🌱 Tampa Bay Rowdies Title Game + Onbikes Winter Ride + 'Omicron' COVID-19 Variant

Hello, neighbors! Carlos Hernandez here with today's Tampa Daily. Let's get this Saturday started right.

In this issue, you'll learn about a restaurant sale, a new COVID-19 variant, a charity winter bike ride, the latest on the Tampa Bay Rowdies, and more.

First, today's weather:

Plenty of sunshine. High: 71 Low: 54.

Here are the top stories today in Tampa:

1. A former Sweet Tomatoes restaurant in Tampa has sold for $4.1 million. The building has sat empty since the salad and soup chain shutdown permanently, early in the pandemic in May 2020. There are no details yet on what the buyer plans to do with the property that sits close to Midtown Tampa. (Business Observer)

2. Give back: Onbikes Winter Wonder Ride for Charity will return on December 11th to downtown Tampa. The theme this year is Grinchmas. The ride helps raise money for bicycles and helmets for at-risk kids and families in Tampa Bay. Live music will be provided afterwards with DJ Jazzy Jeff. (ABC Action News)

3. The Tampa Bay Rowdies are battling for the USL championship title tonight at Al Lang Stadium in downtown St. Petersburg against Orange County Soccer Club. Tickets are available online. (Creative Loafing)

4. New COVID-19 Variant: The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday classified a worrying new COVID-19 variant, first detected in South Africa, as a highly transmissible virus of concern and named it “Omicron." The variant has been detected in travelers from southern Africa to Belgium, Botswana, Hong Kong and Israel. (Bay News 9)

5. A Florida mom went viral on TikTok for capturing a 7-foot python while wearing an apron and flip-flops. 69-year-old Lorraine Kimmel of Stuart, daughter of wildlife agent Mike Kimmel, grabbed the loose python by the tail in her Thanksgiving cooking gear. Mike Kimmel was planning to euthanize and cook the python as his contribution for dinner. (Tampa Patch)

Today in Tampa:

• Holiday Shop Hop 2021. Free to attend and open to the public. (10:00 AM)
• Breakfast with Santa at Salty Shamrock Apollo Beach. (10:00 AM)
• Black Saturday Holiday Market at Seminole Heights Garden Center. (11:00 AM)
• Enchant Christmas at Tropicana Field. (4:00 PM)
• Holiday Shop Hop Afterparty at Southern Brewing & Winery. (6:30 PM)

Tampa Patch Notebook

• Looking for a Christmas tree in Tampa? Patch has you covered. Fewer trees will be available this year due to supply chain disruptions. Check out the Patch guide on where to find Christmas trees in Tampa along with some buying tips. (Tampa Patch)
• City of Tampa: "🎁 SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY 🎁 Doing some holiday shopping? Don't forget, today is #SmallBusinessSaturday! Help support our local #Tampa businesses by shopping small. What's your favorite small business in Tampa?" (Twitter)
• Fun Tampa: "#3 House of Christmas Lights 🎄 Located in Summerfield HOA "Riverview". Wow not only are the lights beautiful but this house is absolutely amazing!" (Instagram)
• This Jenn Girl: "The Rhode Island Calamari at @BellaBrava is delightfully crispy and crunchy—I love both the rich pomodoro sauce and lemon caper aioli that they’re served with! Personally, I always go for the tentacles first. 😋..." (Instagram)

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Events:

• 9 Hours- 15 Speakers- Healers-Psychics-Authors And Musicians To Help You Replenish And Recharge! (November 27)
• Miami MoCAAD presents Afro Latin X #CreativeConversation Arte, Historia, Cultura-(Art, History + Cul (November 28)
• Shake Shack Donation Day (December 1)
• Breast Ultrasound Screening Coming Direct to You! (December 2)
• Taxes In Retirement Seminar (December 2)
• SUN 'n FUN Holiday Fly-In Festival and Car Show (December 3)
• Taxes In Retirement Webinar (December 6)
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You're officially in the loop for today! I'll be in your inbox tomorrow morning with your next update. If you're liking these newsletters, consider inviting some of your friends and neighbors to follow along. You can send them this link to subscribe.

— Carlos Hernandez

About me: Hello my name is Carlos Hernandez and I am a food writer with over 10 years of experience in the industry. I write the food blog Carlos Eats (http://www.carloseats.com) and also contribute to several newspapers and magazines with food-related blogs and articles.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Tampa Daily? Email me at carlosreportsnews@gmail.com.