ST. PETERSBURG – Oysters Rockefeller, lobster tail snails, Crab Louie and chicken Marsala: there is an unmistakable hint of old-fashioned American luxury in the air at Juno & The Peacock.

Last week, Beach Drive NE’s hottest newcomer finally opened its doors after more than a year of speculation about what would replace longtime restaurant 400 Beach Seafood & Tap House.

The highly anticipated new restaurant is the latest concept from owners Shawn and Jeanna Damkoehler, who also own upscale eatery Allelo just a few blocks away. Named after Aesop’s cautionary tale, Juno & The Peacock marks the couple’s second foray into the restaurant business: In December 2020, they purchased Annata and Alto Mare, which eventually closed and became Allelo.

In May 2021, they acquired the property at 400 Beach Seafood & Tap House, which they bought from longtime owner Steve Westphal. Recognizing that the business needed a refresh, they closed the restaurant in June 2023 for extensive renovations and a complete overhaul of the concept.

On Tuesday evening, the Tampa Bay Times visited the restaurant as part of a media event designed to give a preview of the space. Although the restaurant was still in soft opening, word had already spread: The restaurant was full.

As with Allelo, the Damkoehlers tapped creative studio Brand Bureau and New York-based design firm AvroKO to outfit Juno & The Peacock. The space exudes sophisticated elegance, with European-style patio seating outside and inlaid terrazzo flooring inside, a sleek bar with red booths and terrazzo tabletops, brass accents throughout, and multiple dining areas, including a room with views of Beach Drive and the water.

In the restaurant’s adjacent cocktail bar, Pluma, dark blue-green walls combine with vibrant cove lighting, antique glass panels and plush upholstery to create a more understated and elegant tone, but still exude plenty of modern luxury.

While Allelo draws inspiration from a more worldly palate loosely focused on regions in the Mediterranean, Juno & The Peacock is reminiscent of upscale American cuisine. Led by executive chef Drew Dimitrovski, the menu offers a wide variety of American classics, including plenty of sandwiches, salads and flatbreads for lunch and seafood classics and dry-aged steaks for dinner.

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The wide range of offerings (from Cuban sandwiches and Margherita flatbreads to grilled bavette steak, lobster bisque and Wagyu carpaccio) reads like a conscious attempt to please downtown St. Petersburg’s ever-changing clientele without alienating longtime residents and fans of the previous restaurant. Taking a cue from 400 Beach, the team is reviving long-standing classics from that restaurant with modern twists, including a lobster roll with brown butter aioli and a crab-crusted grouper with béarnaise sauce.

We started with a delicious Maryland-style crab cake made with blue and king crabs and topped with a light Dijonaise foam. We also ordered ahi tuna tartare, a wonderful appetizer with luscious chunks of tuna on rice with avocado cream and crisp radish and carrot slaw. Our server recommended Monica’s cornbread, a great recommendation that consisted of three thick, golden brown slices of sweet cornbread served with a hot honey butter that we couldn’t get enough of.

Next we moved on to the main courses: a crab-crusted grouper served with thick spears of roasted asparagus and béarnaise sauce, and a 35-day dry-aged ribeye steak with a piece of crispy potato gratin, roasted peppers and green beans, served tableside with a peppery sauce au poivre.

For dessert, there was a small selection of classics, including a dreamy slice of Key Lime Pie and a creative take on Tres Leches Cake, served with a Bananas Foster-inspired burnt banana.

Michelle Richards, wine director at Allelo, is also in charge of the wine program. While the team’s flagship restaurant is more focused on Old World wines, the menu at Juno & The Peacock is almost entirely dedicated to New World wines, with a selection of over 1,400. Over the course of the evening, we tasted several excellent wines, including a sparkling wine from Brazil that went down way too easily and a juicy Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast.

We capped off the evening with cocktails at Pluma, where beverage director Ingi Sigurdsson has launched an impressive program celebrating Latin American traditions, with a focus on drinks from Mexico, Brazil and Peru. A quick look at the menu revealed a creative selection of about 21 cocktails, including Holy Leaf (Mexico), made with gin, hoja santa, cilantro, jicama and lime; Coco Cabana (Brazil), made with tequila, espresso, coconut and amaro; and Kuzco’s Poison (Peru), a blend of pisco, passion fruit, coffee, lemon and egg white.

We opted for the creamy, almost dessert-like “Flip the Script” made with bourbon, carob, toasted quinoa, cinnamon and egg white, and the aptly named “Rhythm is a Dancer,” a tangy and fruity drink that combines gin and passion fruit with guanabana and lime.

Pluma also offers a nice little selection of snacks, including east coast oysters, a hamachi tiradito, and seared scallops. Since we were too full from our dinner to eat any more, we left the snacks alone—they’ll have to wait until next time. It’s pretty safe to say we’ll be back very soon.

If you go to Juno & The Peacock

The restaurant is currently operating in soft opening mode until it celebrates its grand opening on August 23. The restaurant will then be open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for lunch, Monday through Friday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. for dinner, and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for brunch and 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. for dinner. Reservations can be made on the restaurant’s website at junoandthepeacock.com. 400 Beach Drive NE, St. Petersburg. 727-258-4222.