Tampa hospitality company, with new concepts in Water Street and Westshore in the works, has Outback co-founder Chris Sullivan onboard
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jul 11, 2022

Outback Steakhouse co-founder Chris Sullivan is backing Tampa’s Next Level Brands, a hospitality company controlled by veteran restaurateur Jeff Gigante, real estate executive Andrew Wright and attorney Joseph Guggino.

Sullivan, an icon in the restaurant and hospitality realm, said he’s been watching Next Level Brands closely since his son-in-law invested in the group’s Forbici Modern Italian in Hyde Park Village. He declined to disclose his investment; Gigante said Sullivan participated in a roughly $10 million funding round that will finance two forthcoming concepts, Union New American and Boulon Brasserie.

Union New American is under construction at Westshore City Center, an office complex that Wright owns in Westshore. It’s slated to open in late 2022 or early 2023. Boulon Brasserie, a French restaurant, will open this fall on the first floor of Water Street Tampa office tower Thousand & One.

Sullivan is not involved in the day-to-day operations of Next Level, which Gigante, Wright and Guggino formed in 2020 to pursue Union New American.

“This is just a fun investment with some great people,” Sullivan told the Tampa Bay Business Journal on Monday. “I’m a cheerleader and an investor.”

For Gigante, who is best known in Tampa as a co-founder of Ciccio Restaurant Group, having Sullivan back his company is “very symbolic.” He’s known Sullivan for years as CRG was growing its footprint of fast-casual concepts throughout the Tampa Bay area.

“My whole career, he’s been so gracious with me,” Gigante said.

Next Level’s restaurants are high-end, experiential concepts with high average check prices — at a time when most restaurateurs are focusing on fast-casual concepts that make takeout and delivery orders more accessible. But Sullivan says he wouldn’t go so far as to call it a contrarian play; it’s more of a niche, he says, comparing the concepts to On Swann and Oak & Ola, which are partly owned by fellow Outback co-founder Trudy Cooper.

Sullivan compared the team at Next Level to famed Chicago restaurateur Rich Melman, whose Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises owns and licenses more than 100 restaurants across multiple states. Melman, Sullivan said, carved out his own place in the market by creating unique concepts.

“I think our community is ready for these kinds of concepts,” Sullivan said. “I can’t wait for the brasserie to open. We don’t have anything like that in town.”

Gigante said he “100% believes” in full-service, experiential concepts — even with the looming threat of a recession that could force customers to cut back discretionary spending.

“I think people are very hesitant to take being social out of their routine,” he said, “and they’re going to want to celebrate and have memorable experiences.”

Union New American will be more than a year behind schedule when it opens; Next Level had initially planned for it to open in late 2021. That’s not uncommon for new restaurants, between supply chain issues and construction labor shortages.

Meanwhile, Next Level is already working on concepts Nos. 4 and 5, Gigante said, though he declined to share any details.

“My passion is full-service, experiential dining where you have a memory made,” he said. “People are going to keep room in their routine for celebrating.”