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A
Repeat Performance!
 That’s
what I say when people ask me how long have you had the
Whistle Stop in 1994. The Frosty Harbor was an aging drive
up ice cream stand. The only things left on the menu were,
hamburgers, chili slaw dogs and chocolate or vanilla tub
ice cream. Oh, Henry could make you a shake too, chocolate
or vanilla. They were only open 11-5 Mon-Fri. and closed
for doctor's appointments. Nevertheless, it was a landmark
in Safety Harbor. So many
people say they remember going there for ice cream as a
kid. Some even worked a summer or two for Jane & Henry
Fox. However, Jane & Henry
were getting tired. They had bee running the Frosty Harbor
for over 30 years! When I heard that they were interested
in selling, I
personally went and talked
to them about buying. As soon as I walked
in the building and looked out the small-unpainted portion
of the otherwise completely painted windows, I got the feeling
that I should be running the place. I told Jane and Henry
how much I wanted to be the 'Next Generation' at the Frosty
Harbor. They felt
my enthusiasm &
sincerity. They wanted me to buy it as much as I wanted
to buy it. Therefore, it was a deal, I purchased the building
& business from the Fox's in December of 1994. I opened
it as the Whistle Stop (with my ex husband) in January of
1995. We repainted inside & out, bought some new equipment
including a soft serve ice cream machine! We scraped the
paint from the windows and let the sunshine in! I love to
cook, so we introduce several new menu items. .including
Fried Green Tomatoes! The town
of Safety Harbor embraced
us and we could have been on our way to a successful endeavor.
However, Joe & I were divorced 2 years after opening
The Whistle Stop. Joe kept the Whistle Stop & I returned
to my R.N. career.
A year later, it was sold
to the owners of the Paradise Restaurant in Safety Harbor.
They ran it for a very short time, and then sold the business
to Jacque, who was from Lebanon. I drove by the Whistle
Stop for those 4 years, with sadness.
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Happy Hour Beer Specials 4-7 (M-Th)
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The building
looked lonely. Customers stopped going there and by the
end of the 4th year you could see the 'new owner' standing
out side the building at any time during the day. The new
owners did not feel the soul of the Whistle Stop. I felt
like they were strangers in there. They did not know how
to be 'The Whistle Stop" I was determined to get back
in there. I never wanted to leave in the first place! I
talked endlessly to my new husband Patrick, about buying
the Whistle Stop back. He asked me when was I ever going
to stop talking about it. He told me we were not going 'back',
but I knew, that could not be right. It didn’t feel
right. In February of 1999, I heard that Jacque had enough
of 'holding the building up' from the outside and that he
wanted 'out'. I went down to talk to him, the start of my
'Repeat Performance'. He did not know (at first meeting)
that I was the original owner (founder) of the Whistle Stop.
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I talked
to him about the business and he told me all about myself!!
He told me how "The Whistle Stop used to be a very
busy place. Everybody loved it!" He told me 'the couple
that bought it from the original owners had such a good
business. They lived in Safety Harbor and everybody knew
them. They fixed this place up" And he said, “somebody
could do that again, but it was not going to be him.”
He wanted to leave Safety Harbor. I knew the 'somebody'
had to be me. After learning who I was, Jacque knew it had
to be me too. Now we had to convince my husband, Patrick.
Well, finally I did and Patrick and I went back to the Whistle
Stop together. We bought it back in September of 2000. We
cleaned & painted (again) and did some remodeling, that
includes the dining deck & bar area. We wrote a new
menu with the Original Whistle Stop 'Really Good Food' and
several new editions. Patrick shares my love of cooking
and we are always on the cutting edge of good food! We introduced
Beer & Wine and Table Service, and live music on weekends.
We reopened on Sept 16, 2000. The town gave us the warmest
welcome back! The Well Wishes and 'So glad your back"
was overwhelming! Patrick & I are happy to have the
opportunity to own the Whistle Stop again. We are excited
to continue to grow the business and remain a Safety Harbor
Landmark.
We have a staff of wonderful people that
"We couldn’t do it without them"
Check them out!
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915
Main Street, Safety Harbor, FL 34695 • (727) 726-1956
| Weekdays
11-9 • Weekends 11-11
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