Tag: Tampa

Florida has a rich history that many visitors do not realize. Back at the turn of the 20^th century, Ybor City was thriving with Cuban cigar factories. With all those factories, there was a need for restaurants to feed all those workers. The Columbia Restaurant was one of those places. It is officially known as the oldest restaurant in Florida, founded in 1905.

They have a few locations around Florida now, but I was thrilled to be getting to go to the original location in Ybor City.

The restaurant takes up an entire block (if not more). They also have a shop where you can buy everything from sauces to Spanish painted plates. You can take a little piece of Columbia home.

The restaurant inside was beautiful. It was extremely crowded but luckily I did not have to wait too long for a table.

 

While I was waiting I walked around and noticed they were decorating one of the main dining rooms for what looked like a wedding.

  

A meal at Columbia had to start off with a pitcher of homemade sangria that they make right at the table.

I took a few videos of them making the sangria, I posted those videos on my Twitter page (@GatorGirl_swamp).

  

 

Their sangrias are delicious. Theirs was the first sangria I ever tried years ago and it made me fall in love with them. I ordered the Sangria de Cava. It is their sparkling sangria.

They use Jaume Serra Cristalino Spanish Cava, brandy, and orange liquor. Plus they squeeze fresh juices in and top it with maraschino cherries.

This sangria is slightly sweet and extremely refreshing.

To accompany my sangria I ordered the Queso Fundido. It was Tetilla cheese from Galicia, Spain. It is baked in Rioja tomato sauce. In the cheese and sauce mixture were olives and capers. I was not expecting those. They were a nice salty surprise. To eat this dip they included toasted Cuban bread.

This is not your typical queso. The flavor was amazing. It was salty and creamy. It reminded me of an Italian type sauce that you could eat with pasta. The salty taste helped balance the sweetness of the sangria.

There is another item that is a must order when visiting Columbia. It is their 1905 salad. The legendary, award winning salad is made tableside just like the sangria. You can check out my videos of the salad being made on Twitter (@GatorGirl_swamp).

 

This salad has chopped up iceberg lettuce mixed with thinly sliced ham, turkey, and Swiss cheese, olives, tomatoes, and tons of Romano cheese. Then it is tossed with their famous dressing that includes Worcestershire sauce and fresh lemon juice.

  

This salad definitely needs to be shared. However, even sharing it, I still got a giant plateful. It is a filling salad. The dressing adds a sour taste but that is mellowed because of all the cheese. I love the fact that every element in this salad is chopped up. It makes it so much easier to eat.

Once you have tried this salad you will find yourself starting to crave it. I tried my best but the salad kicked my butt. I was not able to finish it. I felt so disappointed in myself.

  

There is one more part to a meal at Columbia that is a must try, their fresh Cuban bread. They make this fresh and it come to the table warm and wrapped up. Each person gets one. It has a crispy crust and a soft, sweet inside. Put butter in the bread as soon as it comes to the table. This way it has a chance to melt. Then take a bite – it’s heavenly.

Now if you tend to avoid carbs, let me just suggest that you use this visit to Columbia as your cheat day because you MUST try this bread.

I am hoping I made you hungry reading about Columbia Restaurant. They are a must visit when you are in the Tampa area. Check out their website to find all of their different locations http://www.columbiarestaurant.com/

And if you cannot make it to one of those locations, they do have a restaurant at the Tampa airport so you can get some food to go.

Enjoy!

T

Located in the building next door to Datz is a wonderful sweets shop called Dough. They are both owned by the same company.

     

When I walked into this brightly colored and playful shop, I was greeted by the sweet smell of sugar.

Their cases are loaded with homemade treats from donuts, cupcakes, and cookies. They have a machine on the counter where they will make 12 fresh mini donuts right in front of you.

   

If you are not in the mood for donuts, then you can try one of their many homemade ice creams flavors. They are perfect for a hot Florida afternoon.

Since I had just finished a big breakfast I was not hungry for a donut just yet, so I grabbed one to go. Which donut to try was a hard choice but I went for their vanilla cake donut topped with chocolate frosting.

When I ate it later in the afternoon it was heavenly. The cake dough was sweet and moist. The chocolate icing was smooth and creamy. When the cake and the icing combined together it was a dream come true. This was the perfect donut. They put the perfect amount of icing on top so that each bite had both icing and cake.

If you have a sweet tooth then a stop at Dough would be a must. Check them out at: http://bestdoughnuts.com/

Enjoy!

T

 

 

 

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Having breakfast at Datz proves that statement to be absolutely true. Based on the crowd of customers that I saw, they all felt the same way.

  

While looking over the menu of creative breakfast dishes, I ordered a Prickly Pear Mimosa. This was a unique take on a mimosa. They used mandarin-tangerine puree, prickly pear, and champagne. On top it is garnished with candied prickly pear. I enjoyed the sweetness of this mimosa. But be warned the candied prickly pear is extremely sweet.

For breakfast I ordered the Biscuits and Crazy. It is their take on the southern classic. They make a homemade cheddar biscuit and cover it with a creamy sausage gravy. It also comes with a side of bacon, eggs, and tri-colored potatoes.

