Good morning, East of Tampa family.
Monday morning is going to be a mess. Hillsborough schools go back August 10, and the county picked the same day to start tearing up Balm Boyette Road. Add nightly closures on US 301 at Big Bend through Thursday and you have three things hitting one commute. Details below. Leave early.
Here is what my family ate this week.
Monday was pork tenderloin. Tuesday, burgers. Wednesday was bacon and eggs. Thursday, chicken breast. Tonight it is bacon wrapped shrimp and sockeye salmon.
Every bit of that came from The #1 Meat Man. That is not a plug I wrote to fill a slot. That is my actual week.
Photo: The #1 Meat Man
Shawn McCranie runs it. The Premium Family Meat Box is $220. 24 steak burgers, 12 pounds. 24 all natural chicken breasts, 9 pounds, individually packaged. A 10 pound box of Duroc pork tenderloins. Delivered to your door. Better price than the grocery store and better quality than what is sitting under the lights at the meat counter. You order off the page, he brings it.
Order at the landing page.
Locals doing business with locals.
⛈️ Friday: 89, 70%. Heat index to 100. Storms fire up after 2 p.m. and mostly clear out by 9. Anything outdoors before noon is your safest bet.
⛈️ Saturday: 91, 60%. Heat index to 102. Dry until about 2 p.m., then it turns. Morning errands, afternoon indoors.
🥵 Sunday: 93, 60%. Heat index up to 105, the hottest of the three days. Sunny morning, storms after 2. Drink more water than you think you need.
No watches or warnings for Hillsborough. Nothing in the Gulf, the National Hurricane Center says no tropical development for at least seven days.
(Source: National Weather Service Tampa Bay)
Anytime Fitness Lithia turns 10. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 16144 Churchview Dr., Suite 201, in Lithia. Ron and Monica Rigaud, both veterans, have been running this gym for a decade. Giveaways, prizes, member appreciation and local vendor tables including Allegra Wellness and Recovery, The Daily Spot and Southern Nutrition Riverview. Drop in, no membership needed. Their announcement is here.
Brandon Sunday Market goes back to school. Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Free admission. Oh So Rustic, 788 W. Lumsden Rd., Brandon, in La Viva Plaza at Lumsden and Kings. Local vendors, food trucks, live music from Robbie, pet friendly. They are taking school supply donations at the gate, so throw a pack of pencils in the car. The flyer is here.
Preston Canavan does stand-up in Plant City tonight. Doors at 6:30, show at 7:30, ages 16 and up. Tickets are $22.63 all in and one tier has already sold out, so do not wait. Free parking. Plant City State Theatre, 111 W. J. Arden Mays Blvd.
Kid Royal brings the blues to Ruskin. Saturday, 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. $23 for Firehouse members, $30 for everyone else. Firehouse Cultural Center, 101 1st Ave. NE, Ruskin. Online booking is already closed and there are no walk-ins, so if you want in you have to call 813-645-7651. Live blues in SouthShore instead of driving to Tampa. Details here.
Family Story Time at Brandon Regional Library. Saturday, two sessions, 10:15 and 11 a.m. Free, no registration. 619 Vonderburg Dr., Room 1. Thirty air conditioned minutes for the preschooler the weekend before school starts, and you can still make Lithia by noon. Library calendar.
Second Sunday Popup in Riverview. Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. Free to walk in. Flooringmaster lot, 11531 Balm Riverview Rd. MF BBQ hosts it, and it is the kind of small lot market where you can actually talk to the people selling. Event page here.
Brandon Crossroads Bowl is giving away a free Youth Blast Off. Saturday, September 5, 9 to 11:30 a.m. Free, and pre-registration only. The first 75 kids who register and show up get a goody bag. Kids Bowl Free ends today, and this is Robert Suess filling the junior leagues that pick up after it. 609 Crater Ln., Brandon. Register your kid here.
