The Daily Dose — part quick-service coffeehouse, part sit-down eatery — is hoping to become part of South Tampa’s everyday routine. Opened in late January at 3324 W. Gandy Blvd., where the late Smoke Shack used to be next door to Rouen Thai, the chic hangout showcases breakfast, brunch and lunch, plus seating inside and out.
The food menu is divided into categories like breakfast bowls, sandwiches, salads and small plates (aka side items). Specifically, contemporary eats like pastrami salmon galette (house-cured pastrami salmon, crispy potatoes, scallion crème, pickled onions, capers) and the open-faced Turkey Carver (carved turkey, pimento spread, Gouda, avocado, toasted multigrain) mix with coffee and tea drinks — as well as local beer and wine.
Fittingly, “Your Daily Dose” here is a choice of bacon or sausage, two eggs, home fries and fresh seasonal fruit.
• Local restaurateur Stephen Schrutt announced Monday that his restaurant group, Hunger + Thirst, plans to bring a new stadium concept to the St. Petersburg home of the Tampa Bay Rays. Dubbed Ballpark & Rec, the Tropicana Field venture is a fusion of The Avenue Eat + Drink, Kings Street Food Counter and Park & Rec — Schrutt’s established food and drink spots in St. Pete.
According to a Facebook update from Hunger + Thirst, Ballpark & Rec should debut at 1 Tropicana Drive in time for the upcoming season.
• Near USF Tampa, Prost Kitchen + Bar at 2802 E. Bearss Ave. does chef-driven takes on what could be found in a European tavern. The crowd-pleasing, indoor-outdoor gastropub’s tagline is "locally cultivated and internationally inspired."
Available during brunch, lunch and dinner, drool-worthy menu items include fish and chips, sausage skillets, charcuterie, sandwiches (the maple-bourbon burger is a signature) and jager schnitzel. TVs sprinkled throughout the modern-rustic space for sports fans are also a highlight, as is an extended happy hour from Prost’s full-liquor bar, where specialty cocktails, draft beer and wines on tap are poured.
• Mexican food enthusiasts, listen up. In St. Pete Beach, Grand Hacienda has replaced Monarca’s on the Beach at 4393 Gulf Blvd. with its own selection of south-of-the-border grub. The wide array — which features plenty of vegetarian and gluten-free options, along with daily deals — spotlights everything from tableside guacamole and barbacoa flautas to shrimp fajitas and carne asada.
Victoria Tacos & Cerveza Co. recently popped up in Tampa’s Citrus Park area, too. Launched on Jan. 7, the restaurant specializes in street tacos, in addition to dishes like huaraches, tamales, tortas, chilaquiles, huevos rancheros and nachos. Imported and domestic beers accompany Victoria’s lineup of Mexican sodas, wine and aguas frescas at 11625 Sheldon Road.
• Now for some real quick bites: CL missed the Tampa opening of Noble Crust in Carrollwood, but for anyone reading this who’s dined at the third location, how was it? Two newbies hit Palm Harbor — Fins (playful twists on beer-drinkin’ bites in an outdoor setting) and J’s Pizza Effect (classic New York-style pizzeria) — and Tarpon Springs — Aloha Poké Bowl (small build-it-yourself poke bowl joint) and Aegean (Greek American waterfront dining on the famed sponge docks) — not too long ago. And Clearwater diners have another destination for masterful sushi made with fresh ingredients in Charlie’s Sushi & Japanese Restaurant, which premiered a few months back.
This article appears in Feb 8-15, 2018.