Hooters started with one Clearwater restaurant
The first Hooters opened in Clearwater in 1983, giving Pinellas County a recognizable restaurant-chain origin story.
Hooters is not everyone’s taste. The origin story is still a Clearwater business story.
In 1983, six businessmen in Clearwater opened the first restaurant after, by their own telling, having no restaurant experience. The idea mixed wings, beer, sports TV, beach-bar jokes, and a brand voice that felt very 1980s.
That first location at 2800 Gulf to Bay Boulevard gives Clearwater a place in a national restaurant-chain story. You do not have to love the concept to see the Florida pattern. A casual local experiment can grow far past its first address.
It also fits a very Florida kind of roadside history. A big sign, a busy road, beach-area traffic, sports on TV, and a loose joke all met in one place. Then the brand traveled.
If you visit, check the current hours for the original location and keep the story simple. This is restaurant history, not a whole lesson in Florida culture. It is one odd, recognizable piece of Clearwater’s business map.
Where to see it
The original Hooters area at 2800 Gulf to Bay Boulevard in Clearwater. Check current hours and location details before visiting.
Place paths
Direct subjects and contextual connections are labeled separately so an example does not read like a local rule.
Directly covered
Official sources
Last checked against these sources: July 1, 2026.
Related Florida notes
Picked from direct subjects, contextual paths, topics, and tags, with direct relationships weighted more heavily.
Rules and licenses
Clearwater Beach works best with a parking plan
Clearwater Beach is easy to love and easy to underestimate, so parking, local rules, crowds, and timing deserve a quick check before the trip.
Read this note ->Outdoors
The Pinellas Trail makes the county feel connected
The Pinellas Trail gives a dense county a clear bike-and-walk spine through towns, crossings, parks, errands, and coastal-side plans.
Read this note ->History and culture
St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line opened scheduled service
On January 1, 1914, the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line opened what aviation histories recognize as the first scheduled commercial passenger flight.
Read this note ->Home and property
Pinellas evacuation zones start with the address
Pinellas County evacuation planning depends on the exact address, barrier islands, mobile homes, flood risk, shelters, and official storm orders.
Read this note ->History and culture
Tarpon Springs Greektown is more than the docks
Tarpon Springs' Greektown and sponge-dock traditions are part of a living cultural district, not just a visitor stop.
Read this note ->History and culture
Dali Museum makes St. Pete feel a little surreal
The Dali Museum gives St. Petersburg a major art story with a collection built around Salvador Dali's work.
Read this note ->