Touting this dedicated week, Creative Loafing Magazine highlights several pizza parlors around Tampa Bay and they work together to raise money for Metropolitan Ministies here in Tampa. In the spirit of pizza week, I’m going to share my first (very anticipated) visit to Windy City Pizza.

On Thursday 2/18, a group of my foodie friends and I attended a hosted event at Windy City Pizza. They’re located in the USF area, 11142 N 30th St, Tampa, FL 33612. And they have hours perfect for late night munchies- 10am – most nights, 3am! Everyone gets those late night pizza cravings!

It’s a small locally owned (my favorite kind!) pizza shop that has indoor seating with about 6 four top tables. But I did see the Grub Hub driver come by, their delivery driver in and out and a parade or take out orders leave. All of the customers we chatted with were huge Chicago pizza fans and swore by Windy City’s authenticity! Including a couple of customers that drive in from St. Pete just to have a taste of home (Go Sox!)!

We started our night with a barrage of hot appies!!! And what a variety we got (apparently the entire appetizer section of the menu!)

Mozz sticks.

Onion rings.

Corn nuggets.

Parmesan beer bites.

Toasted ravioli.

Breaded mushrooms and Jalapeño poppers.

A table full of happiness for sure!!

My favorites were the corn nuggets, beer bites and onion rings! Little known fact, I don’t like things like cheese sticks or cheese filled ravioli! My buddies did enjoy them and from the empty app baskets, I’d say they were a crowd pleaser! Served with marinara sauce, of course!

Now for the stars of the show- the pizzas!!! Tim brought us out a meaty and veggie loaded deep dish, stuffed pie! And boy was it stuffed! Every bite had an array of traditional toppings in it! Olives, pepperoni, ham, sausage, peppers! But you can of course customize your deep dish to your taste! Then we moved on to two “real” Chicago style meat lovers pizzas, so deliciously unique! I learned (tonight) that Chicago style pizza is thin crust and cut into squares! What what!?!? Definitely the most satisfying meaty pizza I’ve enjoyed in a lonnnngggg time!

But TampaFoodMom’s favorite of the evening, the most anticipated part of my evening (beside the pizza!), the shining star, the piece de resistance was the *drum roll* ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICH!!!! It was thinly sliced roast beef dipped in seasoned au jus resting on a toasty hoagie roll and topped with perfectly melted provolone! Served with more au jus to dip it in…. pure beefy bliss!

They also serve wings, lasagna (that one of their loyal customers was waiting on as we left), baked pasta dishes and OF COURSE Chicago style hot dogs!! And yes friends, with traditional toppings like yellow mustard, chopped white onions, bright green sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomatoes, pickled sport peppers and a dash of celery salt. Never heard of pickled sport peppers until tonight!! (Have you!?)

We ended the night with the cinnamon beer nuggets and hot butter to dip it in! Seemingly or Sony- but now! The hot butter dip takes it over the top!!!

Thank you again, Windy City Pizza, for your enthusiasm in providing quality pizza and memorable customer engagement!! I’m happy to spread the word about your quality food!

This afternoon I had the pleasure of finally trying Pollo Supremo, off of Hillsborough Ave in Tampa (7616 FL-580, Town ‘N’ Country, FL 33615).

Check out my video of a tour of the dining room! The dining area is so vibrant, clean, bright and lively – literally- it’s full of beautiful live houseplants and cacti! There’s even a wall where you can pose with your meal for those trendy IG photo ops! Tampa’s newest Cuban restaurant has a fresh take on chicken and your favorite Cuban staples….

Jackie helped me go over the menu selections, highlighting the customer favorites. I was not surprised to learn their most popular emu item is the marinated chicken. I already knew from the get go I was going to order the chicken since they advertise it as their pride and joy! It then I saw the sirloin (palomilla) which is a TampaFoodMom favorite – so I ordered that too! My steak came with 2 side, I ordered the congri and tostones. I added chimichurri to my steak. The palomillo was cooked and served just like it traditionally is, seared with tons of slivered onions piled on top! The chimichurri was the perfect addition to the steak and truthfully I could have drank it! I absolutely love fresh garlic! Do yourself a favor and add this house made sauce to your chicken or steak order!!! You’ll be thanking me!

