Sweden House, a Swedish-style smorgasbord restaurant seating 600 people, opened in 1965 and featured “all you care to eat” meals, a new concept. It was a duplicate of the same brand that opened in St Petersburg. Located at 2720 N Dale Mabry Hwy, it was just north of the Hawaiian Village Hotel and Restaurant.  In 1966, lunch was $1.10 and dinner was $2.10. by 1970, meals had increased to $4.75.  Seasonal specialties included all-you-can-eat Alaskan Snow Crab. Diners could also visit their gift shop and the in-house pastry counter, serving cakes, pastries, and pies, and. The interior was decorated with wall-to-wall carpeting, wood paneling, and matching warm wood tables. A half brick wall separated the service counter and dining room, and small chandeliers lit the space.  There was a main dining room and a smaller banquet facility. In the evenings, small concerts with dinner were popular. Reports indicate Maynard Ferguson, a renowned Canadian trumpeter, played there in 1974. The restaurant, then charging $6.95 for all-you-can-eat, closed in 1980.

That year, Country Music U.S.A. opened a country bar here. Oddly enough, club rules dictated no cowboy hats were allowed, causing a furor among country music fans. Management reasoned that cowboy hats promoted fighting. The club only lasted a few months.  In December 1980, the End Zone restaurant and Rock Club partied here also for a very short stay and featured big-name concerts like U2 and the Edgar Winter group. In July 1981, Jameson’s Restaurant opened. In 1983, Thrills Nightclub, reportedly featuring a buffet, lip sync, and bathing suit competitions, opened at the former Sweden House. The city threatened to revoke its liquor license in after inspectors cited it for not following the requirement that food make up 51 percent of its gross sales (no more than 49 percent alcohol.) Their defense was that they counted the mixers in their cocktails as food to meet the regulations. By the mid-1980s, business began to slow, and management shifted to hosting Latin nights in 1986. The idea was so popular that Thrills changed its dance club to full-time Latin-themed.  The club was renovated in 1987, and Sebastian’s Night Club was born. In 1988, Circuit City Audio and Video bought the nine acres, including Sabastian’s, to construct its 30,00 sq. ft. superstore at the rear of the property, and Jerry Ulm Dodge built on the Dale Mabry frontage. Jerry Ulm Jeep now sits approximately where the Sweden House was.

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