Shake Shack is headed to Seminole, marking the fast-casual burger chain's first foothold on the Pinellas County side of Tampa Bay. The City of Seminole issued a building permit on June 15 for interior demolition and buildout work at 11165 Park Blvd. in Seminole City Center, with the paperwork explicitly naming Shake Shack for the site.
The permit, first reported by Tampa Bay Beacons, covers a multitenant building on the Park Boulevard frontage that also houses CAVA and a Verizon store. Seminole Community Development Director Wesley Wright confirmed that city officials have been coordinating with Shake Shack applicants since early June, and that the approved plans include shifting an interior wall adjacent to Verizon to carve out expanded floor space for the new restaurant. Verizon is expected to remain in its existing spot next door, per the same account.
According to Creative Loafing Tampa, the address is listed as 1165 Park Blvd. in Seminole, and no opening date has been announced yet. Shake Shack has offered no timeline beyond the permit filing, and construction progress will likely hinge on contractor scheduling and municipal inspections going forward.
A Former Pizza Spot Makes Way for Burgers
Shake Shack is taking over space previously occupied by Pieology Pizzeria, which closed its Seminole City Center location in June 2025 after eight years in operation, according to St. Pete Rising. Pieology had operated in the shopping plaza since 2017 before shutting its doors.
The closure came against a rocky backdrop for the pizza chain nationally. Pieology's California-based parent company, The Little Brown Box Pizza LLC, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2025, reporting between $1 million and $10 million in liabilities after its footprint shrank from roughly 200 locations in 2020 down to about 40, as detailed by Business Insider. The chain had previously expanded with backing from NBA star Kevin Durant before the wave of closures set in.
Inside a Reshaped Shopping Center
Seminole City Center itself is a 37-acre, 424,000-square-foot open-air retail complex built through a major redevelopment of the former enclosed Seminole Mall starting in 2016, led by North American Development Group and Primerica Group One. The center sits at the busy intersection of Park Boulevard and 113th Street North, and it has seen steady tenant turnover in recent years.
Beach Pizza recently opened on 113th Street North, and Pepe's Cantina took over the former Maple Street Biscuit Company space, per the Tampa Bay Beacons report. Chicken restaurant Sugar Wing, meanwhile, departed the center after opening its first Florida location there in April 2024.
Shake Shack's Slow Build Across Tampa Bay
Shake Shack entered the Tampa Bay region in June 2021 with a location at Midtown Tampa, later adding a spot at International Plaza and expanding into Pasco County in 2024 with a drive-thru restaurant in Wesley Chapel, as reported by the Tampa Bay Times. Per Creative Loafing Tampa, the chain already operates nearly three dozen locations across Florida and close to 500 across the United States, with the Seminole build representing its fourth Tampa Bay-area location once complete and its very first in Pinellas County.
The company has continued expanding steadily nationwide. As of its June corporate update, Shake Shack operated more than 690 total locations worldwide, including over 445 domestic restaurants and more than 245 international locations, according to St. Pete Rising, with the company working toward a long-term goal of 1,500 stores. That growth has come alongside strong recent financials: Shake Shack Inc. reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $417.62 million, topping Wall Street expectations despite industry-wide cost pressure from elevated beef and labor expenses, as Hoodline previously reported.
From a Hot Dog Cart to a National Chain
Shake Shack's roots trace back to 2001, when it began as a single hot dog cart in New York City's Madison Square Park, created to help fund a public art project, per St. Pete Rising. That early success eventually grew into a full-service menu built around Angus beef burgers, crinkle-cut fries, and hand-spun milkshakes made with creamy frozen custard, with cheese available as an add-on for the fries.
For now, Seminole residents will have to wait for a firm opening date, but the permit and confirmed floorplan changes signal the buildout is moving forward. When it opens, the Park Boulevard location will give Pinellas County its own taste of the chain that started as a park fundraiser and grew into a nearly 700-location global brand.
