She figured, if you can’t beat them, join them. The original was set up when a North Carolina doggy daycare center owner realised her clients weren’t picking up their dogs on time because they were stopping off at a bar first. They just love spending time with each other and revel in all the petting they get. Really, there’s no better way to spend an afternoon drinking a cool beer in the sunshine while the friendliest dogs in the city play at your feet. He blends American classics with old-world flavors, served with regionally produced beers and excellent wines. The Farmtable Kitchen is upstairs, offering an informal gourmet dining experience, making the most of the market’s wide range of choices.Īlso try: Gay former Top Chef competitor Jeffrey Jew is the incredibly youthful-looking star behind Stillwaters Tavern on Beach Drive. Choose dry-aged meat, alligator sausage or lettuce that’s so fresh it’s sold still growing in a pot. There’s a bar, bakery and even a cook bookshop. They make food in front of you to eat now or you can buy the ingredients to cook yourself at home.Ĭhoose pizza, meat, burgers, seafood, cheese, charcuterie, juices, coffee, sandwiches, sushi, ice cream, pastries, patisserie, tarts, cookies or brownies. It’s arranged like a market, with eleven chefs each having their own kitchen. Our favorite: The Locale Market was dreamed up by chefs and is the home of fantastic ingredients in the city. And a surprising three members out of eight on the city council are LGBTI. It’s just hosted the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association’s annual conference with many venues joining in.
Or if street art is your thing, check out the murals a new generation of art lovers are creating on walls around the city.īut St Petersburg is gay-friendly all year round. The Museum of Fine Arts in Beach Drive offers more inspiration, boasting 20 galleries and a sculpture garden. Watch how glassblowers make these objects at the nearby studio and buy their work in the Hot Shop. And the Chihuly Collection at the Morean Arts Center showcases his creations – from intimate detail to large scale installations – in the best possible light. It’s all set in a stunning new building by the bay.Īlso try: Dale Chihuly is the creator of the most beautiful and spectacular glasswork in the world. With 94 original oil paintings and over 2,000 works overall, it’s provides unparalleled insight into this artistic icon.
Our favorite: The Dali Museum hosts the best collection of works outside Spain by the world’s most famous surrealist artist, Salvador Dali. And Hulk Hogan, the world’s most famous wrestler, now lives there. Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales was also born in St Pete. Jack Kerouac, the leading figure of the beat generation and still one of the coolest novelists ever, was born here. St Pete’s alternative vibe is perhaps not a big surprise. The maiden flight attracted a crowd of over 3,000 and the former mayor of St Pete’s bid $400 to be the first ever passenger. The first ever scheduled passenger airline service was opened in St Petersburg in 1914, flying to Tampa across the bay. It boasts miles of nature paths, running tracks and canoe trails. Five islands make up the 900-acre country park. The city’s facilities include showers and toilets.Īlso try: Ft DeSoto Beach is ranked the number one beach in the United States. The long, pristine stretch of white sand is particularly popular on weekend afternoons as clubbers recover with a sun bathe and a refreshing dip. Our favorite: The LGBTI area of the St Petersburg Municipal Beach on Treasure Island is an essential. Here are our St Petersburg highlights: Beach They never expected it to become cool.īut now it has – a mixture of artists, hipsters, visionaries, LGBTIs have reinvented St Pete and the balmy Florida air gives even the city’s oldest citizens a youthful vigor. Kids from St Pete used to call their hometown ‘God’s Waiting Room’.