the bay water fell below 68º, the manatees would swim into the warm water by the plant. Today, the discharge canal is a state and federally designated manatee sanctuary that provides protection from the cold for the unique and gentle animals. After viewing the manatees, visitors are welcome to stop by the environmental education building to learn more about the mammals and their habitat. There are also energy exhibits, a hurricane simulator, a butterfly garden and a habitat loop trail with a 50-foot tall wildlife observation tower on the site. And since parking and admission are free – forget your list and just do it. (Approximate drive time from St. Petersburg/Clearwater: 1 hour or less.)
SPONGEORAMA – TARPON SPRINGS, FL
If SpongeBob didn’t live in a pineapple under the sea, you’d probably find him here. Spongeorama’s Sponge Factory claims to house the world’s largest collection of natural sea sponges – and that’s not all the sponge-tastic destination has to offer. In the free museum and air-conditioned theater you can learn about the Greek community that helped establish the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks and discover everything you could possibly want to know about the pore-covered, water-filtering animals. The gift shop features sponges, loofas, bath and beauty products and gift sets, jewelry and an assortment of seashells and shell baskets. And Spongeorama Cruise Lines offers sunset and dolphin cruises as well as private charters. Now, that’s a lot of sponge stuff. (Approximate drive time from St. Petersburg/Clearwater: 1 hour or less.)
THE JOHN & MABLE RINGLING MUSEUM OF ART – SARASOTA, FL
The founder of the “Greatest Show on Earth” is also responsible for what is arguably the greatest museum in Florida. The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art (The Ringling) is the state art museum of Florida and rated as one of the top museums in the country.
The Ringling complex centers on the Mediterranean-style palace that is home to the Museum of Art. Inside are 21 original galleries featuring hundreds of pieces from The Ringling’s permanent collection of 14th to 18th century art, including masterworks by Rubens. The building’s Searing Wing showcases rotating exhibits of modern and contemporary art in galleries that encircle a courtyard where a James Turrell Skyspace dazzles visitors at sunset. And a second wing holds the Center for Asian Arts, which features a lecture hall and installations of The Ringling’s Asian art holdings – but the show’s not over!
Also on the property is the The Ringling Circus Museum, where visitors have a front row seat to the colorful history of traveling big tops, including a look at a magnificent 1/12th scale model of the iconic Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Tours of John and Mable Ringling’s palatial, Venetian Gothic mansion are available as are viewings and special performances in the Historic Asolo Theater, which was originally built in Asolo, Italy in 1798 before being moved to Sarasota in the 1950s and completely restored in 2006.
The Ringling Education Center is home to the museum’s extensive Art Library and its Conservation Lab, where all of the artwork is cared for and preserved for future generations. And outside, The Ringling’s Bayfront Gardens present whimsical sculpture gardens alongside beautiful, natural settings – which remind everyone that Mother Nature also knows a thing or two about art. (Approximate drive time from St. Petersburg/Clearwater: 1 hour or less.)
WARM MINERAL SPRINGS – NORTH PORT, FL
Maybe what you need on your trip is a little rejuvenation – in warm, prehistoric water! Warm Mineral Springs is a spa today, but the natural spring is believed to date back to the last Ice Age and is one of the most intriguing and important underwater archeological sites in the country. Within the depths of the geothermally-heated spring, well-preserved animal and human remains have been recovered and carbon dated to over 10,000 years ago. Modern-day visitors may also be preserving themselves as they relax in the always 85-degree, mineral-rich water of this “Fountain of Youth.” Day passes and spa services are available, including Swedish, deep tissue, hot stone and reflexology massages, and facials, body scrubs and wraps, and waxing. So, stop by for a dip. There’s no telling how long the benefits will last. (Approximate drive time from St. Petersburg/Clearwater: 1 hour and 30 minutes, or less.)
MERMAIDS OF WEEKI WACHI SPRINGS STATE PARK – WEEKI WACHI, FL
Tales of mermaids have mesmerized sailors around the world for centuries – but the real thing has been doing the same to residents and visitors in north central Florida since 1947! The beautiful Mermaids of Weeki Wachi Springs State Park have been one of the state’s most unique roadside attractions for 70 years and today continue to thrill audiences in a 400-seat auditorium that sits 16 feet below the surface of the crystal-clear, blue water of Weeki Wachi Springs. Performances include a watery re-telling of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid and Fish Tails, Weeki Wachi’s classic mermaid show featuring eating and drinking underwater, musical numbers and an historical video that explains how it’s all done. There’s also has a water park, kayak rentals, a wildlife show and a river boat cruise available – if you can pull yourself away from the mermaids. (Approximate drive time from St. Petersburg/Clearwater: 1 hour and 30 minutes, or less.)
SKUNK APE RESEARCH HEADQUARTERS – OCHOPEE, FL
So, you’ve done the beach thing and seen the local sites, now maybe it’s time to go a little farther… out there. Skunk Ape Research Headquarters in Ochopee near the Big Cypress National Preserve is the epicenter of all things related to Florida’s version of Bigfoot – the odiferous Skunk Ape. The notoriously smelly Sasquatch cousin is said to gets its pungent, rotten egg odor from time possibly spent in methane-filled alligator dens, hanging out with decaying animal carcasses, or by simply not bathing. Sightings of the large, bipedal, hairy creature have occurred throughout the state, but are most frequently reported in and around the Florida Everglades. You can learn all about the mysterious stinker at headquarters. And afterward, you won't have to go far to track down a real Skunk Ape t-shirt at the gift store. (Approximate drive time from St. Petersburg/Clearwater: 3 hours.)