Dining & Nightlife Global Foodie Adventures By Chelle Koster Walton Search { Dining } at VISITFLORIDA.com For a taste-bud spin around the world, sample the cuisine brought to Florida’s melting pot by its various transplanted cultures. Forget the passport, just grab a fork. Cuban Fiesta in Tampa Cuban food takes center stage in Tampa’s Ybor City. Sample the culture’s favorite cuisine just as it was enjoyed many years ago by immigrating cigar makers. Eat this: Café con leche, guava turnover, pressed Cuban sandwich, Spanish bean soup and mojo pork. Dine here: Don’t miss Florida’s original Columbia Restaurant. Also, buy Cuban bread and pastries from La Segunda Central Bakery. cracked conch (fried conch), Haitian griot (fried pork), goat stew, jerk chicken, mofongo (starring fried plantains) and Creole-style seafood. Dine here: Tap Tap Restaurant serves up true Haitian fare made from quality ingredients, and at Ortanique on the Mile, island style goes gourmet. Native American Classics in the Everglades The Miccosukee Nation, a federally recognized Native American tribe, makes its home in Everglades territory centered around the Miccosukee Indian Village. Eat this: Sofkee (similar to grits), fry bread, alligator nuggets, frog legs and catfi sh. Dine here: Almost every restaurant in the area serves Everglades-style food, but Miccosukee Restaurant in the village serves up some of the most authentic dishes. Greek in Tarpon Springs Settled by Greek sponge divers, this waterfront town just north of the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area is the place to fi nd Mediterranean delights that will transport you to the Greek Isles. Eat this: Gyros, spanakopita (spinach pie), pastitsio (pasta baked with ground beef and béchamel sauce), moussaka (a classic eggplant or potato-based dish), dolmades (stu ed grape leaves), octopus and baklava. Dine here: Dimitri’s on the Water and Hellas Bakery serve delectable Greek specialties. Dimitri’s has the waterfront view; Hellas, more sweets. PHOTO: COLUMBIA RESTAURANT; TODD ANDERSON, WDWNEWS.COM; OSTERIA TULIA Mangia Italiana in Naples With a name like “Naples,” the city is naturally saturated with authentic regional restaurants and transplanted Italian chefs. Eat this: Calamari, burrata, Caprese salad, homemade pasta, fennel sausage, branzino (also known as European seabass) and gelato; adventurous eaters can try the fried pig ears. Dine here: Osteria Tulia touts year-round “rustic Italian cuisine,” while Campiello Ristorante showcases food from a di erent region of Italy each month. Caribbean-Breezed Miami Considered the mainland hub for Caribbean cultures, Miami and its restaurants borrow cuisine from Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and beyond. Eat this: Jamaican patty (a fl aky pastry with savory fi llings and spices), Trinidadian roti (fl atbread), Bahamian Clockwise: Sangria at Columbia Restaurant, Tampa’s Ybor City; Chef Art Smith’s Homecoming Kitchen in Disney Springs; Branzino at Osteria Tulia, Naples OFFICIAL VISITOR’S GUIDE 4 61
Visit Florida Visit Florida 2017: Page 61
