Wiseguy Pizza operator plans a food hall in former Hofbräuhaus building

Washington, D.C.-based Wiseguy Pizza operator Nuri Erol has always envisioned building a food hall with unique concepts - -a goal he is now pursuing as he plans on breathing new life into the former Hofbräuhaus German restaurant.

Erol, who operates four Wiseguy Pizza locations in D.C., purchased the 17,297-square-foot restaurant space on 4th Street in downtown St. Petersburg this week in a $7.1 million deal.

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Light up St. Pete: A peek inside Enchant Christmas

The thermostat inside Tropicana Field is set year-round at 72 degrees, but it feels more than a tad cooler in the Enchant Christmas light maze. Sure, the “wintry” temperature might be a byproduct of the 525-foot ice skating track, or the fact that natural sunlight isn’t allowed to penetrate the dome’s normally translucent ceiling.

Or maybe it’s the cumulative effect of all the Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole and Andy Williams Christmas songs being piped in. It’s a cheery place. There’s no open fire at Enchant Christmas – but if there was, you can be there’d be chestnuts roasting on it.