Farewell Feast: Mise en Place Bids Grand Central Goodbye
After 36 years anchoring Grand Central Avenue, Mise en Place is packing up the linens and heading for Ybor City. To celebrate one last meal in the iconic space, we dropped by to see how Chef Marty Blitz and co-owner Maryann Ferenc are closing out the final month of service.
Back in June, the pair announced plans to relocate to the Casa Gomez Building at 1229 E. Eighth Ave.—a new home in the heart of Ybor’s ongoing revival led by developer Darryl Shaw. Ferenc calls it their “third and most ambitious move,” and it certainly feels like a new chapter for one of Tampa’s most influential kitchens.
We celebrate with the Classic Mise en Place Three-Course Dinner, a prix-fixe menu that lets Chef flex his creative muscle. The amuse-bouche—a grilled butter bean salad with kalamata aioli, crispy Soppressata, and gremolata breadcrumbs—hits all the right notes: savory, bright, and teasingly light, and gets our taste buds ready for what’s next.
A chilled watermelon bite with whipped feta, basil oil, and pumpkin brittle follows, a clever mash-up of sweet and tangy, creamy and crisp. It’s simple and sublime.
Amuse Bouche- Grilled Butter Bean Salad, with kalamata olive aioli, crispy Soppressata, and gremolata breadcrumbs.
Chilled watermelon on a dallop of whipped feta and basil oil with pumpkin brittle
Then comes the show-stopper: Faroe Island salmon dusted with hatch chili BBQ spice, set atop poblano goat-cheese grits with asparagus and a corn, tasso, and crab maque choux. Every element plays in harmony—Creole depth, Southern comfort, and chef-driven finesse.
The duck breast course rocks too, laid over pepper escabeche, with grilled eggplant and fingerling tostones, sided by both charred corn Aleppo soubise and blood-orange port-sage gastrique—sweet, smoky, and complex. I’m not typically an eggplant fan, but they got this one right. And those sauces…!
Faroe Island Salmon, grilled asparagus, poblano goat cheese grits, grilled corn butter bean tasso crab maque choux
Duck Breast, fingerling potato tostones, charred corn aleppo soubise, pepper escabeche, grilled eggplant, blood orange port sage gastrique.
Dessert seals the deal: Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Cheesecake with brown-butter crust and cinnamon-maple crème anglaise. A flawless finale to our farewell tour.
Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Cheesecake, brown butter crust, cinnamon maple creme anglaise, Chantilly, candied pecans
Mise en Place bar, 2025
Mise leaving Grand Central feels like the end of a marriage. Its 36-year stint was a reliable go-to for a dinner at the bar with a perfectly crafted cocktail, or a fancy night out. The mixture of elegance and familiarity was their signature. While I’m sure Chef will continue preparing his creative fusion cuisine (even though the new kitchen is one-third the size of his current digs), I’m gonna miss it. But I will rest easy knowing Blitz and Ferenc are just trading one landmark for another. When the doors reopen in Ybor, it’s bound to feel like coming home—just with a new address and the same remarkable cuisine.
36-year home for Mise en Place, 442 W Kennedy Blvd. from Grand Central Ave.
Casa Gomez, 1229 E. Eighth Ave Ybor City, home of the new Mise en Place
It’s not too late for a last visit. There are numerous happenings this month. October 28th through the 30th will feature a 3 & 4-course tasting menu as they wind down the kitchen. The limited seating Halloween: The Grand Finale on Grand Central, on October 31, from 7:30 to 10:30, will be the last night of service before they move to the Casa Gomez. Ferenc says there will be no formal service, just a night of grazing, specialty drinks, and reminiscing about the life and times at Grand Central.
There has been no official announcement for the grand opening date at the new location, but it looks like mid-November. Keep tabs through their website.