Friday Night Lights start next week. The FHSAA Preseason Kickoff Classic is Friday, August 14. Newsome hosts Northeast of St. Petersburg, 7:30. Durant hosts Bloomingdale, 7:30. Lennard hosts Osceola Fundamental, 7:30. East Bay hosts T.R. Robinson, 7:30. Strawberry Crest at Gaither, 7:30. Brandon at Seminole, 7:30. Armwood makes the drive to Edgewater in Orlando for a 7:00 kickoff. Riverview hosts Spoto, and the school has the matchup posted but not a start time yet.
Armwood is the one to watch the clock on. It is a 7:00 start and it is in Orlando. Plant City has not published a classic yet. Week 1 is Friday, August 21.
We want to cover these schools properly. If you keep score, take photos, coach, or your kid writes for the school paper, hit reply. Scores and photos get printed with your name on them.
Want your business on the school posts? East of Tampa Local Sports runs game cards, final scores, Athlete of the Week and school calendar posts across Hillsborough high schools. Some of these are hitting 10,000 to 50,000 impressions. You pick a school, we put your name on the football, volleyball and school calendar posts for it. $250 a month for about 6 posts, $500 a month for about 12, three month minimum. See the packages here.
Monday morning is three problems at once.
School goes back Monday, August 10. That same morning, crews start work on the east side of Balm Boyette Road just southwest of Woodland Spur Drive, first hauling in heavy equipment and then setting shoring for a tunnel under the road. Hours are 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday. They move to the west side in mid-August. No long term closures are planned, but the dewatering wells run around the clock, so if you live close you are going to hear pumps. South Hillsborough Pipeline posts the alerts here.
Meanwhile FDOT has US 301 at Big Bend Road closed nightly, 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., Sunday August 9 through Thursday August 13. US 301 at Ayersworth Glen Boulevard closes in the daytime, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, August 10 through 14. That daytime window covers both the morning drop-off and the afternoon pickup. Further south, US 301 from the Manatee County line up to Sun City Center Boulevard has nightly lane closures August 9 through 15, 7 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. Full FDOT closure list.
Give yourself fifteen extra minutes Monday. You are going to need them.
Giphy
Presented by WeWed.
The reservation is the easy part. Sitter booked, table booked, and forty minutes in you are both on your phones because neither of you knows what to talk about that is not the kids or the calendar.
Yolonda Young runs WeWed out of the east side. Most people call her Coach Lovey. Twenty years of prevention and wellness work, and her whole thing is working on the pattern before it turns into a crisis.
She put together a free one-page guide for our readers. Five questions, ten minutes, run it before you walk out the door. Grab The 10-Minute Check-In here.
Photo: WeWed
Where to go this weekend.
Donovan's Meatery, Riverview. Winthrop Town Centre, 11206 Sullivan St. Veteran owned, wood fired, and the closest thing to a real steakhouse on this side of the county. The 12 oz prime rib is $59 and runs Wednesday through Saturday after 3. The 6 oz filet is $52. Open until 10 Friday and Saturday. Start with the charcuterie board at $29 and do not rush it.
Photo: Donovan's Meatery
Propagation Whiskey Bar and Kitchen, downtown Plant City. 103 N. Palmer St. Brandon Snyder owns it, Rocco Taliani runs the kitchen. Over 250 whiskeys and a patio with fireplaces. 4.7 stars across 395 OpenTable reviews. Steak frites is $39, the crab bisque is $10. Open until 11 Friday and Saturday.
Photo: Propagation
Old Castle Restaurant, Ruskin. 3830 Sun City Center Blvd., Suite 107. Twenty years of scratch-made German food in a strip center, which is exactly the kind of place that lasts. Jager schnitzel is $20, the Royal Feast for Two is $52. Autobahn Karl plays Fridays from 5 until close. Open until 9 Tuesday through Saturday and until 8 Sunday, closed Mondays.
The county wants a one-year pause on data centers. Commissioners voted unanimously on August 6 to have county attorneys draft a moratorium on data center construction. They originally floated five years and scaled it back over legal concerns. Hillsborough has zero pending applications right now, so this is about what comes next. The draft comes back for a vote at a future meeting. FOX 13 has the vote.
