Twisted Rolls Chimney Cake Gets Ready To Open Across BBD From Pebble Creek 

Photos by Charmaine George

Residents of New Tampa also will soon have another unique option for dessert, as the third Tampa-area location of Twisted Rolls Chimney Cake is expected to open by the end of this week in the same strip plaza at 19406 Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. as Dan’s Fan City and Subway, across BBD from the Pebble Creek Collection. 

As long as you don’t go there (as I did when photographer Charmaine George and I visited the six-month-old Temple Terrace location at 12212 N. 56th St.) expecting it to also have some kind of rolls, you probably won’t be disappointed. 

The “Twisted Rolls” at Twisted Rolls Chimney Cake are made of dough and sugar that is rolled around a stick and then baked in an oven until hot and semi-crispy. Then, the hot dough is dipped in one of a variety of glazes and then rolled in one of nine different flavors — anything from crushed Oreo cookies to pistachio nuts and from Fruity Pebbles cereal to coconut and more. 

The coated “cone” is then filled with soft-serve vanilla, chocolate or a swirl of both flavors ice cream to create a one-of-a-kind dessert. 

“It’s an Eastern European treat,” says Ahd, the owner (top photo), who also has a Twisted Rolls food truck at 13742 N. 42nd St. near USF, as well a location in St. Louis, MO. “These ‘Chimney Cakes’ are called ‘Kurtoskalacs’ in Hungary, where they are super-popular.” 

Twisted Rolls Chimney Cake also offers 16 flavors of hard-packed Hershey’s ice cream, but the hard-packed isn’t served in the hot cones, only in two-scoop cups (for just $4.99 on 56th St.!). 

You can, however, have the hard-packed ice cream on crepes, waffles or mini-pancakes, all of which also can have a variety of toppings, from bananas and strawberries to M&Ms and brownies. There’s also New York-style cheesecake, which you can get topped with Nutella, crushed pistachios or liquefied peanut butter (below right photo). 

In addition to the cheesecake, Charmaine and I each sampled our own Chimney Cake while visiting the Temple Terrace location, just to get a feel for what’s coming to New Tampa. She enjoyed the Fruity Pebbles cone, while I quickly filled up on a Chimney Cake with Oreos, both of which have a cookie placed inside the bottom of the freshly-baked cone. The heat makes the cookie melt in your mouth because clearly, the Chimney Cake isn’t decadent enough without it. Just kidding! It is! 

Charmaine also sampled a mixed berry smoothie, which she said was yummy, and I indulged in a large vanilla latte, which also was spot-on. By the way, there are more than two dozen hot and iced coffee beverages on the Twisted Rolls menu. And, there’s even Italian sodas in eight different flavors. For more info about Twisted Rolls Chimney Cake, visit TwistedRollsChimneyCake.com. — GN

Korean Eatery Sorimmara Opens Next To Smoothie King In Highwoods Preserve! 

Photos by Charmaine George

If you’ve never heard of Sorimmara, which just opened next to Smoothie King at 17501 Preserve Walk Ln., off Bruce B Downs (BBD) Blvd., you’re probably not alone. 

Sorimmara is a fast-casual chain based in South Korea, where it has more than 200 locations. The only other U.S. location is in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles, CA. 

Despite its Korean roots, most of the menu at Sorimmara is made up of Chinese dishes that have been given a Korean twist. Confused? Just what until you visit! 

Sorimmara offers a large variety of raw meats (beef, pork, lamb, chicken, etc.), seafood (shrimp, clams, fish, etc.) and veggies (everything from broccoli and collared greens to Napa cabbage, baby corns, a variety of mushrooms & much more). 

You wait to be seated, but you’re immediately invited to grab a bowl and fill it with as much “stuff” as you like — but you’re told you need to have at least 1 lb. of ingredients in your bowl because the restaurant charges by the pound ($14.99-$18.99) for its six main entrée options, including malatang, which is a spicy broth cooked similarly to the popular Chinese hot pot soups, except the restaurant’s kitchen cooks it for you and brings it to your table in a metal bowl placed on top of a lit burner. 

Charmaine enjoyed her malatang (top photo), but we both included way too many ingredients because we didn’t know until the restaurant weighed our bowls how much “stuff” we had. There’s also creamy rose malatang available. 

I also liked my tomato xiang guo (below left), or “stir fry dry pot,” which is like a stir-fry dish at a Korean or Chinese restaurant. 

When I visit Sorimmara again, I plan to try the guobaorou, which means “fried pork” in Chinese, but also is available in crispy, sweet- &-sour chicken, shrimp, cream shrimp and mala mayo shrimp varieties. There’s also four actual Korean street food options called tteokbokki, which features tube-shaped rice cakes that are described as a blend of sweet, spicy and savory. 

One piece of good news for less adventurous diners is that all of the dishes at Sorimmara are available in five levels of spice, from mild to super-spicy. There’s also a sauce bar with pre-made options like a delicious creamy sesame sauce and make-your-own options where the restaurant provides you with the recipes! 

