Stopped by this outside mall as the alternative stop instead of crowded Bonnet Springs Night Event…read more Initially this reminded me of Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel. I think it's a little bit smaller but similar layout and stores. What I didn't like the most is how dark it was. I don't think that's so safe. It was early enough to where there was at least two more hours of shopping before stores closed yet really dark. It's been about 10 years since I've been here, and it seems to look about the same as that time. They did have a Christmas tree in the center. That at least brightened the place up a bit. The stores off hand that I recall where Bath and Body, Kirkland's, a boutique with country ware, a Thai restaurant, a Vietnamese restaurant, BD's Mongolian BBQ which I was surprised to see, & a Grillsmith. They also had a movie theater and a book store. Those were some of the stores off hand. There were also a handful of empty spaces. The parking was free along the inside of the mall street parking where we parked. The Best Part Was Seeing the Bloom Mural!

Nice outside shopping area right in Lakeland…read more Our whole Fam has a great time here and they have many food options. We did notice on our last trip that there were a decent amount of store fronts now closed, hopefully other will come in soon and this isn't going to be another half full shopping center. We would really miss going here. They have a movie theatre, plenty of food choices from semi affordable to less affordable and a decent amount of stores to peruse through. Most of the stores are your basic chains, but at least you can have a nice walk outside with nice scenery while you walk. They had a huge Christmas tree, great for a photo op. The only thing this place is lacking is for a more trendy or niche/boutique stores that would sell non dept. Store/Mall items. You know something different!!! If you want to have a nice walk about while you shop/eat then check this place out, it's good for a day out with Fam for sure!!!

Southgate Shopping Center is a little "strip mall" located in South Lakeland. It stands out from…read moremost, because of it's lovely vintage arch still standing from when the little mall was first built in 1957. Interestingly enough, to many locals, it's biggest claim to fame is a cameo in the locally filmed 1990 movie "Edward Scissorhands" (you can see the arch leg from the beauty salon scene). Right now it holds a nice variety of stores: Publix, Office Depot, Hallmark, Babe's Shoes & Apparel, Beall's Outlet (just opened last month), Tuesday Morning, and Crowder Brothers Ace Hardware. There are a few empty stores, but it's not noticeable. There is also a stand alone Five Guys Burgers and a Starbucks in the front of the parking lot. The parking lot is quite large and maintained nicely.

Palm Center is most easily passed by and ignored. There are tons of strip mall/ centers in Lakeland…read morelike mostly any city, so this one doesn't particularly stick out upon first glance. But recently I've found myself visiting Palm Center a lot more often. It's actually got quite a lot going for it. At this strip you can get in a workout (Plant Fitness), eat some sushi or sandwiches (New Moon Sushi & Subway), get car essentials (NAPA), office & house essentials (Staples & Big Lots), get your haircut (Lakeland Barber), go to church (Access Church), or get your alcohol restock (ABC Liquors). You can also get a nice pre or post workout, church or shopping juice or smoothie from Juice Box, go shopping at the Christian Bookstore, get your taxes taken care of at H&R Block, or hit up the consignment store. Oh, and there's a Cici's Pizza if you don't want sushi or a sub. I still haven't named all of the businesses in this complex, but you can see my point right? The only unfortunate thing is that despite the range of Palm Center, it's really not well maintained. A lot of it seems to be nearly falling apart and dirty especially on the outside. Thus, why the strip is also so easily passed by. It's not nice on the outside, so many know that equates to being looked over a lot. But don't! Because Palm Center has much to offer!

Highland City Town Center has so much to offer! It's much bigger than you'd realize just driving by…read moreit on 98, and you kind of have to literally drive through it to see all that is there. There's one main bigger building where the Publix is, a Dairy Queen and some other restaurants as well as a physical therapy place and other things. Then there are probably about 5-6 other sub buildings with even more stuff. Something I really like about this plaza is the food offerings. Hibachi Express is a great hibachi/ sushi place with reasonable prices, Savory Thai has splendid thai food, and Gators dockside has an awesome all you can eat wings night. There are more fast food options as well, like Sonic and Subway (I guess it's fast?). There's a bar, a car wash, a bank/ credit union, Advance Auto Parts and Mavis, a post office, a dentist and more. It really has so much!

The Crystal Lake Plaza is a medium-sized strip mall that is jammed with-packed with a wide variety…read moreof businesses. And when I say wide variety, I'm talking completely across the spectrum. I stop here every so often to visit Shine Bright Nutrition, a cure nutrition place tucked into the corner where you can get energy teas and protein shakes. As far as food goes, the Egg Factory is a pretty popular breakfast place, Crazy by Rasel is a drive through convenience shop at the very end of the plaza, and there's even an Indian grocery shop you can stop by. There's a pawn shop on the opposite end from the drive thru, a phone carrier store, an insurance company, a new store that I believe mostly sells legos and/or toys, and a boutique that I'm definitely going to check out at some point. There's even more than this but just to rattle off a few offerings. One downside is the plaza is definitely not taken care of. The individual businesses keep their units clean and nice, but from the outside the plaza as a whole looks dirty and a bit run down. The parking lot can also be a little chaotic and unorganized at times.

Great location directly off the Polk Parkway at the exit for Florida Avenue, there is an easy…read moreentrance from the service road. Interestingly, the service road is bidirectional so you'll be making a left when you depart in order to get back to the highway entrance. The shopping mall has an outer C shape and then an inner one. The mall contains a Ross, Ulta Beauty, Marshalls, Stein Mart, Party City, Hobby Lobby and Dollar Tree. We were here for dinner at Il Forno, who have a dedicated area roped off for curbside ordering and pickup. There is also Texas Roadhouse, Keke's Breakfast Cafe and some fast food. The shopping center appears to be well lit and while there are some taller trees, they do not excessively block visibility of the parking areas. The speed bumps tend to keep the traffic going slower. Of course, always be aware of your surroundings and look for people approaching you. [Review 13351 overall, 669 of 2020.]

I remember when this plaza literally only had Fancy Q and the medical center- it was a random strip…read morethat I only went to for sushi, otherwise it seemed so abandoned. But now all the building space is taken up- there's a Honeybaked Ham, J.Burns pizza and another business there. It's a clean complex with plenty of parking. The worst part is getting in and out of the plaza. If you haven't been there before it could definitely be confusing to find it. The entrance is very steep so pulling out onto the busy South Florida Avenue can be a pain. But trust me, the sushi at Fancy Q is worth all of that!