Patrick Manteiga is the editor and publisher of La Gaceta. The Ybor City-based newspaper, which was founded in 1922 by Manteiga’s grandfather, Victoriano, is the only tri-lingual newspaper in the country and one of the oldest family-owned minority publications in the nation.
A newshound and political watchdog, Manteiga comes from a long line of sharp and charismatic Latinos. His grandfather, a Cuban immigrant, worked as a lector in Ybor’s cigar factories before establishing La Gaceta as a voice for Tampa’s Spanish population. His father, Roland, was equally influential, garnering national attention for his spot-on political commentary in the column “As We Heard It.”
Now Manteiga, the paper’s publisher since 1998, is as much a fixture in Ybor as were his predecessors generations ago. The editor is fiercely outspoken, well connected and rarely seen out without a drink in his hand and a cigar in his mouth.
He’s raked in countless awards for his work in journalism and community activism, including the Tony Pizzo award for Preservation of Ybor City’s Heritage, the 2001 Businessman of the Year Award from Tampa Hispanic Heritage, Inc. and the Golden Quill Award from the Florida Historical Society. In 2012, Tampa Toastmasters named Manteiga Communicator of the Year. A staunch Democrat, Manteiga is regularly tapped to sound off on politics by media giants such as CNN, the New York Times and the Huffington Post.
Manteiga, who has three children with his high school sweetheart, Angie, may live in Temple Terrace, but it’s Ybor that he haunts.
The bar that feels like home: The Dirty Shame. “I started going there because it had real darts. It’s not pretentious. I can smoke a bad cigar and no one yells at me and the bartenders take good care of me. It has a good feel for a Democrat.”
Where he goes to drink on the cheap: Bernini of Ybor. “I go for the $2 martinis, then I’ll walk over to Carne ChopHouse, sit on 7th Avenue and watch the zoo go by.”
His strangest encounter with an Ybor celeb: The Ybor City Shoe Licker. “He offered to lick my shoe. He walks around in high heels, fishnets and a hard hat.”
Where he goes to shoot the bull: La Tropicana Café. “I’ll sit down with [Tampa businessman] Joe Capitano, order some strong coffee and talk politics.”
Where he goes to be seen: La Terrazza, El Puerto or the Oxford Exchange. “These are all good places to conduct business. Sometimes I think it’s more about being seen conducting business than actually conducting business. In one visit you can see 50 people you might want to talk to. If you’re a political candidate, you should definitely know this circuit.”
What he does to feel sporty: Disc golf. “I go to Limona [Disc Golf Course] near Seffner and [Edward] Medard Park in Plant City. It’s cheaper than golf and allows me to do something I can do relatively well, which is to throw a Frisbee.
Where he finds free parking in Ybor: The freight zones at noon. “People don’t realize they can park for free from noon to 1:30 in the freight zones.” (The city opened up these spots a couple years ago to draw more visitors to the district at lunchtime.)
His insider tip for first-time Ybor visitors: Enter through the back door at La Tropicana. “It’s common knowledge among regulars. Only tourists enter through the front.”
Where he does his best bird-watching: South of 7th Avenue in Ybor. “My wife and daughter like to drive through the south streets to go chicken-watching. Sometimes you’ll catch a peahen [a female peacock].”
His favorite way to stretch 10 bucks: Lobster Mondays at James Joyce Irish Pub. “You get two pounds of lobster for $10.”
His favorite Ybor photo op: Beside Roland Manteiga’s statue in Centro Ybor. “People like to send me pictures of themselves sitting next to the statue of my father [the former editor and publisher of La Gaceta]. They always pose like they’re reading his paper.”
His favorite Ybor party: The Gasparilla Knight Parade. “It’s much looser and freer than Gasparilla’s day parade. There’s drinking, bead-catching, and at the end of the parade everyone stays and finds a bar to hang out at.”
His favorite Ybor mascot: James The Rooster. [Longtime Ybor resident] Tommy Stephens had a pet rooster named James. When the bird passed away years ago, Stephens and a band of locals held an impromptu parade to honor it. Of course, this was also an excuse to go from bar to bar. As if we needed another reason to drink.”
The pub with the coziest barstools: Bad Monkey. “They’re very modern, clean and comfy. Bad Monkey is actually a good introductory bar to Ybor, say if you’re coming from South Tampa and you’ve never been here before.”
The bar with the richest history: Columbia Restaurant. “Teddy Roosevelt sat at that bar!”
The bar with the kinkiest patrons: The Castle. “It’s a fetish bar. Sometimes I’ll go to the movies and I’ll see 100 people dressed in leather and chains heading to The Castle. It’s titillating to watch.”
The buffet that attracts gubernatorial candidates: Tony’s Ybor Restaurant. “When Alex Sink was running for governor I’d find her there all the time. Weird, right? It’s a café with a home-style buffet, which is odd for Ybor.”
The closest he gets (in Tampa) to dining in Cuba: La Teresita. “It just feels like a restaurant in Cuba. There’s a good chance you’re not going to hear English. And if someone gives you coffee in a shot glass you know it’s going to be good.”
The closest he gets (in St. Pete) to drinking in Mexico: Agave Restaurant on St. Pete Beach. “The food is light and delicious and the tequila is plenty. When my wife and I go to Agave, we’ve got to find a DD because we both love tequila. They actually have a tequila menu there with something like 80 different shots.”
Where he flexes his muscles: Powerhouse Gym in Channelside. “I’ll go three days a week before work. I drink a lot of my calories. I needed to do something. I love the place. It’s got a great atmosphere. Everyone is really supportive.”
Where he goes to LOL: Tampa Improv. “Every now and then we’ll go see an improv show. You can start the night early and meet up with another couple for dinner. They do a great job of bringing in big names.
Where he goes to lay low with his family: Lido Key in Sarasota. “We stay at the Limetree [Resort] on Lido Beach. It’s a family tradition. Our family from Georgia comes down for a week and we’ll get five or six rooms and kind of take over the hotel.”
This article appears in Mar 20-26, 2014.