Goody Goody Opens Its Doors

TAMPA, FL — The wait is over. Goody Goody officially opened its doors in Hyde Park Village early Tuesday morning to a crowd of eager diners, including Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn.

Located at 1601 W. Swann Ave., the eatery is the latest venture for the Columbia Restaurant Group.

“I’m ecstatic to bring back Goody Goody, this Tampa tradition that opened in 1925 and closed in 2005,” said Richard Gonzmart. “We’ve lost too many of these iconic places over the years and I really did not want the name to just fade away into history.”

Gonzmart is the president of the Columbia Restaurant Group. Under his direction, the company has expanded its flagship Columbia restaurant from two locations to seven. It is also responsible for Cha Cha Coconuts, Café Con Leche and Ulele. The restaurant group bought the Goody Goody brand name in 2014.

Now that it’s open, Goody Goody will serve customers seven days a week. It’s open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The restaurant’s menu features 60 items that are made from scratch daily.

“It includes eggs from an Amish family farm, 12-inch buttermilk pancakes, salads, Fresh From Florida Beef, pork chops, house-made meatloaf, fresh pastries from our own bakers, five types of pie, beer brewed in Tampa Heights, 95-cent unlimited refill coffee roasted in Ybor City, and, of course, the Goody Goody™ items beloved for so long: Egg & Olive salad, lime freezes, butterscotch pie, hand-spun milkshakes made with Old Meeting House ice cream and the one and only POX burger,” the restaurant explained on its Facebook page.

Gonzmart was interested in reviving the Goody Goody name and menu because the eatery “helped create Tampa’s identity,” he explained in a statement.

Goody Goody was founded in a simpler time, Gonzmart said.

“People were nicer to one another, kinder to one another,” he said. “That’s a feeling I want to bring back with this restaurant, at the very least for the time our guests spend with us.”

For more information, visit Goody Goody online.

Photo courtesy of Goody Goody