The St. Pete Pier opened to the public on Monday, July 6, 2020.
The St. Pete Pier provides fun for those seeking a casual stroll, children needing to release their energy, fisherman wanting to cast their line, or couples seeking a romantic evening. We visited the newly opened pier to see what it had to offer.
One convenient feature is the St. Pete Pier Tram for those wishing to explore the new pier, but would rather not walk the length on foot. The trams offered wheelchair accessible options as well.
The Pier Plaza features both the Spa Beach Bistro and the Stone Fired Pizza restaurants. A bar sits in front offering adult drinks. The Pier offers an educational experience for those who visit the Discovery Center and Wet Classroom, operated by the environmental organization Tampa Bay Watch.
Level 1 of the main structure featured a gear and gift shop, as well as a tackle store. Driftwood Café is located on level 2, and on level 4 is the Pier Teaki.
The Pier Teaki Bar & Restaurant is located at the top level of the structure at the end of the St. Pete Pier. This is where we decided to take a break and have a snack and some drinks. It has tables along the outside of the top balcony that allow for lovely views of the water, boats, surrounding parks, and downtown St. Pete. It also has couch seating areas throughout. There is a full bar and a menu of light – even somewhat healthy – bar food (including a tuna bowl and a blackened grouper sandwich). The waitresses wear masks and the menus are scannable (you scan the QR code on the waitress’s device and view the menu on your own phone). The service was rather slow, but if you’re just there to relax it’s not a big deal. There were kids present when we were there at around 2pm, but the waitress said that after 8pm, it’s strictly 21 and over.
Adding to the amazing views of the skyline was being able to watch the planes take off and land at the Albert Whitted Airport near the pier.
Google says that the Pier is only open from 9am-5pm, but that’s not the actual hours of the bars and restaurants. Pier Teaki, for example, serves food until midnight and drinks until 2am.
COVID-19 Concerns: There were clean bathrooms everywhere with staff limiting the number of people allowed to enter at once. We also saw multiple hand sanitizer stations with foot pedals, so you don’t even have to touch them. Pier staff all wore facemasks.
Tampa Bay Explorer 