Soured

A day after publication, this delicious scoop is still #1 most e-mailed on Tampabay.com:

Celebrity chef Robert Irvine blew into town two years ago with the panache of royalty, the ego of a TV star and a plan to turn St. Petersburg into "the next Monaco."

He was about to launch a show on the Food Network, Dinner: Impossible, and was writing a cookbook. Soon the muscle-bound Brit was downing oysters, clinking glasses and telling incredible tales.

He was a knight. He owned a castle in Scotland. He had cooked for presidents and royalty and was pals with Prince Charles.

Robert Irvine's magnum opus – side-by-side restaurants called Ooze and Schmooze – was supposed to redefine upscale dining.

The restaurants would open with 7,000 square feet at the base of a sparkling condominium tower at 400 Beach Drive, a crepe toss from sailboats lolling on Vinoy Basin. He promised chef's tasting menus, polished personal service and 100 wines.

Everyone bought it.