20 essential suburban restaurants in Tampa Bay you should've tried by now

Tiki Docks River Bar & Grill

10708 Palmetto St., Riverview, 813-683-8454
Fueled by food, fun, sun and rum, Tiki Docks tropical restaurant serves fresh oysters, Hawaiian BLTs, Mini Kahuna crab cakes, shrimp fried rice with pineapple and specialty cocktails.
Photo via Tiki Dock’s Bar & Grill/Facebook

Patti’s Kitchen

6527 Park Blvd. N, Pinellas Park, 727-289-4153
This local Thai spot serves a variety of authentic street noodle soups, ranging from its signature tew nam tok marinated pork and spinach dish to its homemade tew ped toon duck and Chinese broccoli meal.
Photo via Patti’s Kitchen/Facebook

Ukulele Brand’s

4805 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., Land O’ Lakes, 813-995-0608
Alongside Uke’s classics like its seafood chowder, grouper sandwich and “Jammin’ Jambalaya,” the ”Old Florida” restaurant also includes unique dishes like gator tail and frog legs. The full-service bar and restaurant offers both indoor and outdoor seating and features live music and trivia on select nights.
Photo via Ukele Brand’s/Facebook

Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill

25916 Sierra Center Blvd., Lutz, 813-419-1351
Zukku had so much success in Tampa’s Armature Works that the sushi business is now spreading throughout the Bay, and thus, Lutz’s Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill was born. The high-end sushi experience has both a lunch and dinner menu, featuring a variety of rolls, edamame, nigiri, sashimi, tempura and more.
Photo via Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill/Facebook

The Joinery

640 E Main St., Lakeland, 863-337-4583
Not quite suburban, but still in burgeoning Lakeland, The Joinery food hall offers a wide variety of food and drink spots, including Ava’s wood-fired Neapolitan pizza, Āto’s poké bowls, Super Duper Spot’s “badass” burgers, Sābu’s ramen and The Bar’s craft brews and cocktails.
Photo via The Joinery/Facebook

Jimmy Jo’s

11218 Casa Loma Dr., Riverview, 813-405-8565
Jimmy Jo’s smoked BBQ wings, peel-and-eat shrimp, jalapeno poppers, cheeseburgers and grouper sandwiches are fan favorites among the small restaurant-shack’s menu.
Photo via Jimmy Jo’s BBQ & Grill/Google

Yum Yum Hot Pot

11301 N 56th St. Suite 6, Temple Terrace, 813-986-9863
This contemporary Chinese restaurant serves meat, seafood and vegetable soup dishes in hot pots, an authentic cooking style that uses boiling hot broth to cook raw ingredients. Guests use this technique to cook their own meals while dining at their seats.
Photo via Yum Yum Hot Pot/Facebook

Saigon Bay

11301 N 56th St. Suite 6, Temple Terrace, 813-971-0854
Yum Yum Hot Pot’s next door neighbor, Saigon Bay serves a mixture of classic Vietnamese cuisine dishes, including Pho beef soup, Com Dia rice plate, Bánh mì sandwiches, Bún noodle bowls and Boba tea.
Photo via Saigon Bay Vietnamese Restaurant/Facebook

Chuck Lager America’s Tavern

2001 Piazza Ave. Suite 175, Wesley Chapel, 813-820-4500
Chuck Lager’s menu, crafted by “Top Chef” celebrity Fabio Viviani, offers an assortment of burgers, handhelds, flatbreads, tacos, pastas and desserts.
Photo via Chuck Lager Wesley Chapel/Facebook

Red Star Live

9847 E Adamo Dr., Tampa, 813-898-8506
This music-jamming pond-side bar and grill serves loaded fries, jumbo wings, burgers, quesadillas and more. Red Star almost always has live music—hence the name—and hosts special nights featuring open mic, karaoke, line dancing and bingo.
Photo via Red Star Live/Facebook

Donovan’s Meatery

11206 Sullivan St., Riverview, 813-295-8445
Serving an array of wood-grilled steaks, chops and wild game, Donovan’s rustic steakhouse experience is every meat lover’s dream. But if meat isn't your thing, the restaurant also serves many vegetable forward dishes that can be paired with signature cocktails and wines.
Photo via Donovan’s Meatery/Facebook

