Wondering where to go in Tampa Bay? I have you covered. This guide is meant to be a way for you to navigate Tampa Bay and find great places to eat, drink, and play.
Tampa is filled with plenty of different types of businesses – but many of them are hard to find without someone telling you first.
The guide will be separated by neighborhood for travel purposes. Tampa Bay consists of Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, and sometimes Sarasota is thrown in. I’ll leave Sarasota for another guide. Each major city is about 30-45 minutes away from the other depending on traffic so plan accordingly.
I live in Tampa so the majority of my recommendations will be based there. I will expand the list as I try new places. Also – the list is a work in progress.
Tampa
- Apollo Beach
- Circle’s Waterfront Dining
- Marian’s Sub Shop
- Brandon/Riverview
- Allegria Italiana
- Bullfrog Creek Brewing Company
- Chicago’s Best Burger
- First Choice BBQ
- La Villa River Hills.
- Leaven Brewing Company
- Revolution Ice Cream
- Sarge’s Smokehouse BBQ (Food Truck)
- Carrollwood
- Bearss Sandwich Shop
- Simply Pho & Grill
- Downtown Tampa
- Eat
- Caffeine Roasters
- Columbia Cafe
- Eddie & Sam’s NY Style Pizza
- Toma Spain Bar
- Drink
- Anise Global Gastrobar
- Franklin Manor
- Hotel Bar
- The Gin Joint
- Do
- Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park
- Pirate Water Taxi
- Tampa Bay History Center
- Tampa Museum of Art
- Tampa Theatre
- Eat
- Gandy
- 81 Bay Brewing Co.
- New Tampa
- Cafe Ole
- Ciccio Cali
- Full Circle Pizza
- Oakley’s Grille
- North Hyde Park
- The Lab Coffee: The best coffee shop in Tampa based on sheer quality. The Lab is home to Zeal Coffee Roasters. Getting a pour over here will make my day. I drive over 30 minutes regularly to get here. They are still very mom + pop so don’t expect a big and beautiful cafe, but it is definitely an incredible coffee dive.
- Raw Smoothie Co.
- Seminole Heights
- Brew Bus Brewing: Checking out Tampa’s craft beer scene? Brew Bus is a hub where you can hop on and off to different breweries around the central part of Tampa and down to Ybor. There is much more here though. Brew Bus makes their own beers and also owns Florida Ave. Brewing and makes a number of sour beers under that brand. They also have their own chef cooking up some great food as well. Biggest attraction is the ample parking which is almost unheard of in Seminole Heights.
- The Independent: One of the most popular hipster bars in Seminole Heights. You’ll find an extensive beer list here and plenty of locals hanging around The Independent.
- The Refinery: The original Refinery is gone, but if you still want some of their delicious food you’ll have to trek over to where Fodder & Shine once stood and The Refinery now stands. The Refinery originally built themselves on offering quality food to the masses. It became a hard to sustain mission and things have changed a bit, but one thing has always been good: their burgers.
- Revolution Ice Cream
- Spaddy’s Coffee Co.: Spaddy’s was the first one to bring real coffee down to Seminole Heights and actually bring Starbucks some competition. His food truck initially had a small piece of land and has expanded and grown as he built the area around him. Always having a great taste for coffee has been a major part of this business. Definitely a local, neighborhood coffee stop. It’s outdoors so weather should play a factor on if you stop by or not.
- Sulphur Springs Sandwich Shop: Hanging off the edge of Seminole Heights heading towards USF is the Sulphur Springs Sandwich Shop. This is a classic sandwich shop that has become scarce in the era of Subway, Jimmy John’s, and Publix – but this shop carries with it quality deli cuts and plenty of creativity and local love.
- South Tampa
- Bella’s Italian Cafe
- The Blind Tiger Cafe – SOHO
- Caffeine Roasters
- Ciro’s Speakeasy & Supper Club: Quite a number of transformations have happened at Ciro’s over the years, but one thing that has always been true is their commitment to quality cocktails. This is a great place to take a date or to have an elegant night out with friends. The drinks are on the pricey side, but the atmosphere definitely makes this a must-visit if you like taking a trip back in time.
- Cru Cellars
- Datz
- Japanese Kitchen Dosunco
- Noble Rice
- Oxford Exchange
- Restaurant BT
- Roux Tampa
- Sushi Ninja
- Tampa Heights
- Armature Works
- Foundation Coffee Co.
- Hidden Springs Ale Works
- Town N’ Country
- Cuenelli’s Peruvian Style Rotisserie Chicken
- Filipiana Philippine Cafe
- Saigon Deli
- Thinh An Kitchen & Tofu
- Tostones Inc.
- University
- Felicitous
- Kaleisia Tea Lounge
- Mel’s Hot Dogs
- Mr. Dunderbak’s
- Prost
- U Poke Spot
- Wood Fired Pizza
- West Tampa
- Petit Piquant
- Pupuseria Centroamericana
- West Tampa Sandwich Shop
- WestShore
- Cigar City Brewing
- Frankie’s Lobstah Trap
- The Floridian
- Ybor City
- Eat
- Al’s Finger Licking Good BBQ
- Bernini
- The Bunker
- Due Amici
- El Puerto Restaurant & Grill
- James Joyce Irish Pub
- Drink
- The Brass Tap
- The Bricks of Ybor
- Cigar City Cider & Meadery
- Coppertail Brewing Company
- TBBC
- Eat
St. Petersburg
- Downtown St. Pete
- Cassis Bakery
- Cycle Brewing
- FarmTable Cucina
- Ichicoro ANE
- The Lemongrass Sushi Thai Tapas
- Mandarin Hyde
- Overflow Brewing Company
- Madeira Beach
- Mad Beach Craft Brewing Company
Clearwater
- Clearwater Beach
- Badfins Food + Brew: If you’re looking for a casual spot that has a great craft beer list and American/Mexican-inspired food than Badfins will have you covered. I wondered into here one day and was impressed with their offerings and prices were beyond reasonable for the area at $10 or less.
- Caretta on the Gulf: Most of the spots on Clearwater Beach are touristy and Caretta on the Gulf is no exception being located inside the Sandpearl Resort. Despite being a tourist spot though I will say that their food is delicious, though pricey. You really can’t beat their patio view of the ocean and pool deck. They also have a great brunch buffet if you’re in town during the weekend.
- Downtown Clearwater
- La Fondita de Leo: Being from Puerto Rico, my family is really picky about where will eat Puerto Rican food. La Fondita makes the list and has authentic food. The prices are reasonable too.
- Largo
- Arkane Aleworks: 2018 winner at the Best Florida Beer Brewers Ball. Arkane Aleworks is haven for people who love sour beers. They have a wide-variety of options on their tap list and are constantly coming out with new creations. This is my favorite brewery in Tampa Bay.
- Oldsmar
- Faceless Samurai: Quality sushi in Tampa is hard to find. Faceless Samurai has great sushi and sashimi cuts. They have great lunch specials and dinner is still not too expensive either. Their shop is very quaint and the sushi chefs are friendly and remind me of a small shop in Asia.
- Dunedin
- Dunedin Brewery
- Palm Harbor
- Bunga Raya Malaysian Cuisine & Sushi Bar
- Coolside Gelato Bar
- Fireside Pizza Cafe
- Safety Harbor
- The Sandwich on Main
Food Trucks:
- Craving Donuts
- Empamama’s
- I Wanna Wok
- Soul Food Street Kitchen
- The Twisted Iron
- Vanchetta Food Truck
- Wakamole Truly Mexican
Carlos Eats 