The chicken breast was skillfully marinated. I say that because I’m not a chicken skin eater (which was sad in this case since it was charred how I like it!) and the chicken was flavorful to the last bite! And trust me, I only left the skin and bones! If you don’t like skin either or bones, you can order the chicken boneless.

My sides were clearly prepared fresh and the tostones were made to order! The congri may have been the best I’ve had in years… seriously spot on amazingness!

But the crowning jewel of my lunch was the arroz con leche, rice pudding. Sweet, cinnamony, rich and creamy. The best way the end a robust meal!!!!

I had the pleasure of meeting one of the owners, Veronica. She chatted with me about her fathers restaurants and their start in NJ, where they still have 5 other family owned locations. She explained how important the quality of their food is to serve their customers. They have chefs that make all of the sides and desserts fresh daily. And you can see them grilling the marinated chicken while you eat in the clean dining room. Veronica and her family opened this location in August 2020, during the Covid pandemic, but that hasn’t stopped their dedication to introducing Tampa to their superior chicken! Your food is served on real plates and bowls with actual silverware. Washable tableware cuts down on excess waste which was purposefully planned by Veronica. I love the idea of paying higher quality fast food prices and then eating as if you were in an upscale bistro! Come on, a quarter white meat chicken meal with 2 generous sized side dishes is only $9.80- that is cheaper than a Big Mac meal and better for you!!! Another interesting tidbit I learned while talking to Veronica was that they give you free rice refills when you dine in and order the Family Bird meal! They love taking care of their customers!!!

Even the bathroom was thoughtfully designed!

Pollo Supremo has partnered with me to *giveaway* a “Family Bird”, a whole chicken family meal!!! Make sure you follow me on Instagram and are a Tampa Area resident to enter!

#hosted

Bon Appetite-

Rachel

I got together with three of my local Tampa foodie friends and headed for dinner at The Mill South Tampa. They hosted us and definitely rolled out the red carpet this past Wednesday evening. (2/10/21)

Phil, the AMAZING manager personally waited on us and was a great representative of The Mill! He started us out with several of their signature drinks from the bar – then out came a parade of their best dishes. Although I’d venture to say everything was as scrumptious as the dishes we were presented!

Phil started us with the SPREADS AND BREADS that had Pimento Cheese, Roasted Red Pepper Honey Hummus, Caramelized French Onion, Onion Focaccia, Chips. I am a chip and dip lover!!! Once you put that in front of me, I’m good with eating it as my meal!!! So imagine my excitement to see Phil present us with a dip platter!!! I used restraint and shared it with my foodie friends. Fun fact- the dip leftovers did come home with me and I ate it for lunch on Thursday!!!

WATERMELON BRUSCHETTA, my favorite of the night!

ROAST BEET PANZANELLA. Red and Gold Beets, Burrata, Red, Green, and Yellow Tomatoes, Aged Balsamic Reduction, Pound Cake Croutons, Mint, Basil, Roasted Horseradish Vinaigrette – another fan favorite for sure!

CRISPY SPARE RIB with Pineapple BBQ Sauce, Cornbread, Creamy Ranch Slaw.

MEATLOAF WELLINGTON served with Loaded Potato Casserole, Braised Collard Greens, Honey Hot Sauce Gravy – unanimous group favorite!

SEARED DIVER SCALLOPS. GRILLED OCTOPUS. SEARED DIVER SCALLOPS.

Then Phil surprised us with a trio of dessert!! And let me tell you – y’all can seriously make an amazing Valentine date night with the starters, the pretty drinks and the amazing desert selection!

