State Street Eating + Cocktails Owners Bring New Dining Experience to Downtown Sarasota

May 31, 2023 – Sarasota

BESO, a uniquely modern yet authentic tapas restaurant with a full bar serving craft Amaro cocktails, opens June 10^th on Lemon Avenue in The Mark. From the people who brought you State Street Eating House + Cocktails, BESO is a new social eating experience to downtown Sarasota’s restaurant scene. 

BESO’s menu blends traditional tapas with innovative flavors of Mediterranean cuisine. Head Chef Amy L. Knox trained at the acclaimed Culinary Institute of America and resided in Belize for a little over twenty years, where she owned and ran a restaurant that served small plates of Caribbean food infused with spicy flavors from Cuba, Argentina, and Mexico. Originally from Sarasota, she brings her immense experience and talent for creating original dishes with inspired flavors to the restaurant.  

Traditionally in Spain, where tapas originated, patrons of multigenerational eateries share in small plates of various foods paired with wine or beer, often followed by a cocktail, while they enjoy the company of friends and family. Embracing not only the varying tastes of different tapas dishes but tapas culture, BESO recreates these traditions within its walls.  

“Tapas isn’t only about taste,” says Chris Voelker, BESO’s owner, “It’s communal; it’s passing dishes around the table and indulging in conversation with friends. It’s the social aspect along with the food that make up the overall experience.”  

The two-story interior with a charming mezzanine that overlooks the bar and seating area below, though expansive, has an intimate feel made up of cozy sections containing warm accent lighting separated by lush greenery. The fresh, inviting layout and decor was drafted by a designer from Tulum, Mexico, the place where Voelker found the inspiration for the restaurant’s aesthetic. The bar, lined with intricate tile work and a poured concrete top, is where mixologists craft unique Amaro cocktails along with State Street’s famed repertoire of innovative cocktails.

“Together with our partner, Jason Waganheim, we visited boutique Amaro bars in Brooklyn and Manhattan,” says Voelker, “and we found ourselves intrigued and delighted with the use of the Italian after-dinner liqueur as a replacement for other spirits in cocktails.” Voelker’s search to perfect BESO’s style didn’t stop there. The owners traveled abroad in Spain where they went tapas hunting to discover the most delicious small plates in the world and experience them in their original form. 

A perfect culmination of atmosphere, culture, and authentic cuisine, no detail, however small, is overlooked at BESO. Guests can have a genuine tapas experience as they gather with friends for engaging conversation, pass around delectable small plates, and sip on carefully curated beverages to complement their meals.