Restaurant and co*cktail bar opening in downtown Sarasota specializes in signature burgers, hand-cut fries and wings tossed in house-made sauces.
Wade TatangeloSarasota Herald-Tribune
While downtown Sarasota is already home to many of the region's best restaurants, it's always exciting to see a new dining spot open in the neighborhood brimming with condos, shops, and eateries.
I'm particularly excited about a couple of restaurants with a proven track record that are doing something a bit different in downtown Sarasota — opening in second-floor spaces. In February, we reported that Warren Sarasota, a high-end restaurant and whiskey bar, plans to open at 1400 Main St., above the popular footwear retailer Fit2Run, in late summer 2025.
The restaurant's owner, Damn Good Hospitality, already operates two other Warren locations in Delray and Naples. Our sister publication, the Naples Daily News, reported that the Naples location opened late last year.
Now, just around the corner in downtown Sarasota, another restaurant and bar has announced it will open on Friday. This one is the second location by Florida businessmen who originally found success with the same concept in Tampa.
Restaurant News: One of Sarasota and Bradenton's top restaurant openings of 2024 is this week
Best waterfront restaurant: Top 10 favorites I love to recommend in Sarasota and Bradenton
Top 10 restaurants I recommend when asked 'Where should I eat in Sarasota and Bradenton?'
Ticket Newsletter: Sign up to receive restaurant news and reviews plus info on things to do every Friday
New downtown Sarasota restaurant Fat Rabbit to open this weekend
The restaurant and bar will occupy one of my favorite locations — a second-floor spot overlooking bustling lower Main Street. Unfortunately, that space has seen turnover with numerous restaurants in recent years.
However, the owners of Fat Rabbit are optimistic that what they describe as an "upscale neighborhood pub" will be just as popular in downtown Sarasota as their original Fat Rabbit restaurant and bar, which opened about seven years ago in Tampa. Situated at 1359 Main St., Fat Rabbit is located above OfKors Bakery and Main Street Creamery, with a sign hanging above the sidewalk between the two businesses, allowing guests to enter via stairs or elevator.
Following the popularity of their Fat Rabbit, located in a Tampa Palms shopping plaza anchored by a Publix, owners John Kuemmel and Shawn Diehl are bringing their brand to downtown Sarasota. The restaurant spans 4,400 square feet with 123 seats, supplemented by an additional 20 at the bar. Fat Rabbit aims to offer guests an elevated pub experience marked by higher-end food and co*cktails.
Kuemmel and Diehl stated during an April phone interview that the expected opening date for Fat Rabbit was mid-May. Fat Rabbit's grand opening is now scheduled for Friday, May 10, according to a social media post, which Kuemmel confirmed via text message on Thursday, May 9. The restaurant will begin serving lunch at 11 a.m. Friday.
"John and I started this because all the others had lost sight of what was important; a good chicken wing had become a purple unicorn," Diehl told me last month. "Everything was influenced by chains or owned by chains. Stuff was lost as things became more corporate, including the quality of food, service, and co*cktails. That's what we focus on at Fat Rabbit."
Fat Rabbit in downtown Sarasota to serve beer, wine, and craft co*cktails including signature old fashioned 'Sugar & Smoke'
Guests can enjoy a selection of beer, ranging from macro to local brews, as well as a variety of wines and liquor, including an assortment of craft co*cktails such as their popular old fashioned mixed drinks. The best-selling beverage at their Tampa Palms location is Sugar & Smoke, featuring Redemption Rye Whiskey augmented by apple-wood-smoked brown sugar, black walnut bitters, and a torched orange peel. Other popular co*cktails include their Chocolate Old Fashioned made with Bird Dog Chocolate Whiskey, and a Peanut Butter Old Fashioned featuring Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey.
Fat Rabbit in downtown Sarasota to serve burgers, wings with house-made sauces, and hand-cut fries
The Fat Rabbit in Tampa is perhaps best known for its burgers and wings. The burgers consist of a half-pound blend of short rib and brisket, dressed with lettuce, tomato, onion, and pickle, and served on a brioche bun. Guests can build their own burger with a choice of various toppings or choose a signature burger such as The Irishman (baby arugula, sliced tomato, bourbon aioli, caramelized onion, Swiss cheese, and Jameson whiskey bacon jam) or Bayside (pepper jack cheese, avocado, chipotle mayo, lettuce, tomato, and onions).
The wings are un-breaded, fried, and then tossed in a choice of sauce, served with celery and blue cheese or ranch dressing. The scratch-made dipping sauces include Buffalo Garlic Ranch, Cayenne Horseradish, Nashville Hot, Chipotle Ranch, Chipotle Aioli, Ranch, Blue Cheese, Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette, Caesar, Honey Mustard, Key Lime Mustard, and Honey Garlic. Additionally, Fat Rabbit advertises a "Wing of the Week" flavor. When it comes time to order, guests can load up on a single flavor or opt for a wing flight, choosing any combination of five wings with different flavors.
Fat Rabbit serves hand-cut fries as well as tater tots. In fact, the online menu includes an entire section dubbed "Spuds." Selections include an homage to the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, where it has been reported that Buffalo wings originated in the 1960s. Fat Rabbit's "Anchored" fries or tots are topped with Buffalo sauce, crumbled blue cheese, and served with a side of blue cheese dressing. The "Loaded" fries or tots contain melted cheddar cheese, pickled jalapeños, bacon, corn, tomatoes, and scallions.
Fat Rabbit replaces Fire Fresh Grill in downtown Sarasota
Fat Rabbit replacesFire Fresh Grill.The restaurant and bar, specializing in global street food and creative co*cktails, permanently closed in 2022 after less than six months in business. Additional restaurants to occupy the same second-floor space in recent years includeThe Coolinary,The Irish Pub and Grille,andStairway to Belgium.
"When we opened in a Publix strip mall in Tampa, we just had six tables on the patio, and you're looking at a parking lot, but our quality of food, service, drinks, and just the overall vibe and word of mouth — we didn't spend a dollar on advertising — worked," Kuemmel said. "We're confident the same thing will happen here and people will walk up the stairs. Quality is what's attracting people, not being on the ground floor."
Fat Rabbit is upstairs at 1359 Main St., Sarasota. Starting Friday, May 10, it plans to be open 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, visitfatrabbitpub.com.
Wade TatangeloisTicket Editor for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, and Florida Regional Dining and Entertainment Editor for the USA TODAY Network.Follow him onTwitter,FacebookandInstagram. He can be reached by email at wade.tatangelo@heraldtribune.com.Support local journalism bysubscribing.
