Baba, which the operator's Instagram describes as one of St. Pete's most beloved Mediterranean restaurants, is closing after seven years. In its place, Chef Andrew Duncan and sommelier Danielle McCoy — the team that built Baba — are launching two Iberian-focused concepts under the same roof. The announcement, made via Instagram, frames the move as a complete reinvention rather than an evolution of the existing operation.
The pivot is a meaningful departure. Baba's identity has been Mediterranean — a category that broadly encompasses Greek, Levantine, and North African flavors — and the new direction shifts west to the Iberian Peninsula, centered on Spain and Portugal. That is a distinct culinary repositioning, not a menu refresh.
Kaixo
Kaixo will serve as the primary dining room and bar, with a concept built around Spanish and Portuguese flavors. The name comes from Basque — the greeting used across the Basque Country straddling the Spain-France border — which hints at a possible northern Spanish lean to at least part of the program. Whether the menu ranges across the full Iberian breadth or anchors to a specific regional tradition was not detailed in the announcement.
McCoy's role as sommelier positions the beverage program as a central pillar of Kaixo. Iberian wine — Rioja, Priorat, Douro, Galicia's Albariños — offers an expansive canvas, and a sommelier-led operation tends to build the cellar around the kitchen rather than as an afterthought. No specifics on either the menu or the wine program have been shared.
Barra Barra
The second concept, Barra Barra, takes a more casual format and will occupy the former Barbouni space within the same building. Barbouni was itself a Mediterranean concept that previously held that footprint. The name — barra translates to bar in Spanish — points toward a counter-oriented format, which would differentiate it from the dining-room posture of Kaixo.