Kojak’s House of Ribs

1809 S Parsons Ave., Seffner, 813-837-3774
Claiming itself as “the best ribs from Tampa to West Texas,” Kojack’s has been serving the Bay area its mouth-watering ribs, pork, sausage, beef and chicken since 1978 and recently moved out to the ‘burbs after decades in South Tampa. The southern bungalow home style gives off a homestyle atmosphere and makes it a favorite spot among locals.
Photo via Kojak’s House of Ribs/Facebook

Pasta di Guy

4839 Bruce B Downs Blvd., Wesley Chapel, 813-994-1294
Italy is really far away, but Wesley Chapel’s Pasta di Guy isn't. Serving made-from-scratch Italian pasta, pizza, salads and desserts, you can get a taste of the country’s authentic foods at this fast casual spot instead of having to fly overseas.
Photo via Pasti di Guy/Instagram

Arroy Thai

27427 Wesley Chapel Blvd., Wesley Chapel, 813-501-4924
”Arroy” means delicious in Thai and fans of this fast casual spot say the name is accurate. Said to be prepared with a full heart and expertise, Arroy Thai takes pride in its tasty menu, which includes favorites like pad thai, steam dumplings, curry, spring rolls and house fried rice.
Photo via Arroy Thai: Wesley Chapel, FL/Facebook

Shaker & Peel

3159 Curlew Rd., Oldsmar, 813-475-4712
Shaker and Peel is birthplace to the reinvented taco. The fine dining taco restaurant makes its own organic tortillas, slow roasts cage-free chicken and grass-fed beef and uses local liquor in its cocktails. The menu also includes beef and chicken wok, Kobe cheeseburgers, glazed pork belly and crispy shrimp.
Photo via Shaker & Peel/Facebook

The Stein & Vine

827 W Bloomingdale Ave., Brandon, 813-655-4786
The Stein & Wine is a craft beer taproom, wine bar and woodsy restaurant all in one. Serving specials like filet mignon chunks, brisket mac & cheese and grouper reubens, there's something special for everyone on this unique menu.
Photo via The Stein & Vine/Facebook

Walk On’s Sports Bistreaux

25372 Sierra Center Blvd., Lutz, 813-553-6500
This Louisiana-style sports restaurant serves cajun classics like crawfish étouffée, duck & andouille gumbo, red beans, poboys and more. You won’t miss a sports game here, as Walk On’s is decked out with over 70 TVs. A location is opening in Midtown Tampa this summer if you’d rather stay in the city.
Photo via Walk On’s/website

Mandola’s Italian Kitchen

12926 U.S. Hwy-301 S, Riverview, 813-755-3587
With decades of culinary experience in the kitchen, Mandola’s serves authentic Italian dishes like chicken capricciosa, pesce lupo, cannelloni fiorentina, brasato and more. The Texas-based company plans to open more chains in Florida, including Orlando, Jacksonville, Oldsmar and Odessa.
Photo via Mandola’s/website

Babushka’s

12639 N 56th St., Temple Terrace, 813-515-7415
Babushka means grandmother, who’s also usually the best person at cooking in your family. Serving traditional Russian and Eastern European cuisine in an underrepresented Tampa Bay, Babushka’s menu is full of foods that look really good but are hard to pronounce. From brunch foods like oladi pancakes and hachapuri breakfast pie to dinner specialities like golubtsy cabbage rolls and lamb plov, there's so many unique dishes that will be hard to find anywhere else in Florida. A new South Tampa location has that SoHo shine, but the OG in Temple Terrace is where it’s at.
Photo via Babushka’s - Temple Terrace/Google

Mr. Dunderbak’s Biergarten and Brewery

14929 Bruce B Downs Blvd., Tampa, 813-977-4104
Tampa’s award-winning German beer hall is an Americanized food “haus” that keeps traditional German ingredients at its core. Along with over 40 drafts on tap, Mr. Dunderbak’s serves Swabisch classics like an Oktoberfest sausage platter, sour cream schnitzel, Bavarian bratwurst, Polish kielbasa and more. Make sure you bring your German-to-English translator before trying to read the menu.
Photo via Mr. Dunderbak’s Brewpub/Facebook