Cru Cellars at Westshore Marina District to transition to Vela, an Italian restaurant
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jul 6, 2023

Cru Hospitality Group is transitioning its restaurant in the Westshore Marina district to a new concept — and closing its location at Heights Public Market inside Armature Works.

The 2,400-square-foot Westshore Marina restaurant that opened as Cru Cellars in 2021 will become Vela, serving “elevated comfort food” like pizza, pasta, and small plates and entrees. Vela, which means “sail” in Italian, will have a Mediterranean theme that extends to the cocktail and wine selection.

The transition to Vela comes after feedback from residents who live in the Westshore Marina area. The restaurant also faced challenges, said Kyle King, CEO of Cru Hospitality Group. Initially, it was supposed to open for lunch, but the lunch business never materialized as residential growth lagged initial projections of 5,000 people, King said. The transition has been in the works for about six months, he said.

“The area hasn’t quite hit that critical mass,” he said.

Cru signed a 10-year lease with renewal options at Westshore Marina district, King said. The district’s master developer, Fort Lauderdale-based BTI Partners, sold Marina Landings, which includes the Vela real estate, to a private investor earlier this year.

“Leaving wasn’t really something that crossed our minds,” he said. “We’re still confident in the area and location.”

The restaurant will close for about five days in August and reopen as Vela, said Jen Bingham, owner and sommelier at Cru Hospitality Group. The transition will cost less than $100,000, Bingham said, and will include changes to the flooring, bar and wall treatments. Vela will open with lunch and dinner service daily; lunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and brunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends.

Once the transition is complete, only the original location of Cru Cellars on South Macdill Avenue will remain. Cru had an outpost in Armature Works for five years, and it will close this summer as Armature Works leadership looks at the next evolution of that space. And while it won’t be a concept of hers, Bingham credits the location for the growth of the Cru brand. Beyond Cru Cellars and Vela, she also owns champagne bar Bouzy in Hyde Park Village and Small Giant in Water Street Tampa.

“We think Cru Macdill can be its own thing,” Bingham said. “Cru is obviously what got me to where we are now, and Armature Works was a big part of our story and allowed Cru Hospitality to be born as a company.

“I never thought this is where we’d be when we opened a little wine bar 13 years ago, but people want great food with their wine.”