Leggings are back in, four days before school starts. The school board voted 5-1 on August 4 to rescind the new restrictions on leggings and spandex and revert to last year's dress code. A petition against the rules pulled more than 3,100 signatures. Pajamas and slippers are still out. The full dress code gets a workshop on September 29. Details on the reversal.
Lunch is free at about 280 schools this year. Hillsborough is in the Community Eligibility Provision again for 2026-27, which means every student at a participating school eats lunch at no charge with no household application. Read that carefully. It is participating schools, not every school in the county, so check whether yours is on the list before you skip the paperwork.
Chill Cawfee moved to FishHawk. Chill Cawfee and Quig's Kava Lounge left Valrico for 16741 FishHawk Blvd. in Lithia. Coffee, espresso, kava, plus events. Separately, Karma Yoga and Fitness opened a second Riverview studio back in April, and it goes by Karma Fitness at 13224 Boyette Rd. The original is a block up the road at 13430, so check the number before you park. Chill Cawfee is here.
The businesses that keep this free.
Roof Rejuvenate SH. Jeff runs a veteran-owned shingle rejuvenation outfit out of Lithia, covering FishHawk, Brandon, Valrico and Plant City. Rejuvenation costs a fraction of a replacement, and a replacement around here runs $15,000 to $30,000. The formula is 96% bio-based and USDA certified, the warranty is five years and transferable, and the 21-point inspection is free with a stated value of $350. He caps at 15 to 20 roofs a month. 813-652-2777.
Stoner's Pizza Joint. Allison Hardy's shop at 3428 Lithia Pinecrest Rd. in Bloomingdale. Pizza, wings, calzones. Pick 2 for $6.99 each is the move on a Friday when nobody wants to cook. 813-436-0016.
Madison Patron. Residential real estate with Foundation Realty Group, working the same east side you live on. Buying, selling, or just wondering what your place is worth with school starting and inventory moving. Call or text 813-955-9092.
Action Karate. Paul Kuzemka and Gina run the River Hills Plaza location at 4365 Lynx Paw Trail in Valrico. 5.0 stars across 55 Google reviews. The intro is a one-on-one session plus two group classes plus a free uniform for $49, with a money-back guarantee. School starting is the easiest time to add a routine. 813-535-4191.
Maid Pure Cleaning. Dionne Cona is a former teacher and a mother of four, cleaning Brandon, Riverview and Valrico. 250-plus local customers, bonded and insured, with a 24-hour satisfaction callback. She partners with Cleaning for a Reason. 813-670-2004.
Glaros Law. Steve Glaros practices family law, personal injury and estate planning out of 350 E. Robertson St. in Brandon. Florida Bar No. 16027, admitted in 2005, and a Florida Supreme Court certified family mediator. Personal injury consults are free. 813-854-1234.
Hitched by Hendrix. An Army veteran running a mobile wedding officiant service. Ceremonies only, by appointment, and she comes to you. 813-384-7549.
Journeys by Jess. Jess plans cruises, all-inclusives, Disney and group travel. Florida Seller of Travel ST15578, independent affiliate of A.S.A.P. Cruises, and a Certified Family Travel Advisor. Fall and winter is when the good cabins go. [email protected].
K&D Law. Kou Jacobo runs a general practice in Riverview with a focus on immigration and asylum. Florida licensed since 2019 and in good standing. 786-496-2918.
Team Plumstead. John and Danielle Plumstead sell residential real estate in FishHawk, Lithia, Valrico and Riverview with Red Sash Realty. 813-495-2136.
Got an event? Put it in front of 5,000 neighbors for free. Submit it here.
Scores, photos, a business opening, a road that got worse. Hit reply, I read all of them.
If Monday morning catches somebody you know off guard, forward this to them today.
See you Tuesday.
John
The East of Tampa Guy
Wishing my 4 sons and all the local kids a great start to the school year!
