Back in July, St. Pete Rising reported on plans to relocate St. Pete Beach’s The Helm Seafood Parlor to a space next door, where The Helm will take over for Verducci’s Trattoria & Pizzeria.
“Right now, we’re going through some of the licensing process,” co-owner Michael Haran Butler told What Now on Tuesday. “Hopefully we’ll be able to open up this week.”
Butler says new location’s bigger space will allow for a new look at the menu, keeping the hits and the staples, and making room for some new choices too.
“We’re elevating the menu and keeping coastal. It’s all about bringing the Northeast and the Southeast to the west coast of Florida.”
The Helm is replacing Verducci’s at 7800 Blind Pass Rd, where the restaurant closed and never reopened after 2024’s brutal hurricane season—but what’s taking over the Helm’s current space at 7736 Blind Pass Rd? The answer: a new retail-shop-meets-event-space called The Scullery.
“With the Scullery, our goal is to turn the space into a high-end retail, a bridal registry, along with classes in cooking and crafting,” said Butler. “Although that opening is still a few months out.”
How do you envision that product line? What Now asked.
“You could compare it to Williams-Sonoma; that’s the kind of retail we’re looking for. And you don’t have to go to Tampa for it; it’s right here in St. Pete.”
The Scullery will be a new kind of business for Michael and Heidi Butler, who run the Helm as a family-owned and -operated business.
“The business has run in both of our families forever. I’ve been in the industry for 48 years, my wife for 30 years. Her family had a restaurant way back when, and so did mine. So, for us, it’s all about hospitality.”
You can keep up with all things The Helm by following @helmtampabay on Instagram.
