Nueva Cantina’s Halloween costume contests offer $1,400 in prizes across four locations

Nueva Cantina is holding four Halloween costume contests on Saturday, October 31, one at each of its Tampa Bay locations, with a separate set of winners in every room. First place takes home $200 cash at each cantina, and second and third receive $100 and $50 gift cards. Across St. Petersburg, Downtown Tampa, Brandon and Palm Harbor, that puts $1,400 in cash and gift cards on the line for one night.

How the contest works

Judging is at 10 p.m. and the contest runs until 11. Entrants check in with the host by 9:40 p.m., and entry is open to any age and to individuals only. Contestants must be seated dine-in guests with an open check and be present for judging; the room decides the winners by crowd reaction. A tie goes to a cheer-off, and if it is still tied the general manager's call is final.

Each location runs and judges its own contest and pays its own winners, so the prizes stay in the room where they are won. Ben Stanczik, Nueva Cantina's chief marketing officer, confirmed the per-location structure to Certified Florida by text, along with the later close in St. Petersburg: that cantina stays open until 11 p.m. on the 31st, past its usual Saturday closing time, so its contest can finish.

The Hocus Pocus season behind it

The contest closes out the Hocus Pocus bar Nueva Cantina has run at all four cantinas since September. The takeover runs through November 1 with witchy decor, themed margaritas and seasonal Mexican dishes, and nearly every name on the menu comes from the 1993 Disney film: the three Sanderson sisters, Billy the zombie, and "Come, we fly," the line the sisters say as they take off on their brooms.

On the bar side, the Come, We Fly margarita flight gathers four seasonal margaritas named I Put a Spell on You, Life Potion, Winnie's Cauldron and Sanderson's Serum. The Life Potion is also poured on its own, served in a blood-bag-style pouch. The Sisters Behold soft serve margarita is tequila-infused soft serve in candy grape, sour apple or a swirl of the two.

From the kitchen, Billy's Birria Pizza layers birria barbacoa, melted cheese, cilantro and onions and comes with consome, and Dead Man's Churros arrive in a cauldron with a skeleton, topped with strawberry puree. Nueva Cantina describes the season as an all-ages experience; there is a themed mocktail and a Peek-A-Boo kids' meal, and the regular menu stays available alongside the specials. The contest itself is open to all ages, and the alcoholic drinks are separate from it.

Where to enter

The four participating cantinas are St. Petersburg at 1625 4th St. S.; Downtown Tampa at 903 N. Franklin St.; Brandon at 10033 E. Adamo Drive; and Palm Harbor at 35903 U.S. Highway 19 N. Nueva Cantina identifies the Adamo Drive restaurant as its Brandon location.

For anyone planning to compete, the time that matters first is 9:40 p.m., when host check-in closes. Judging follows at 10, with $200 cash waiting for the first-place costume in each room.