Spinners Rooftop Revolving Restaurant

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GRAND PLAZA HOTEL

Most locals have their favorite beach hotels and/or beach cottages they like to escape to occasionally for a few nights’ stay, even if they live within just a few minutes of the beach. One such place, for me, is the Grand Plaza Hotel (5250 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach, FL 33706; 1-800-448-0901). It’s an older hotel, but it was completely renovated in 2006. Even since then it has undergone tremendous improvements since it moved into its present ownership.

The Grand Plaza has many things to recommend it besides its pretty reasonable rates (tip: the rooms not facing the Gulf, but facing north or south along the beach, are much less expensive and, to my eye, offer a much more interesting view than the more expensive Gulf-side view). The Grand Plaza is, literally, right on the beach. You step into the sand from the rear doors. The easy parking and close walking proximity to different seafood and breakfast restaurants make this a real getaway treasure. But, there’s really no need to leave the premises to eat because there are three restaurants within the Grand Plaza that all offer quite competent food—not gourmet, but pretty darned good.

The main attraction of the Grand Plaza, however, is Spinners Bistro Restaurant on the very top of the building, the Florida Gulf Coast’s only beach-side revolving restaurant. It’s a special experience. Everyone, without exception, who I know who has gone there reports the same pleasure in eating there. It’s such a simple, 60s retro thing (think 1962 Seattle World’s Fair and the Space Needle–excellent old photos), but it’s unique and tons of fun. It transforms the restaurant experience. As one friend says, “It’s not like being in a restaurant.”

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Spinners has a bar, appropriate prices, a pleasant service staff, takes all credit cards, and, on holidays boasts an excellent buffet which is so popular it requires reservations days in advance. PDFs of their daily lunch and dinner menus are online. Lunch is served from 11:00am to 4:00pm and dinner from 4:00pm to 11:00pm.

Aside from the holiday buffets, it’s never packed because most folks don’t really know about Spinners or have forgotten it’s there. I would like to see it thrive so I’m hoping more locals discover (or re-discover) it and come to love it as my friends and I do. It’s the place to bring out-of-town company because it offers a visual perspective on where we live that can’t be had otherwise. It’s a special treat. The kind that makes memories.

Another tip: One complete revolution of the restaurant takes about 90 minutes, so my favorite time to arrive at Spinners is about an hour before sunset. That way, you get to see the city from above during daylight, then watch the gradual transition through the Florida pastel sunset on into the night with the enchanting lights of the entire Tampa Bay area and its bridges spread around you. You can even see the Skyway Bridge from Spinners.

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INSIDE SPINNERS

Tagged as: attractions, beaches, Florida, FOOD, restaurants