On the short run of South Osprey Avenue between 1816 and 1830, four storefronts sit within a few doors of each other. Since September, three of them have changed: one closed, one moved and one opened. Every move came from someone who already knew the block well. A bar is taking over the grill next door. A restaurant moved downtown and took the grill's owner with it. A Sarasota native who spent more than two years trying to get a lease here finally got one. And on Hillview Street, the regulars of one long-running restaurant rallied behind it after a summer fire.
The bar next door is taking over the grill
The 1818 Grill took its name from its address, 1818 S. Osprey Ave. Its last day of service was September 26, according to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Before it was The 1818 Grill, the space was Knick's Tavern & Grill, which opened in 2002. Owner Tommy Lovell took over in 2024 and later changed the name.
The buyer came from one door down. The Herald-Tribune reported that Lovell is selling the business to the Siciliano family, who own Legends Sports Pub at 1816 S. Osprey Ave. The family plans to turn Legends into a full bar and restaurant. That's a real change for Legends, which until now has run on a beer-and-wine license with no food menu.
So a kitchen that served this corner for more than two decades is staying in the hands of the business next door. The operator who expands into it already knows the block's lunch crowd, its game nights and its parking.
The move downtown that took a neighbor along
A few doors south, Alma de España opened at 1830 S. Osprey Ave. in 2025. Chef and owner Elier Rodriguez cooked at Michelin-starred restaurants in Las Vegas before coming to Sarasota. His menu draws on Spain and on Cuba, where he was born and raised. His South Osprey location closed September 30.
The restaurant opened again on November 1 at 239 S. Links Ave. downtown, in the historic cottage where Indigenous ran for 15 years until it closed in mid-September. Your Observer reported from Sarasota County property records that the building of nearly 1,100 square feet sold for $1.65 million on September 28 to Cathedral Hospitality Holdings LLC, a company registered to Rodriguez.
Alma didn't leave Southside Village alone. According to the Herald-Tribune's September restaurant roundup, Lovell is joining Alma de España as general manager and sommelier at the Links Avenue location. One sale and one move connect the two closings on Osprey. The grill is going to the bar next door, and the grill's owner followed the restaurant that had opened a few doors away. Southside Village regulars who want both a familiar chef and a familiar host at the same table now drive a few minutes north to Alma's downtown location.
Two years of looking for a lease on this block
Across the street, at 1817 S. Osprey Ave., The Red Thread Atelier opened September 12. Founder Vaughn Dorrian is a fourth-generation Floridian who grew up in Sarasota. She opened her first needlepoint shop in Locust Valley, New York, in 2023. That shop measures 400 square feet. The Osprey Avenue store is 1,420 square feet, more than three times as large.
Dorrian looked for space in the area for more than two years, the Herald-Tribune reported, and she told the paper why she wanted this block in particular:
"Southside Village is a unique shopping district that has really blossomed and turned into a great little area. It adds to the charm of the community that I'm trying to build."
The extra square footage has a purpose. Dorrian told the Herald-Tribune she wants the shop to serve as a community gathering space, with art classes from seashell decorating to watercolor and weekly stitching nights. The newest storefront on the block is built around getting people to come back every week.
The Hillview room its regulars helped rebuild
Around the corner, Pacific Rim has been at 1859 Hillview St. since 1998. Anne and Veth Senenoi's family-run restaurant serves Japanese-Thai food, from sushi and sashimi to curries, pad Thai, drunken noodles and tempura. Regulars call it "Pac Rim." Sarasota Magazine reported that an early-morning fire on Saturday, July 18 damaged the back office and bar area and sent smoke through the building. Nobody was inside.
The response came from the restaurant's own circle. A friend of the owners started a GoFundMe, and donations had nearly reached $91,000 when Sarasota Magazine published its report. Supporters also sent diners to Bangkok Restaurant Sarasota, which they described as Pacific Rim's sister restaurant. Veth Senenoi told the magazine he was "praying for Nov. 15" to reopen, and that when Pacific Rim returns he plans to work in the kitchen as chef for as long as a year. The restaurant posts updates on its Facebook and Instagram pages, which are the quickest place to check before you go.
A restaurant that had been part of the neighborhood for more than 25 years got its support from customers it already had.
The anchors keeping the calendar steady
With storefronts changing around them, the businesses that stayed put are carrying the strip through the holidays.
Morton's Gourmet Market at 1924 S. Osprey Ave. has been feeding Sarasota for more than half a century. It has posted a 2026 holiday ordering notice on its homepage saying that, because of market volatility, menu prices may not be current, and asking customers to check with its customer service team when ordering. Its holiday order form lists a Thanksgiving ordering deadline of 5 p.m. Thursday, November 19, which is today, and a Christmas deadline of 5 p.m. December 18. Pickup runs the two days before each holiday. The same form lists Christmas Eve hours of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Osprey store and a closure on December 25. Call the store to confirm both dates and prices before you plan a holiday table around them.
On Hillview, Gecko's Hillview at 1900 Hillview St. runs weekly games. Its current listings put Bar Bingo on Monday nights from 7:30 to 9 p.m. and Trivia Night on Wednesdays from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Gecko's closes on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
The next two weeks on Osprey and Hillview
Combine the newcomer's schedule with the anchors' and you get a short, specific calendar for the stretch between now and early December:
- Saturday, November 21, noon to 3 p.m. Stitch In Saturdays at The Red Thread Atelier, 1817 S. Osprey Ave.
- Saturday, November 21, 2 to 4 p.m. NDLPT 101 Painting at The Red Thread Atelier, overlapping the stitching session.
- Monday, November 23, and Wednesday, November 25. Bingo and trivia nights on the usual Gecko's Hillview schedule.
- Tuesday, November 24, and Wednesday, November 25. Thanksgiving pickup window at Morton's, according to its order form.
- Saturday, November 28, 1 to 3 p.m. A Needlepoint Destashing Event at The Red Thread Atelier, which falls on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
- Wednesday, December 2, 5 to 7 p.m. Another NDLPT 101 Painting session at The Red Thread Atelier, for anyone who missed the November class.
The shop's events page also lists SRQ Sip N Stitch evenings. The most recent one was November 17.
That calendar is a fair picture of the block right now. A market that has been here for decades is taking holiday orders. A bar taking over its neighbor's kitchen is planning its next phase. A shop that took two years to land a lease is filling its Saturdays. And a restaurant whose regulars rallied behind it after the fire is working toward its return. None of these changes came from a newcomer with no history on Osprey or Hillview.
Southside Village is a few minutes' walk from many West of Trail streets, and changes like these shape everyday life in the neighborhood. If you're thinking about a home within walking distance of Osprey and Hillview, or wondering how the area's newest openings show up in nearby sales, Monica Verinder would be glad to talk it through over coffee in the Village. Schedule Your Private Consultation.