The biscuit was very crunchy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. I could taste all the cheddar that was mixed throughout. The gravy was creamy and had some heat. It was from the sausage as well as the red pepper that was chopped up in the gravy. It paired perfectly with the cheesy biscuit.

I got my eggs scrambled and they were pretty standard; however, I elevated the taste when I broke up some of the bacon and mixed it in with my eggs. The bacon was on the sweet side compared to a typical salty bacon. They were also thick meaty slices which was great.

I wanted to make sure I gave a call out to makers of a few ingredients to this delicious breakfast.

• The sausage that is used in the gravy comes from a company is Kuttawa, Kentucky called Broadbent. Upon researching them I uncovered that they have been in business for almost 50 years. You can order your own sausage to be delivered at home through their website: http://www.broadbenthams.com/
• The bacon is from a company called Nueskes in Wittenberg, Wisconsin. After researching them, I found that they have been smoking bacon for 3 generations. You can order bacon for yourself at: www.nueskes.com

The potatoes were unique. They were a combination of Yukon potatoes, purple potatoes, and sweet potatoes. The entire side ended up being sweet because of the sweet potatoes. It was a nice change from a typical sautéed potato that you get with a breakfast.

Datz is more than just a breakfast place. They have a full menu of burgers, salads, and sandwiches. Plus you need to save room for dessert. They have a large assortment of rainbow macaroon, cupcakes, and huge cakes. You can eat them there or take them to go.

   

I had a fun visit and plan on going back to try one of their cheeseburgers. Take a look at their complete menu at http://www.datztampa.com/

Enjoy!

T

 

I have found myself writing about the Columbia Restaurant in Ybor Coty again. This is one of my favorite restaurants in Tampa and every time I visit I try to have one meal there.

As with all my previous visits I made sure to order a pitcher of sangria. This time I got the Blanco Sangria that was made table side.

  

It was made with CR Generations Sauvignon Blanco (this is wine specially made for Columbia), brandy, and fresh citrus juices. This visit the sangria was put in a beautifully decorated pitcher.

The sangria was sweet but not overly sweet. It just tastes so fresh to me. Maybe because I get to watch all the ingredients come together. I wanted to share a video I took, so check it out on my twitter account (@GatorGirl_swamp).

Like my other visit I made sure I ordered the famous 1905 salad. The tangy dressing that is on this salad is extremely addicting. When it combines with the cheese, ham, olives, and tomatoes I feel like I am in heaven.

I love the fact they make this table side too, especially when I can tell my waiter to add extra cheese. Check out the video  I took on twitter (@GatorGirl_swamp).

The last time I visited I order the Queso Fundido. I enjoyed the cheese, olives, and tomato sauce so much I ordered it again. I loved that it came with toasted Cuban bread slices. They added crunch to the soft cheese mixture.

Now up to this point I have written about all of the items that I had before. I loved them all so much I wanted to share them again. I did order two other items that I never tried before.

The first dish was the Cakes de Cangrejo. These are large crab cakes that are loaded with fresh blue crabmeat and grilled. The crabmeat was extremely sweet. They drizzled a passion fruit aioli sauce over the crab cakes. This added a little extra sweetness to the crab.

For the first time ever I left room for some desserts. I tried a little homemade flan. Their flan was a milky custard with a dark caramel sauce. It was a delicious cross between custard and cheesecake.

The other dessert I ordered was the white chocolate bread pudding. This was the perfect choice after the saltiness of the 1905 salad. They use their fresh Cuban bread, white chocolate, and it is covered with a rum sauce.

It came with 2 slices so it was perfect for sharing. The bread pudding was super sweet but still slightly creamy. I think it was the rum sauce that kept me going back for more bites. I would recommend that everyone try this dessert.

I love Columbia Restaurant. I have written about them two other times and think I will continue to write about them every time I visit. I encourage everyone to check them out at http://www.columbiarestaurant.com/

Enjoy!

T

When in Tampa, a stop at the Taco Bus (which is actually a converted school bus) for authentic Mexican food is a must.  What started out as just a food truck has grown into 5 different locations around the Tampa area.

Their menu is quiet large and includes gluten -free and vegan options. You can choose from classics like tacos, burritos, and quesadillas or  try a torta (which is beans, filling, veggies, and cheese on fresh bread) or a tostada (a crunchy flat tortilla loaded with beans, filling, veggies, and cheese).

When you know what you want, just walk up to the window and order.

I wanted to try something different, instead of just getting tacos. I went for the tostada. It was almost like a taco salad, just on the flat tortillas instead of a shell bowl. The fresh fried tortillas were very light and would be wonderful on their own with just a little cinnamon and sugar. I also made sure I got a side of their refried beans and Mexican rice.

While many customers get their food to go, there are plenty of seats for you to sit and enjoy your food while it is still nice and hot. I wanted to make sure I had the full Taco Bus experience so I stayed to eat.

If you want great Mexican food that is prepared fast and well then you need to stop by the Taco Bus.  taco-bus.com

Enjoy!

T