Tampa coffee shop owner reopens quickly after Milton

Mike Pool woke up Thursday morning — unlike the vast number of Tampa residents — with power at his home and it turns out at his business as well.

Pool owns the AstroBrew coffee shop on MacDill Boulevard in Cypress, about a mile off Kennedy Boulevard. When he saw the shop had electricity, there was no question in his mind but to open.

And by midday Thursday, while much of the city remained empty and shops closed, Astro, at 1001 N MacDill Ave., was crowded with customers. Some regulars and a lot of first timers.

Pool says that when he decided to open he posted messages on social media and Google Maps.

He went to step further and began walking the neighborhood to let residents cleaning up debris know they could come in to the air conditioning for a little while and take a break.

“We figured if we have power at our house and power at our store, we may as well open up and have a place for people to rest,” he says.

The results have been good, with a steady stream of customers from as far away as Clearwater and plenty of locals coming to take a break.

The plan is to stay open regular hours as long as supplies last.

Pool says they have a limited amount of inventory but sees no problems hanging on until others start to reopen.

“We just got lucky,” he says. “There are coffee shops all over Tampa that aren’t open.”