SPICED PUMPKIN PANNA COTTA MOUSSE. Spiced Pumpkin Panna Cotta with Maple Sugar and a dabble of Vanilla Ganache in a chocolate tart shell with blueberry coulis, fresh blueberries, and mint sprig!! Such a great fall/ winter desert! And leaving the menu shortly to make room for spring and summer desserts.

POUNDCAKE GRILLED CHEESE. Lemon Stilton, White Chocolate, Peach Coulis. This was a spectacularly vibrant dessert with an impact for a woman pop. The Stilton she is made it seem like a desert grilled cheese. Perfection.

SMOKED BOURBON PECAN PIE. Classic Pecan Pie with Smokey Wild Turkey Bourbon, caramelized pecans topped with Vanilla Ganache in a chocolate tart shell with white and dark chocolate sauces… this was our favorite!

Each dish and dessert better than the next! The drinks were as photo worthy as they were refreshing (mine were non alcoholic but my friends enjoyed the regular adult beverages and had great things to say about them!). I truly feel like this is a restaurant hat should have been on my radar prior to Wednesday’s visit! I can’t wait to go back for their brunch!!!

Their steampunk themed interior is so cool and unique! It’s such an eclectic vibe! They also have live music on specific nights, check their website and Instagram for details! https://www.themillrestaurants.com/

Come back and let me know if you visit the Mill South Tampa and if you agree with our fan favorites! And make sure you follow the Mill South Tampa and my friends, Sandra, Andrea, Mike and Me on Instagram! 2FoodieCuties, EatLocalTampa, DrinkDineDestination and TampaFoodMom on Instagram!!

If you could celebrate any holiday other than Christmas and Thanksgiving, of course, you know it would be National Pizza Day (February 9th)! Seriously, there is no other whimsical obscure holiday that got more attention than National Pizza Day so far in 2021! My Instagram feed was littered with every kind of pizza post you can imagine. I know, Im a food blogger- what do I expect!? And I absolutely loved seeing all the pizza love yesterday! In fact – next week is Tampa Bay’s Pizza Week hosted by Creative Loafing Magazine and I am excited to offer a pizza giveaway to commemorate the event! But keep reading, loyal friend – details further down after I introduce you to my new favorite pizza spot here in Brandon!

I recently teamed up with Hawk ‘n Hog’s owner, Jon Urso to try out his newest location in Brandon, FL. He also owns 2 other locations by the same name and Fishhawk Pizza. He had a partnership in Holy Hog BBQ as well. If you are following along and a smarty pants (I already know you are because you are reading my blog- good taste BTW!) then you realized where the name Hawk ‘n Hog derived – Fishhawk and Holy Hog BBQ. I was honored to share in this partnership on National Pizza Day! And he rolled out the red carpet, but I later learned that he does that for all his customers. You can’t help but feel special when you sit down in his bright, clean, updated and newly renovated pizza location in Brandon – yes it was the OLD Brandon Pizza spot next to the Army Navy store but has ZERO affiliation with the former owner/ management and product! The only similarity is the plot of land it sits on – trust me! Even the potty is new 😉

On to the important part – the FOOD!

We started out with the (8) garlic knots- because you CAN NOT go to a pizza joint and NOT nibble on those garlic buttery pillows from heaven while you await your other carbs! You just cant! Naturally, since this a shared cuisine restaurant, we ordered the BBQ Brisket Pizza. This is also H’nH’s most popular pizza and was recommended to us by Mr. Urso himself. Fantastic recommendation and I’m glad I listened and ordered it- it did not disappoint. Tangy BBQ sauce, tender BBQ brisket and tons of cheese- all pluses in my book. Besides, you have to order a BBQ fusion pizza at a BBQ and pizza joint! It would be unAmerican not too! My husband and I also ordered a large 1/2 cheese – 1/2 pepperoni pizza, our family favorite and since we were trying H’nH for the first time we needed to test the waters with what we would take home as our staple pizza. We also ordered a large in the err of being gluttonous, to bring the left overs home for our 20 & 18 yr olds that were still at work. My husband said – after his second bite- that we finally found a new pizza spot in Brandon! And folks- when I say that is a compliment, that is the highest compliment that you will pull from that man! He is the toughest pizza critic I know! Come on- his last name is Lombardo and he grew up in the NY restaurant business- that counts for something! My husband is a man of little words but made sure to tell me he thought this place was a hidden gem. I agreed with him and was excited to hear him complete my thought on finding a really good NY style pizza spot in our own backyard!

