Harlem Soul Restaurant Coming to the Manhattan Casino

Mayor Bill Foster announced a plan to bring a Sylvia's Queen of Soul Food restaurant to the Historic Manhattan Casino, located at 642 22nd St. S.

Subject to City Council approval on July 26, Urband Development Solutions will construct, operate and maintain a Sylvia's Queen of Soul Food Restaurant on the first floor of the building. The second floor will be used for catering and other community events. The lease requires that Sylvia's management team be actively engaged in the operation and management of the St. Petersburg location.

The restaurant is projected to open in the fall of 2013 and will create 22 jobs.

The original Sylvia's Restaurant was established in 1962 in Harlem, N.Y., by Sylvia Woods. According to a news release Sylivias is now celebrating its 50th year. Sylvia's has become world famous for its southern home cooking.

In addition to the restaurant, Sylvia's has expanded over the years to include a full service catering facility, a nationwide line of Sylvia's food products, two cookbooks and a real estate firm.

Owner Sylvia Woods is a proud recipient of numerous awards and has been featured on Good Morning America, The Today Show, The BBC Network, Japan TV, and The Food Network as well as in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Elle Magazine, Ebony Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens, Newsweek, and more, a news release said.

"I am excited to welcome Sylvia's to St. Petersburg," said Mayor Bill Foster in a news release. "It's fitting that a building that has hosted scores of musical legends throughout its history will now be home to a legend in the food world. This lease and this establishment accomplish a major goal for the Midtown Economic Development Program and will reinvigorate the Manhattan Casino and the 22nd Street Corridor."

"We are extremely excited to bring the world famous Sylvia's Queen of Soul Food Restaurant toSt. Petersburg and the Tampa Bay region," adds Larry Newsome, CEO of UDS in a news release. "Sylvia's will be a great complement to the city's already eclectic restaurant scene and a perfect fit for the Manhattan Casino."