UPDATE 10/8/14 : Earlier this week Tampa Bay Business Journal writer, Eric Snider, sat down with Locale Market co-owner and chef, Don Pintobona, to discuss plans for the innovative restaurant/market concept.

The Biz Journal reports that Pintabona has spent the last few months sourcing local ingredients. Locale plans to live up to its name which is a good sign for a city pushing to be as chain free as possible.

"When we first embarked on this we weren’t sure exactly how much local food we could offer. But we’ve been thrilled to see how much is out there, from caviar in Sarasota, to wild gator farms. Lamb, goat and pig — I didn’t know how rich Florida’s ranching history is," Pintabona told Snider.

The Edible Peace Patch recently paid a visit to Locale's Sundial location. The Peace Patch is in the process of raising funds for an urban farm in the Burg and if the relationship proves fruitful, we could see shelves lined with produce pulled from St. Pete's soil. 

*Photo by Locale

If you need more reason to gush over the forthcoming addition to the Sundial, you might enjoy these pieces of minutiae. The first floor will feature several hand-selected olive oils, a dry aging room, fresh and organic pastas. The floor also includes the previously discussed fish market and butcher shop.

The second floor will feature the anticipated Farmtable Kitchen offering farm-to-fork tastings and a wine bar. Not to mention a bakeshop that will satisfy all your sweet tooth's needs.

"We're going for an immersive, chef-driven dining and shopping experience," said Pintabona.

*Photo by Locale

An opening date is still tentative. If it's sometime after New Years we imagine many St. Pete residents will be delightfully forced to break a resolution or two.

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Posted 6/9/14

The Sundial is opening its doors to two culinary juggernauts. Chef and entrepeneur Michael Mina owns nationally acclaimed restaurants in Miami, Southern California, Phoenix, Seattle and Vegas and now brings his talent and passion to the Burg. The Locale and Farmtable will be unlike any endeavor he has ever participated in.

"Michael combines his extraordinary talent with an appreciation for life's finer details, and the results are found in every one of his creations," said tennis star Andre Agassi of Mina's cooking.

Chefs Michael Mina and Don Pintabona comes to the Burg!

The epicurean market will be on the second floor. It will feature a farm-to-fork restaurant, consistent with the fresh movement permeating through many local St. Pete establishments.

Joining Chef Michael is culinary icon Don Pintabona, former executive chef at Robert DeNiro's Tribeca Grill in NY for more than a decade. "Sometimes there are people who do great things and aren't recognized for it. I'd like to make everyone aware of Don Pintabona, someone who I am very proud to know and be associated with," said Robert DeNiro.

Pintabona is graduate of USF. He is most known for his culinary efforts after 9/11 to organize many of the best known chefs in New York to feed first responders and relief workers at ground zero. 

The duo weaves seamlessly into Bill Edward's vision of a downtown shopping district composed of individuals and businesses who are passionate, skilled and focused.

Locale will take up two floors on the northwest corner of the Sundial closest to Muvico. The market will include produce, meat, seafood, cheese and wine sections along with a bakery and a separate chocolate shop and ice-cream parlor that would make Roald Dahl blush.