Fun fact, our 14 yr old DOES NOT like bread, including pizza. This aversion makes family pizza night impossible to enjoy hot take away pizza since we always have to stop off at a fast food place so he can eat too. BUT he loves pulled pork so to say this place is answer to our pizza night road block is an understatement! He got a pulled pork platter with the freshly made and well seasoned fries. He really enjoyed his meal and left a clean tray when he was done! It made my heart so happy to see he was able to enjoy something he liked eating while hubby and I enjoyed our pizza!

Jon, my husband John and I enjoyed an in-depth conversation about his restaurants concept and his future plans for the location (nope- I can’t tell you right now!). We talked about various food items and began a discussion about chicken wings. To be honest, we were so focused on the pizza and ‘que, we didn’t notice the wings on the menu! Talk about being laser focused! Hey, it was National Pizza Day after all! He said that he smokes his wings as well as dresses them in a variety of popular sauces- you can order them either way. All I know is I need to get back there ASAP to snatch up an order of smoked wings!!! You can also order traditional Italian dinner plates and pastas from the menu as well as items from the BBQ Pit, calzones, strombolis, BBQ sandwiches, salads, appetizers and kids meals. H’nH has a vast menu but not too lengthy where you are completely confused when you go to order your meal!

Now to announce our giveaway (good from 2/10/2021 through 2/18/2021)…. Jon and Hawk’n Hog Brandon generously offered one of my blog readers/ Instagram followers one large pizza of their choosing (at the Brandon location only) just for following H’nH and TampaFoodMoms Instagram accounts! I will be checking both accounts so make sure you follow the rules! Tag your friends and share our giveaway to your story for extra chances to win!!! No purchase necessary to enter or redeem. I will announce the contest winner at 8pm on Thursday – 2/18/21- evening. Im super excited to share our new pizza discovery with all my friends for Tampa Bay Pizza Week!

Hawk ‘n Hog Brandon is located at 140 N. Parsons Ave, just a block North of Hwy 60 in Brandon. They offer a variety of delivery services- Grub Hub, Door Dash, Uber Eats, EZ cater and MobileMeals (a local company). Make sure you tell them TampaFoodMom sent you and as always – TIP WELL!

Bon Appetit!

Rachel

This morning I had the privilege of meeting Jenn and Sean Steed of Steed Farm. They’re a local organic farm by me in eastern Hillsborough County off of County Road 39 in Plant City. They run a CSA – Community supported agriculture co-coop – to support the local community with consciousnesly grown and hand picked organic produce.

This is a family run farm that takes great pride in their harvests. Jenn gave me a very thoughtful and informative tour of every inch of their farm, even introducing me to her volunteers. After explaining the plot of farm USF uses to grow forage crops and their 24 week growth and harvest season, she explained every single vegetable, plant and animal on her farm to me. I have to admit, I am intrigued by my neighborhood farms and always give my full attention to the great care these farmers put into their land. She had me utterly captivated!

We walked through each row of strawberries, kale, bok choy, onions, beets, turnips, broccoli rabe, cabbage, tomatoes and peppers with her. I ogled over the vast variety of herbs.

I stood in awe of the large cows, pigs and chickens that resided on their land.

Jenn explained that one season on their farm is the span of 24 weeks. Steed Farms starts harvesting after Thanksgiving.

They offer their CSA members a weekly share and a half share that Sean and his team harvest fresh every other Saturday. Pick up is every Saturday during the 24 weeks. They also grow sweet potatoes, which are available weekly during their CSA pick up period. You get what is harvested as a share, you don’t select or swap out the produce.Pricing is pretty moderate at $270 for a half share and $540 full share that you pay up front in the beginning of the co-op. They advertise their CSA on Localharvest.Org but they also have an Instagram page (that you should follow to support a hard working local farm!)

