Papa Pineapples, a local restaurant that just opened its first location in downtown Leesburg earlier this year, will look to build off the success of its first location and open its second restaurant in the location formerly housed by Cup O’ The Irish.
After Cup O’ The Irish went up for sale earlier this month, owner Scott Snyder, who worked as a teacher for Marion County Public Schools last year, opened the Leesburg location on September 6 and was already in the hunt for a second location. Snyder says he is looking forward to “connecting with the local community” in Ocala as well.
“It was a location we could not pass up,” said Snyder, who credits the success he experienced at his downtown Leesburg location to the community. Between the food truck and brick and mortar restaurant, Snyder estimates that his business has served over 10,000 customers in the past two months.
“We are hoping to have the same impact on local schools in Ocala that we have in Leesburg,” said Snyder of his efforts to employ students and give back to school-based organizations. The new location, 3233 SE Maricamp Road, is close to a collection of schools, including Forest High School and Ocala Christian Academy.
Papa Pineapples’ menu in Leesburg varies, but includes a variety of freshly prepared tacos and burritos, which were recently incorporated. The restaurant hopes to serve some of their favorites with a collection of new offerings tailored to the Ocala community. Snyder indicated that the business will also continue to serve beer and wine at the location.
Papa Pineapples joins the ever-growing list of restaurants this year that have opened, closed, or been put up for sale.
In October, a couple of downtown newcomers in Bank Street Patio Bar and The Black Sheep on Broadway opened their doors.
In early August, Open Haus closed the doors amid health code violations after being in business less than a year. Locos Grill and Pub recently announced plans to renovate and reopen that location. That same month, the owner of Charlie Horse Restaurant & Lounge announced that he was selling the business and attributed the sale to news breaking that one of his employees tested positive for Hepatitis A. And at the end of that month, La Famiglia Pizzeria closed its doors amid health issues from the owner.
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