logo
Maru rooftop bar to debut in Tampa's Bayshore with Nikkei-inspired menu

Maru rooftop bar to debut in Tampa's Bayshore with Nikkei-inspired menu

A hospitality group known for its innovative concepts is bringing a taste of Japanese-Peruvian fusion to Tampa's Bayshore neighborhood.
Story Highlights Maru, a rooftop cocktail bar, opens Friday, May 2, in Tampa's Bayshore neighborhood.
Menu includes small plates, hand rolls, ceviches, and upscale shareables like caviar.
Open Thursday–Sunday from 4 p.m. to midnight; until 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
A new rooftop bar is set to open in Tampa's Bayshore neighborhood.
Maru, an elevated rooftop cocktail bar with a Nikkei-style menu, will open on May 2. The new eatery from the Indigo Road Hospitality Group will be located on the seventh floor of Bayshore Gardens at 2909 W Bay to Bay Blvd.
Asana Partners is redeveloping Bayshore Gardens, located along West Bay to Bay Boulevard, with scenic views of Bayshore Boulevard and Hillsborough Bay. The developer acquired the site in late 2021 and is known for its distinctive, retail-focused neighborhood projects. Since then, it has expanded its footprint in Tampa's urban core, with a portfolio that includes properties in North Hyde Park and SoHo.
Maru will offer customers traditional Japanese cooking techniques mixed with Peruvian flavors, according to a release. It will have a curated beverage program led by beverage director Vonda Freeman, with a selection of sparkling wines, champagnes and crafted cocktails.
Under the direction of Chef Masa Hamaya, Maru's menu has shareable dishes, ranging from small plates, hand rolls and ceviche to elevated shareable dishes such as caviar.
The restaurant will be open Thursday through Sunday from 4 p.m. to midnight, with extended hours until 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
This latest opening continues Indigo Road Hospitality Group's trend of opening unique concepts in Bayshore. Last year, the company announced it would open O-Ku, a sushi concept, this year on the ground floor of Bayshore Gardens.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

U.S. trade agreement with Japan includes $550 billion in unanswered questions
U.S. trade agreement with Japan includes $550 billion in unanswered questions

Axios

time18 minutes ago

  • Axios

U.S. trade agreement with Japan includes $550 billion in unanswered questions

One key element of the U.S.-Japan trade pact raises more questions than answers about the future of the two nations' economic relationship. The big picture: A reported $550 billion investment commitment from Japan would reflect a massive surge in the nation's financial exposure to the United States. But no one in either the Japanese or U.S. government has articulated key details about how it would really work. In U.S. officials' description of the commitments, President Trump would have the discretion to direct the investment funds and the U.S. would receive 90% of the profits. It's unclear what legal entities — on either the Japanese or U.S. side — would be involved, or what would be in it for Japanese companies if they have neither control over the investments nor a financial return. Catch up quick: A White House fact sheet said Trump will direct the funds toward revitalization of the U.S. industrial base, including energy infrastructure, semiconductor manufacturing, critical minerals, pharmaceuticals and shipbuilding. By the numbers: It's worth emphasizing just how big $550 billion is — nearly 14% of Japan's 2024 GDP. Japan is already the single-largest source of foreign direct investment in the United States, with a cumulative capital of $754 billion deployed as of last year. It's been rising rapidly, too — nearly doubling over the last decade. Reality check: That has been driven by Japanese companies voluntarily making investments on which they expect to earn a handsome return — think of the Toyota manufacturing plant in Georgetown, Kentucky, which reflects about $10 billion in investment as of early last year. But those kinds of projects don't spin up overnight. The initial groundbreaking on the Toyota plant was in 1986. Japanese FDI in the U.S. increased by about $54 billion in 2024, a huge 7.7% surge, but the contemplated investment fund is more than 10 times that size. Similarly, Japan is the biggest owner of U.S. Treasury securities — with $1.1 trillion as of May. But those purchases are directed by the Japanese government to manage the nation's own currency and reserves, not at the behest of the U.S. president. The Bank of Japan buys U.S. bonds with the full expectation of interest earnings and principal being paid back. What they're saying: "They came to us with the idea of a Japan-U.S. partnership, where they are going to provide equity, credit guarantees and funding for major projects in the U.S.," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday on Bloomberg TV. A White House official tells Axios that "the shape and timeframe here are still TBD, but it's effectively an investment vehicle whose cash the Japanese will put up, and whose investments will be directed by the President into the sectors we have prioritized." The other side: "The vague promises about Japan investing $550 billion in the U.S. and Americans receiving '90% of the profits,' are the kind of fantastical claims better suited for a campaign rally than a serious trade announcement," wrote Veronique de Rugy, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center, in a note.