I was honored to have been shown their farm and a glimpse into what effort goes into the foods we share with our friends and family.

This week, I visited Insomnia Cookies at their newest location in SOHO/ South Tampa. (533 S Howard Ave)

When I walked in not only was I warmly greeted by the sweet girl behind the counter, I got a sweet welcome by the scent of warm cookies!

Oh my heaven on earth, was it divine! I left with an armful of avast sampling of all their treats!

I got a football cake (perfect for Super Bowl weekend here in Tampa!), 2 brownies, 2 deluxe cookies, 2 regular cookies, 6 minis with a dip of my choice (buttercream, baby!) and a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream! This is the perfect solution to you late night sweet cravings since they’re open until 1am! You can even grab a pint of ice cold milk to wash your cookies down with!

Once I got home with my boxes of cookies and pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream, my four guys immediately devoured half of our treats, on the spot. I imagine this was how it was going to go down once I step foot inside my house with aromatic, fresh baked cookies! I brought home a unique pairing including a container of butter cream and seven mini cookies (red velvet and chocolate chunk!) as art of the cookie ‘wich box. My guys couldn’t dip their mini cookies in the tub of buttercream fast enough, that was a surprisingly big hit here!

Make sure you stop in to the South Howard/SoHo location this weekend for their grand opening and make sure you tell them TampaFoodMom sent you ❤️

I met up with an Instagram foodie friend, to try a new (to us) Italian restaurant in Lutz, Nabruzzi Trattoria! We made reservations a week in advance for a busy Friday night. When we arrived, we were sat promptly at our designated time (color me impressed!). My friend and I had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Deana… she explained that her and her husband own the restaurant and he is a true Italian chef (born and raised there) making their food as authentic as eating in Italy. She made us feel like welcomed guests in her personal dining room!

Our 2 servers (Barnabas was a dessert guru!) were impressively patient and knowledgeable about the menu and house items! The off menu house items are your traditional Italian fare and definitely worth a listen! Sandra and I split the sausage stuffed mushroom appetizer and it was the perfect start to our meal. We were also served toasted bread and a red pepper and olive oil dip with shaved parm- perfection!

She had the house salad to start and I selected the delicious Italian wedding soup (it was arguably the best soup I’ve had in a LONG time!).

For our main entrees, I had the chicken piccata with homemade pasta and Sandra had the house special lasagna (with homemade ricotta and homemade lasagna noodles!). They were both superb! The homemade pasta elevated our dishes to the next level!

To cap off the evening we both ordered the tiramisu and spumoni bomb! The dessert selection was definitely the most difficult choice I had to make all day!!! I can see coming here just for dessert, the selection is that impressive! Just kidding… I’d come just for the Italian Wedding soup! Or maybe to try their fresh made pizza from that stunning pizza oven. Nah, I need to try the lasagna next time!!!

All in all it was definitely a 5 star dining experience! The best compliment I can give an Italian restaurant is knowing I need to bring my husband back to eat here!!!

If you are, please chime in! If I missed any of your favorite local Tampa boba places, hit me up in the comments!

I’m not so good at breaking away from my tried and true favorite have really tried to leave my boba tea comfort zone and give my taste buds new flavors explore!

At Kung Fu Tea / Riverview- I tried the piña colada slush with mango popping bubbles and was an instant fan! Back in October I won one of their Instagram contest so I decided to try another new tea for Free Tea Tuesday!! The Sunshine Pineapple Tea with exploding boba!!! I am happy to say that all of the new teas were great choices but I often times still order my favorite the black milk tea with regular tapioca bubbles.

