Restaurant news, reviews and things to do this week in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte

We survived the holidays and Dry January, and now it's finally February, our favorite month of the year.

The weather in our corner of sunny Florida is perfect most days with many of Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties' biggest annual events happening this month

In our weekly Top 5 Things to Do column, you'll find great outdoor events taking place Friday, Saturday and Sunday including a couple of free block parties.

But what about restaurant news and reviews? Yeah, we had some big ones during the past week.

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Last Friday, we broke the news that Anna Maria Island fine-dining landmark Beach Bistro was sold to a group that includes high-profile local developer Shawn Kaleta.

That same day, we reported that Mademoiselle Paris, a French restaurant with two locations in Sarasota and Manatee counties, will take over the 9906 Gulf Drive location in the city of Anna Maria, which was formerly home to My AMI.

In more recent days, we reported that Leaf & Lentil, a vegan restaurant on Sarasota's North Trail with a menu featuring plant-based versions of comfort food staples, has closed.

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We also published an article about Taste of Asia, a popular Sarasota restaurant that updated its image and reopened recently, rebranding as Stiks (Asian food chop chop!), which the owner describes as "a quick-serve, fast-casual place with counter service that is based on convenience."

But our most popular story published this week has been all about pizza: 22 favorite places to grab a slice from downtown Sarasota up the Tamiami Trail to Bradenton, with a couple of worthwhile detours.

In addition, we have columns on the best upcoming local concerts and arts events as well as one about which movies you should be seeing in area cinemas or streaming at home.

Also, don't forget that Valentine's Day is approaching with dinner reservations rapidly disappearing. To help, here's our freshly updated and expanded list of the 25 most romantic restaurants in Sarasota-Manatee for outdoor dining.

Have a great weekend! And please consider sharing this link with folks who might also be interested in enjoying our weekly newsletter that's sent 9 a.m. Fridays and spotlights the top new dining and entertainment stories from TicketSarasota.com, which is part of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and USA TODAY Network.

Wade Tatangelo is the Herald-Tribune’s dining and entertainment editor, author of the Best Things to Eat and Top Things to Do columns, and co-leader of USA Today Network's Uniquely Florida team creating statewide content. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. He may also be reached by email at [email protected]. Support local journalism by subscribing.??????

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Restaurant news, reviews, things to do this week in Sarasota-Bradenton