PR firms unite to help small businesses bounce back from natural disasters
PR firms unite to help small businesses bounce back from natural disasters

Axios

time18 minutes ago

  • Axios

PR firms unite to help small businesses bounce back from natural disasters

Communication professionals are leveraging their expertise to help raise awareness for businesses in need or those impacted by natural disasters. Driving the news: Following the recent wildfires in Los Angeles, several communication and PR firms united to form the LA Strong Comms Coalition to support small businesses that had been affected. The 40-member coalition is made up of freelancers, boutique agencies like JSA+Partners, Karsha Chang Public Relations and Hustle & Co, and big firms like Zeno Group and Weber Shandwick. Zoom in: LASCC has secured over 30 media stories for its pro bono clients in the past six months, helping businesses recover. For example, This Girl Walks Into A Bar secured a feature on the " Today" show in May, and within 20 minutes of airing, sales driven by the story paid for two months of warehouse fees, says owner Jordan Catapano. A local TV segment led to a significant uptick in online sales and in-store foot traffic for PlayLab Beauty, which lost its office and inventory of Korean and Japanese beauty supplies in the Eaton Fire. Zoom out: Many community PR chapters provide pro bono support to charities or nonprofits in their regions. For example, every two years, Washington Women in Public Relations picks a nonprofit organization to provide with free communications and PR support. This year, it has partnered with Running Start, a nonpartisan organization for young women running for political office. What they're saying: "As a society, the news cycle moves quickly but many small businesses are left with nothing and need to pick up the pieces after the cameras leave," Jennifer Stephens Acree, founder and CEO JSA+Partners, told Axios.

TACO or tariffs? Trump's big trade deadline is coming. Here's what to expect
TACO or tariffs? Trump's big trade deadline is coming. Here's what to expect