Another boba stop with my foodie buddy was Quickly Boba/ Brandon. This one isn’t on my favorites, mostly because they have an up charge now to order online. Oddly, this “convenience fee” to me seems a little unfair since the only option is to order online since Quickly Boba has closed up the inside of their shop other than to pick up your drink order. This last visit there, I ordered the coconut milk slush w/ boba and my friend had her macha tea milk slush. A plus for this location is that it’s the closest to my house for boba tea. And then a desperate pinch I’ll pay the convenience fee!

The newest UCF Boba place is Möge Tee…. oddly enough it’s in the plaza right behind Boba Cup. Hopefully there’s enough business in the area to warrant two close by Boba spots. In my opinion Möge Tee seems to be more authentic than the other Americanized versions I have enjoyed in the past. My son and his girlfriend, both of whom are always game to join me on a Boba tea date, agreeed with my take on Möge Tee. They were running some great grand opening week specials and I purchased a gift card, that I still have some money on, so I’ll be heading back there sooner than later!

I ordered the fresh pineapple tea with white boba, my oldest ordered the Oreo milk tea and his girlfriend got the fresh mango tea with white bubbles and I got an earl grey bubble milk tea for the next day. What sets Möge Tee apart from your average Boba tea shop is the cheese foam and the fresh fruit that they load in their fruit teas. The three of us weren’t brave enough to try that cheese foam this go around but I might give it a whirl next visit!

On New Year’s day (2021) we started out, and when I say “we”, I mean my son and his girlfriend, my standing dates for boba tea, strolling through International Mall and Bay Street. My middle son, Zach, was with us but he doesn’t enjoy boba tea, so he sat out on this treat. Discovering a Japanese Ramen restaurant that offered boba tea was just the icing on the proverbial cake for us three Boba tea lovers!

Last stop on my Tampa area Boba tour for today is Green Island, off of Adamo Drive and Falkenberg Road. This location would probably be the second closest to me. Right now, with Covid precautions, they do not allowed inside seating but you can order at the window or call ahead. My son and I order through the window and it was quicker than expected. That’s always a plus. Where there’s a plus, there’s often a minus and with Green Island it was their popping bubbles. They all popped before they even got up the straw. My son and I were joking about it but truthfully we concluded the straws were too small for the bubbles to travel up and were crushed on contact. Instead of arriving to your mouth in it’s whole state, all we got were boba skins. Meh.

We hope you try one of our recommendations or let us in on your local favorite!

Rachel

I took a small sabbatical from blogging but kept up with my foodie fun on my Instagram page (in case you aren’t a follower yet, it’s TampaFoodMom) the past few months.

I am ventured to several new places, enjoyed my old favorites and frequented several local mom & pop restaurants. My #1 local pick is the prime rib at Jessie’s Steak and Seafood in Brandon.

Another Tampa staple that’s been around longer than I have is Goody Goody Burger in Hyde Park. My sister and brother-in-law came to visit for Thanksgiving week and I took them to Goody Goody Burger to enjoy a wholesome lunch the day after Thanksgiving. They are centrally located amongst several shops and a “town square” to sit and relax after you eat. It’s always a nice treat to fill your tummy and then walk around and burn a few calories off. And trust me, Goody Goody has several popular dessert options to help load you up on calories if your burger didn’t already do so, like the infamous Butterscotch Pie. Don’t dare leave without trying a slice! My sister loved her chocolate cream pie.

A few of my new favorites I’ve enjoyed trying the past few months were Bubbakoos Burritos in Plant City, Tiki Docks in Riverview and Gran Agave in Riverview. Yes, I love Mexican Food!

Bubbakoos Burritos is a new locally owned franchise on the scene. The first Tampa area location opened in Riverview in November and a few weeks later the Plant City location opened. My son joined me for lunch at the Plant City location the day they opened and I’m very proud to say we were one of the 10 people in line to be able to try this unique new Mexican food option. We both enjoyed our lunch choices, mine was the tacos and he had two different quesadillas… plain cheese and a shrimp filled one!

