As Tampa Bay’s restaurant scene grows wider, more great places to eat & drink come into frame. Some of them aged and trusted, others new and enlightening. The eating is the easy part. The tougher conundrum is navigating which place to go. Enter The Best Things We Ate & Drank This Month. A simple-enough article aimed to advise you, remind you and guide you toward satisfying culinary experiences throughout Tampa Bay. Here’s to your next order.
American Red Snapper | Mise en Place, Tampa
You know the little ingredient descriptions below any given menu item? Somehow Mise en Place’s always completely mesmerize me. In this case, the lemongrass steamed bamboo rice, baby bok choy, oyster mushrooms, sezchuan pickled lotus root and coconut milk yuzu shishito emulsion. You just can’t make the same at home.
Tuna Tataki | Wagamama, Water Street Tampa
I expected nothing more than indifference—instead focusing my first-timer adrenaline on the Katsu Chicken Curry. How could a global chain’s tuna tataki possibly be fresher or better than any other tuna tataki in town? But I was immediately wrong. And it was phenomenal. (The curry was good too, by the way.)
Dozen Oysters, Bloody Mary | Zudar’s Bourbon Street Bar & Grill, Tampa
Sometimes you just gotta ride your bike down to Zudar’s for a dozen and a bloody. And sometimes that hits harder than any dressed up dish from any fine-dining establishment around.
Gin Old Fashioned | Barterhouse, Ybor City
There’s a great bartender down at Barterhouse named Scooby who loves gin. I love gin. But had yet to consume it in smoky “old fashioned” form. I’ll be back for another.
Boneless Wings | Saucin’ Food Truck
To be clear, I am a bone-in truther, and would argue I still qualify as one. Think of Saucin’s Boneless Wings as more of chicken thigh chicharrónes. The thigh meat is hacked up and fried creating a glorious exterior crunch—miles better than the usual nugget posturing as a wing—and a perfect morsel-sized vehicle for its homemade lineup of sauces.