GARY’S 2022 FOOD FAVORITES IN NEW TAMPA & WESLEY CHAPEL

Although I’ve always loved the pasta and other Italian specialties at owner Steve Falabella’s 900º Woodfired Pizza in the Shops at Wiregrass, there’s no doubt that Steve has gone himself one better with his Falabella Family Bistro at The Grove.

And, while the Bistro already had me hooked on favorites like lasagna (above), chicken parmigiana and the Sam’s meatballs appetizer, the addition in 2022 of weekly dinner specials, his expanded regular menu and the addition of full liquor at the bar has made it even tougher for me to pick any place other than Falabella when Jannah and I feel like enjoying some Italian comfort food. And, the Bistro also features an incredible display with 7 Layers Bakery dessert items.

Meanwhile, in New Tampa, both Frammi and Via Italia — located less than a mile from each other off BBD Blvd. — are both just a shade below Falabella. I love the linguine with clams at both locations and the two different pasta pesto options (traditional Genovese and Siciliano) at Via Italia and the lightly spicy pasta Amatriciano and eggplant parmigiana at Frammi. So close.

I do also enjoy the chicken fried chicken parm at Noble Crust, the zucchini noodles at Pasta di Guy, the penne ala vodka at Blush and the mezzaluna ravioli at Carrabba’s.

Even though I probably tried every type of legal sushi when I lived in New York City, when Jannah and I go out to Zukku-San, or any Japanese restaurant, we generally eat everything other than sushi because she really only likes California roll.

However, Jannah’s daughter Lauren loves the Mexican roll and other rolls with shrimp (which I can’t eat because I’m allergic) at Zukku-San, and I am still partial to everything from the tuna tataki to any type of white meat fish sashimi to the bluefin tuna akami crudo shown above at Zukku-San.

And, while I don’t think any other local Japanese place can touch Zukku-San’s non-sushi appetizers (see pg. 28) or entrées, I do enjoy the fresh sushi at all of the places on my list below. I think Bluefin in The Grove has the most creative assortment of rolls, Sushi Café on BBD Blvd. in New Tampa and Umu on BBD in Wesley Chapel have the best variety of white meat fish (snapper, grouper, wahoo, etc.) and Sake House (a little-known gem in Tampa Palms) also is consistently good. I also have been pleasantly surprised at the quality of the large variety of rolls at Yamato. This list also could have included Ha Long Bay, Thai Lanna, Sushi Avenue and Oishi Express.

Many Mexican restaurants have come and gone in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, but new ones keep opening in both of our areas. The problem, in one man’s opinion, is that most of them simply aren’t as good as places we’ve loved in other parts of the country or even the Tampa Bay area. For many years, Vallarta’s has been the only consistent winner with our readers among the Mexican restaurants in our distribution areas.

But now, even though the Vallarta’s in Wesley Chapel is still around, the shuttered location in Tampa Palms has become the second New Tampa location (the other is on E. Bearss Ave.) of Don Julio’s. Señor Tequila (#6 on my list) has been open in the original location of Bonefish Grill on BBD since May 2021. And now, Cantina Laredo in The Shops at Wiregrass will be replaced by Azteca D’Oro (see story on pg. 44).

But, my favorite of the restaurants that have survived the Mexican shakeout is now Cantina Mexican Grill & Bar, for not only its fajitas (photo), but also its variety of tasty steak and chicken dishes, enchiladas, burritos and more. Tacos el Patron at the KRATEs has really good burritos and tacos, Chuy’s fajitas have improved since it first opened and I enjoy Capital Tacos’ flavorful bowls.