USA Today

time18 minutes ago

  • USA Today

TACO or tariffs? Trump's big trade deadline is coming. Here's what to expect

If Trump holds firm to his third deadline, a slew of countries will face steep levies, including a 50% tariff on imports from Brazil and a 30% tariff on the European Union. Standing in the Rose Garden and holding a giant chart, President Donald Trump, who likes to call himself 'Tariff Man' showed off the 'reciprocal' tariffs he was planning to levy on dozens of countries. That was April 2, christened 'Liberation Day' by Trump. Almost four months and two extensions later, a new Aug. 1 deadline is looming. A slew of countries will face steep tariffs − including a 50% tariff on imports from Brazil and a 30% tariff on the European Union. A baseline tariff of 10% remains for all countries. 'We'll have a straight, simple tariff of anywhere between 15% and 50%," Trump said during an AI summit in Washington, on July 23. "We have 50 (percent) because we haven't been getting along with those countries too well." Are new tariffs really coming? Will there be another extension? Trump has said no. But Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently left the door open for a third reprieve. The first deadline, on April 9, was paused for 90 days − until July 9 − after it caused significant turbulence in the financial markets and economists warned of a potential recession. "I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line," Trump said on April 9. 'They were getting yippy, you know. They were getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid." Trump's shifting on the deadlines also gave birth to an acronym: TACO, for Trump Always Chickens Out, mocking his on-again-off-again tariff policies. A pause – then a tariff storm On July 7, two days before the new tariffs were to go into effect, Trump extended the deadline to Aug. 1, saying several countries were negotiating deals. Trump also began sending letters on July 7 to countries letting them know of the new, updated tariffs that would be imposed on them. The first batch of 14 letters to countries including South Africa and Malaysia also made clear that if they retaliated against the United States with their own tariffs, their target tariffs would go even higher. On July 9, he sent tariff letters to another eight countries, including Brazil. So far, the United States has sent 25 tariff letters, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on July 23. What trade deals have been struck so far? While the U.K. was the first country to reach a trade agreement with the United States, the latest and the most significant deal so far has been with Japan, Washington's fifth-largest trading partner. Other countries with whom Trump announced deals in recent months include Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. On July 22, Trump announced a 'massive deal' with Japan under which the United States would impose a 15% tariff on Japanese imports. Trump had previously threatened a 24% tariff on Japan. He also wrote said Japan would invest $550 billion in the United States and that the United States would receive 90% of the profits, without offering any details. His announcement also said Japan had agreed to open up to imports of vehicles, rice and other agricultural products from the United States. Of the five countries that the United States has struck trade deals with, it only runs a trade surplus with the U.K. TACO time? On July 21, in an interview with CNBC, Bessent was noncommittal on whether there could be an extension for countries negotiating in good faith. 'We'll see what the president wants to do,' Bessent said. He added that reverting to the steep tariffs that were first proposed after the deadline might force countries to come up favorable terms. 'But again, if we somehow boomerang back ... I would think that a higher tariff level will put more pressure on those countries to come with better agreements,' said Bessent. Meanwhile Trump has repeatedly said there will be 'no change' in the deadline. 'In other words, all money will be due and payable starting AUGUST 1, 2025 − No extensions will be granted,' he wrote on Truth Social on July 8. What's happening with tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China? Trump threatened a 25% tariff on imports from Mexico and Canada shortly after his election victory. Ten days after taking office, Trump went after the top three trading partners of the United States with an executive order imposing 25% tariffs on nearly all goods from Canada and Mexico. Trump said it was to force the countries to stem the flow of migrants and fentanyl across the United States border. Meanwhile, China was hit with a 10% tariff. Canada and Mexico immediately responded with retaliatory tariffs of their own. Two days later, Trump agreed to a 30-day pause. In March, Trump waived tariffs on goods compliant with the United State-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMC) and the imposed 25% universal tariffs on steel, aluminum and automotive imports, including those from Mexico and Canada. Tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper were raised in June to 50% − Canada is the biggest supplier of steel and aluminum to the United States − while the tariffs on automotive imports held steady. Trump sent a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in July saying he planned to impose 35% tariffs across-the-board on imports from Canada come Aug. 1. Trump said fentanyl was "hardly the only" challenge United States had with Canada and that its trade barriers and non-tariff polices were causing "unsustainable" trade deficits. "Canada charges extraordinary Tariffs to our Dairy farmers – up to 400% - and that is even assuming our Dairy Farmers even have access to sell their products to the people of Canada," Trump said in the letter. In a letter to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump said that the country had helped in 'securing the border.' But he said Mexico had 'still not stopped the Cartels who are trying to turn all of North America into a Narco-Trafficking Playground.' After months of tit-for-tat tariffs and trade war with China, which saw the U.S. tariffs spiking to 145% and Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods reaching 125%, the two called a truce in May, agreeing to a 90-day suspension of the levies, set to expire on Aug 12. On June 11, Trump announced a deal had been 'done' subject to 'final approval' by both leaders. He said the U.S. tariffs would be set at 55% on imported Chinese goods while China's tariffs remain at 10%. Bessent, who is scheduled to meet his Chinese counterpart on July 28 in Stockholm, Sweden, indicated the deadline was likely to be moved. 'We'll be working out what is likely an extension' Bessent told Fox Business on July 22. Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a White House correspondent for USA TODAY. You can follow her on X @SwapnaVenugopal

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store