The 15 Restaurants that Define Tampa Bay (St. Petersburg, Bradenton: shop, bars, beach)

[UKWildcat1981]

What about Verducci's Italian Restaurant in St. Pete Beach best Italian place in Tampa- St. Pete area and Cuban Sandwich place the Floridian both are banging bro.

[Vannort54]

My wife and I finally found a good Italian restraunt it's called Da Sesto Italiano Ristorante e Vino very good. As good as any in the 2 bigest cities in the country. They are located at 7199 66th St. N, Pinellas Park. Not that cheap so it's for the ones that have $75 to spend on a dinner for two.

[Vannort54]

Originally Posted by Spring Hillian

Have you tried Krystal's.? Same concept as White Castle.

Yea not the same but thanks.

[mrviking]

Originally Posted by SeaSpur

There is no better Cuban sandwich than West Tampa Sandwich Shop, so that has to go on any list in a discussion of Tampa food.

FYI, Danny's All-American Diner...isn't really a diner. There is only about 8 square footage of space inside the restaurant and no seating at all...only a few benches outside. Don't get me wrong, burgers and food are good...but don't expect a traditional "diner" in the sense of the word.

Florida BBQ is pretty terrible across the board, but newcomer (as of a few years) Holy Hog is about the best I've had (it's good)...and I've almost tried them all in Tampa Bay area. Sonny's has a good share of the market for BBQ, so that will tell you a lot about the preference in BBQ in Florida.

Bakery would have to be Alessi (West Tampa) or Moreno (Brandon).

As far as deli's go, I tell everyone the best kept secret in the Tampa Bay area is PJ's Sandwich Shop in Parrish, FL on Hwy 301. If they were in Tampa, they'd keep a line out the door.

I'm a sucker for a good sandwich place. I will try PJ's when I am in the area next. when your on the road a lot nothing is better then the thought of a good sandwich along the way. I checked out their web site and it looks worth the stop.. thanks

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by mrviking

I'm a sucker for a good sandwich place. I will try PJ's when I am in the area next. when your on the road a lot nothing is better then the thought of a good sandwich along the way. I checked out their web site and it looks worth the stop.. thanks

No problem, just remember to bring cash (they do have an ATM, too).

I order a ham+turkey+cheese with lettuce, onion, tomato, s&p, mayo, and honey mustard on whole wheat (bread is great there)...and can't get myself to order anything else!

It's just a good ole fashioned deli with quality ingredients and good people making the food.

[theurbanfiles]

Originally Posted by UKWildcat1981

What about Verducci's Italian Restaurant in St. Pete Beach best Italian place in Tampa- St. Pete area and Cuban Sandwich place the Floridian both are banging bro.

I definitely plan to make it to both of those, and all of the other ones mentioned on the board as well. However, at this point many of these stops would be at least a half hour out of my way, and so I'm gonna hit some of these stops when I am specifically over in those directions.

[druthb00]

As someone else said, Ted Peters Smoked Fish House definitely defines TB

PJ's Oyster bay on Indian Rocks beach; they recently moved across the street and while I'm still nostalgic about their old (albeit cramped) location, the new location really is great. They've been around a few decades and might as well have a "cult" following, if you will. They now have an outdoor bar area with live music. Great seafood, VERY reasonable prices. The owners are fantastic people.

Da Sesto's Italian in Pinellas Park is worth every penny, and again, owner is personable and really cares about the food he serves and interacting with his customers. Homemade pasta, huge portions.

Bawarchi Indian Cuisine in Palm Harbor. It's in a cluttered plaza off US 19 and not the eaiest to find. The decor is dated and dingy, but the food is to die for. Super slow service, but the whole atmosphere of the place is....slow, if atmosphere can be described that way lol. If you want to spend an hour and a half enjoying your meal and company, and not be rushed out of the restaurant (I'm talking to you *insert basically any chain restaurant here*!) this place is great.

Spinners, on the top of Grand Plaza hotel on St. Pete Beach. It's a revolving waterfront restaurant, need I say more? If that doesn't define TB, I don't know what does. The food was great the last time I had it, but I have to admit I haven't been there since 2009. Guess I know where we're headed sometime soon.... They don't (or at least didn't) take reservations, but if you call ahead and ask what the best time to arrive is for a perfectly timed sunset, you're pretty much guaranteed an awesome show.

Casa Tinas - this is on my list not because I think it defines TB, but because it's the best Mexican food in Pinellas county. It's fresh and everything (tortillas & salsa included - ya know, the most important things ) is homemade. The waitstaff is constantly on the move and super friendly. The reason I say it doesn't define TB, is because in my opinion, good Mexican food is so incredibly hard to come by in this area - which brings me to my next pick:

Habana Cafe in Gulfport. Cuban food, on the other hand, is obviously prominent in the entire state. I'm not a huge fan of Cuban food - too much heavy meat for me, but this place has great Cuban bread and It's incredibly popular. It's been around for almost 20 years, and oh yeah - it has a cigar factory attached/next door if you're into that.

St. Pete Bagel (locations in both St. Pete & Largo) - one of the few and the proud, "true" bagel companies (boiled & baked) in the area. Their doughnuts are notable, too.

Daybreak Doughnuts - just...OMG. I think Brooksville is the only TB location, unfortunately.

[NYmikef]

For BBQ I agree Sonny's is average. I like Pit Boss BBQ in NPR better and I've had some supprisingly good brisket at the Dunedin Smokehouse.

[theurbanfiles]

Wow great picks! I look forward to trying all of those, I'll have to revisit this thread whenever I'm hungry. Has anyone on this thread been to 4 Rivers? If so, are there any places that surpass it in quality? I've stopped at several mom/pop places in Florida and they have not quite measured up, I would say 4 Rivers even compares favorably so some of the places I've stopped for barbecue in Alabama and the Carolinas.

[spbbound]

Saw a few mentions of deli sandwiches. Olde World Cheese Shop on 56th and almost Fowler near USF is great for that.

Originally Posted by druthb00

Spinners, on the top of Grand Plaza hotel on St. Pete Beach. It's a revolving waterfront restaurant, need I say more? If that doesn't define TB, I don't know what does. The food was great the last time I had it, but I have to admit I haven't been there since 2009. Guess I know where we're headed sometime soon.... They don't (or at least didn't) take reservations, but if you call ahead and ask what the best time to arrive is for a perfectly timed sunset, you're pretty much guaranteed an awesome show.

Spinners is still a great option. One of the few beach-side venues on St Pete Beach with adequate parking via a garage. The service is hit or miss because they seem to have a lot of turnover, but the food is above average for a beachfront venue and at least it's consistent. The Plaza salad, which can be ordered with chicken or steak even though the menu doesn't mention it, is one of my favorite options. The dining area rotates about once per hour so a typical dinner will let you see all of the beach from Don Cesar up to PCI and a reasonable amount of Boca Ciega intercoastal.