{"id":2580,"date":"2021-06-22T08:24:16","date_gmt":"2021-06-22T08:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/venu4445.local\/?p=61"},"modified":"2022-07-10T12:26:44","modified_gmt":"2022-07-10T12:26:44","slug":"eating-in-tampa-bay-the-florida-foodie-destination-whose-time-has-come","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/eating-in-tampa-bay-the-florida-foodie-destination-whose-time-has-come\/","title":{"rendered":"Eating in Tampa Bay &#8211; The Florida Foodie Destination Whose Time Has Come"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"2580\" class=\"elementor elementor-2580\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-60d614d6 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default qodef-elementor-content-no\" data-id=\"60d614d6\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-36687cdd\" data-id=\"36687cdd\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1af19ed6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1af19ed6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.12.2 - 23-04-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>By Fred Bollaci<\/p><p>Until now, Tampa Bay may be best known for sunshine, beaches, sports, and year-round recreation. Few people considered the area a culinary destination, though there were a handful of great restaurants people would plan vacations around. In the past decade, the Greater Tampa Bay Area, which includes Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, and towns in-between has established itself as a foodie destination, combining amazing talent and marvelous new venues. In light of the pandemic where restaurants have struggled to survive, it\u2019s time to visit Tampa Bay and enjoy some great food!<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><h3><strong>Part One in a Two-Part Series: Tampa<\/strong><\/h3><p>No visit to Tampa would be complete without visiting at least some of the following institutions, which have stood the test of time. Bern\u2019s Steakhouse, a landmark since 1956 features 500,000 bottles of wine, prime steaks aged and butchered in house, and the famed Harry Waugh Dessert Room upstairs. The original Columbia Restaurant (1905)\u2014enjoy the \u201c1905 Salad,\u201d Cuban\/Spanish fare and flamenco dancing. Donatello is the <em>grand dame<\/em> of Old World, romantic Italian restaurants\u2014you\u2019ll think you\u2019re in Italy. Malio\u2019s Prime Steakhouse (1969) is a local \u201cpower scene.\u201d Mise en Place restaurateurs Marty Blitz and Mary Ann Ferenc pioneered New American cuisine (1986). Armani\u2019s (upscale Italian with rooftop views), and Caff\u00e9 Paradiso, a South Tampa Italian gem.<\/p><p>For the best newer additions to the Tampa food scene, stay the Epicurean Hotel (affiliated and across the street from Bern\u2019s\u2014it is THE perfect place to sleep off your \u201cfood coma\u201d from the typical 4-hour Bern\u2019s meal!) Explore the wonderful culinary options in the hotel and surrounding areas. Sip cocktails at EDGE, the cool rooftop lounge, and dine at Elevage SoHo Kitchen &amp; Bar nearby Haven, also part of the Bern\u2019s family.<\/p><p>Edison food + drink lab, owned by 5X James Beard nominee, Chef Jeannie Pierola features some of the most inventive and inspiring food and libations in town. Visit Tampa\u2019s new food hall, the Armature Works\u2014in a revitalized warehouse. Choose from an exciting array of international and local food and beverages. Steelbach, which showcases Florida\u2019s top producers and grass fed beef, and Oak &amp; Ola, with timeless appeal and a seasonal Euro-American menu by James Beard award winning chef\/owner Anne Kearney are two notable full-service options.<\/p><p>At Rooster &amp; the Till, James Beard semi-finalist chef Ferrell Alvarez utilizes the best fresh farm-to-table ingredients, paired with partner Ty Rodriguez\u2019s expertise in wine. Cena by Long Island native chef Michael Buttacavoli features a fresh, modern take on Italian cuisine downtown. The best sushi experience in Tampa is Koya by Eric and Adriana Fralick. The <em>omakase<\/em> experience is legendary. On Swann and the new Olivia are two hip Tampa spots by veteran restaurateur Chris Ponte. Ava and Forbici, both in Hyde Park each serve unique Italian-style pizza. Enjoy beautiful fresh Vietnamese-French fusion at Restaurant BT, both in fashionable Hyde Park.<\/p><p>Another example of Tampa\u2019s urban renewal is the Oxford Exchange. Part book store, part restaurant, this is the most \u201cInstagrammable\u201d building in Tampa with stunning architectural details evoking the spirit of Old London.<\/p><p>Stay tuned for my next feature on the rest of Tampa Bay, the St. Petersburg-Clearwater area. \u201cThe Burg\u201d has experienced a renaissance the past decade, especially along the bay front near the Dali Museum, and is considered very fashionable. If you haven\u2019t been to Clearwater Beach in the last 15 years, you wouldn\u2019t recognize it! The dramatic transformation of the entire area has brought great new restaurants and places to stay (my favorite being the luxurious Sandpearl on Clearwater Beach). In addition, there are many charming villages and towns in Pinellas County, each with their own style and unique flavors that are worth exploring. If you\u2019re planning a trip and want to know more, please feel free to visit my blog, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fredbollacienterprises.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.fredbollacienterprises.com<\/a> and reach out to me personally:<br \/><a href=\"mailto:info@fredbollacienterprises.com\">info@fredbollacienterprises.com<\/a> \u2610<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-af29b7f elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default qodef-elementor-content-no\" data-id=\"af29b7f\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-eaa6d33\" data-id=\"eaa6d33\" 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Few people considered the area a culinary destination, though there were a handful of great restaurants people would plan vacations around. In the past decade, the Greater Tampa Bay Area, which includes Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10737,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[152],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2580"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2580"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2580\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10737"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/venumagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}