At the new Belleair Coffee Co. location in Largo. All images courtesy of Belleair Coffee Co.
Almost a decade after opening its first cafe in Florida’s Tampa Bay area, Belleair Coffee Co. recently launched its spacious second location in Largo.
Cafe tables and velvet-lined chairs now fill the space where shiny beer fermenter tanks once stood inside the building previously owned by Olde Florida Brewing Company.
Bright white quartz wraps around an extended 25-foot bar topped with a 3-group La Marzocco espresso machine paired with Mahlkönig grinders that help baristas turn out traditional and seasonal drinks.
The Olde Florida spirit lives on through remnants of the original wooden slat ceiling and 28 wall-mounted taps behind the bar, many still pulling local craft beers alongside cold brews, kombucha, prosecco and protein drinks.
“We bought the Olde Florida Brewing building outright so we could update it to our exacting standards,” Belleair Coffee Co-Founder Chris Whalen told Daily Coffee News. “The interior look and feel were paramount to our vision.”
Live-edge tables and potted plants bring Florida’s lush landscape indoors, while a tropical foliage mural brightens an entire wall. Patio seating extends outside the building.
Inside, head roaster Noah Logan runs green coffees purchased from Royal Coffee and other importers through a 15-kilo Ambex and smaller Diedrich roaster.
“If our original location is craft coffee for the country club crowd, the new location is craft coffee for the up-and-coming professional crowd,” Whalen said. “Besides offering live music, beer and wine, the new location has a slightly younger, hipper vibe.”
Whalen, a former systems engineer and product manager for tech companies and current president of CL Whalen Property Group, co-founded Belleair Coffee Co. with his wife Cammie in 2016, opening the first cafe in Belleair Bluffs Plaza.
The pivot into coffee was inspired by time spent in Italy as a college student, which led Whalen to embrace espresso as essential to daily life. With a simultaneous admiration for West Coast specialty coffee culture, the Whalens saw a need for more quality coffee around Tampa Bay.
“After leaving the tech world, I wanted to bring a West Coast roasting ethic — specialty-grade beans and medium roasts, as well as grass-fed milk — to my adopted hometown of Belleair,” Whalen said.
With both locations drawing crowds and demand for fresh roasts rising, the Whalens see significant opportunity for continued retail expansion.
“We are looking at locations in specific Tampa neighborhoods that have the right fit demographically, but even more importantly, also have the right community spirit to embrace what we do,” said Whalen. “Our mission is to help build community around high-quality coffee and food in comfortable, aesthetically pleasing environments.”
Belleair Coffee Company and Tap House is located at 1158 7th St NW. in Largo.
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Howard Bryman
Howard Bryman is the associate editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine. He is based in Portland, Oregon.
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