I met another food blogger at Gran Agave after telling him I always order Boba in the same plaza at a different restaurant but I’ve never stopped in to enjoy the Mexican food there. He raved about it so we made plans to meet up and he recommended a few menu items to me that I normally wouldn’t have chosen, if you haven’t noticed I am a huge taco fan. My blogging buddy recommended the chorizo / queso dip with chips. I’m usually a happy camper with just salsa to go with my chips but I went with his recommendation. It did not disappoint. For my entree, I left my comfort zone and ordered the combination fajitas, steak & chicken. I did not regret my choice, it was one of the best fajitas I’ve had in years. I look forward to my next visit at Gran Agave for another platter full of those mouthwatering, well marinated, tender combination of steak and chicken!

Tiki Docks, located on the Alafia River in Riverview, is another new restaurant in the Tampa area. They’ve have an original location in St. Pete but this one was more conveniently located for my lunch date with my friend. I ordered a virgin piña colada partly because it looked refreshing (I don’t drink alcohol) and partly because the tiki glass was too adorable to pass up. It was a rainy day and I needed a little extra sunshine! I was there earlier than my friend, so I not only browsed the menu but I paid attention to what the other diners around me had ordered. The coconut battered chicken tenders with pineapple honey mustard dipping sauce called to me, and I couldn’t ignore it! With a side of pineapple slaw – absolutely delicious!My friend had one of their signature chicken wing platters and it came with a potato twister. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was drooling over her potato twister and will definitely be making sure I get one the next time I visit Tiki Docks!!

I hope I gave you some new restaurant choices to try! I went to a few other places which were equally as perfect for my palate, but I choose to highlight only a few. If you try any of them please reach out to me via DM on my Instagram or leave me a comment here … I’d love to hear if you agreed with my opinions!!

Bon Appetit!

Rachel

Y’all need to get on the Just Love Coffee Cafe train or you are definitely getting left behind!!! This place is definitely worth the (too little) hype it’s been getting in the Brandon/ Tampa foodie community!

This unique coffee/ sandwich shop is located at 2020 W Brandon Blvd Suite 105, Brandon, FL 33511. It is on Hwy 60, directly across the street from Sam’s Club and sharing the same strip center as Outback Steakhouse, but on the opposite end of the parking lot. It is extremely easy to get to but if you miss the turn in, you can swing in by the traffic light.

When you walk up to the cafe, there is a large oak canoping the walkway, you almost forget the whooshing traffic on Hwy 60 a few feet away. The interior is bright, lively, modern (reclaimed looking) wood tables and metal chairs & barstools in the Miami color palette. There is even a separate dining area that can be closed off with doors and rented out. In the back of the large cafe seating area are 3 recliners with trays to sip coffee and study from as well as a view of the hidden tree lined lake. The best part of all was the aroma of coffee wafting from the espresso machine that begs you to order a coffee whether you planned on it or not!

They pretty much turn every traditional breakfast or lunch combo into a waffle!y friend got the sausage, egg and cheese biscuit and it was pressed into a waffle and served with sausage gravy. She enjoyed it and had zero complaints. I got the Nutella Stuffed Waffle and it was as amazing as you’d imagine anything with Nutella and strawberries can be!! My only complaint is I wish it was offered in a larger size cause Id-a torn that upppppp! It was five star worthy without a doubt! One of the sweet baristas brought my friend and I a sample of the white chocolate raspberry scone and the blueberry scones (you guessed it- pressed in the waffle iron!)… They were absolutely fabulous! In fact, I’m not a huge blueberry fan and it was excellent! I would contemplate ordering one of these two scones on my next visit!

They offer a great variety of coffees, seasonal coffee drinks, cold brews, teas and other beverage choices. But since when we went on Sunday, it also happened to be National Cappuccino Day, my friend and I each ordered the large cappuccino. It was served in a humungous ceramic cappuccino mug which was as large as a soup bowl with a handle! It was perfectly brewed and sweetened by the barista.

My friend and I sat at the back breakfast bar facing the lake and it was very relaxing. The scenery really meshed well with our delicous breakfast choices and cappuccinos.

I will, without a doubt, be back… The question is, how soon is too soon!?!