There also are Chinese standards like egg fried rice and egg rolls, as well as unique spicy mala and mala mayo fried rice, mala and mala mayo rice balls and flying fish roe rice balls. 

Sorimmara is open Mon. & Wed.-Fri., 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. & 5-10 p.m. It’s open Sat. & Sun., 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Closed Tues. For info, call (813) 252-6643 or visit SorimmaraTampaBay.com. — GN

Kickoff Event For Homes For Our Troops This Saturday!

Homes For Our Troops (HFOT)  is hosting a kickoff event for the building of a specially adapted home in Wesley Chapel for Marine Sgt. Christopher L.M. Lawrence this Saturday, April 5, at 10 a.m. (with check-in at 9:30 a.m.). The event is being held at Pinecrest Academy (33347 State Rd 54, Wesley Chapel, FL 33543) and the public is welcome to attend. 

Sgt Lawrence was injured while serving in Iraq and this Community Kickoff event signifies the start of the build process and will introduce Sgt Lawrence to the community. On August 17, 2007, Sergeant Lawrence was serving as a fire team leader with the 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 1st Marine Division, in Al Anbar, Iraq, when he was injured on a foot patrol by an improvised explosive device (IED) blast, resulting in severe damage to his legs and left arm, internal injuries, tinnitus, and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

The home being built for Sgt Lawrence will feature more than 40 major special adaptations such as widened doorways for wheelchair access, a roll-in shower, and kitchen amenities that include pull-down shelving and lowered countertops. The home will also alleviate the mobility and safety issues associated with a traditional home, including navigating a wheelchair through narrow hallways or over thresholds, or reaching for cabinets that are too high. 

HFOT has built more than 400 homes since the organization’s inception in 2004. Homes For Our Troops relies on contributions from donors, supporters, and corporate partners for the building of each Veteran’s home. Community members may hold fundraisers or make donations. To find out more on how to get involved or make a donation visit www.hfotusa.org. Learn more about Marine Sgt Christopher L.M. Lawrence at https://www.hfotusa.org/lawrence

Into The Woods” Concludes This Weekend At NTPAC

Photos by Charmaine George

If you love a great Broadway musical, there are only four performances left this weekend to see the New Tampa Players (NTP)’s production of the Tony Award-winning Stephen Sondheim musical “Into the Woods.” Starring the outstanding Richard Brown (last seen as Seymour in NTP’s “Little Shop of Horrors”) as The Baker and amazing NTP newcomer Hope Lelekacs as The Baker’s Wife, NTP’s “Into the Woods” also re-introduces you to a whole slew of beloved fairy tale characters, including Cinderella (Genesis Rodriguez) and her stepmother (Kayla Bennett), Jack (Blake Boles), known for his magic beanstalk beans, scene-stealer Lena Wigfall as Little Red Ridinghood, plus NTP veterans Makayla Raines as “Witch,” Dylan Fidler as Rapunzel’s Prince, Kristin Nelson and Alexandra Greenberg as Cinderella’s stepsisters Florinda and Lucinda, respectively, and too many more great performances to include here (sorry).

Photographer Charmaine George, who took these pictures during last weekend’s opening night, says “Into the Woods” is one of NTP’s best shows, with singing, dancing, costumes and sets that are all “spot on!” Don’t miss it!

Tickets are still available to to all four performances of “Into the Woods” this weekend — Friday, April 4, at 8 p.m., Saturday, April 5, at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sunday, April 6, at 3 p.m. For tickets and more information, visit NewTampaPlayers.org. 

Bagels Plus Has Reopened!

Bagels Plus, located at 2706 E. Fletcher Ave. (a little west of Bruce B. Downs Blvd.), has finally reopened after a kitchen fire had closed the long-time favorite local New York bagel place for about five months.

“Everyone already knows we’ve reopened,” the owner Steve told me this morning. “At least it feels like everybody knows. We’ve been packed since we reopened yesterday (Monday)!”

In fact, Bagels Plus was out of Asiago cheese bagels when I arrived a little after 10:30 a.m. today.  Thankfully, the store still had plenty of sesame bagels available to scoop out and toast to make my bacon (they do also have sausage), egg and cheese sandwich. 

“This is the only place I know locally with bagels that taste like New Yawk,” one customer who said they were from Brooklyn told Steve while I was chatting with him today. “I’m so happy you’re open again!”

That seemed to be a popular sentiment among the seven or eight other customers inside the place, which definitely got a full interior makeover. Bagels Plus also carries tuna, chicken and egg salad, a wide variety of different cream cheeses — from lox and light plain to cranberry-walnut and veggie and more. Other pastries baked in-house include butter croissants, black-&-white cookies and apple and cherry turnovers and more. Pretty great coffee, too.

Bagels Plus is open Monday-Saturday, 6 a.m.-4 p.m., and 7 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, or to pre-order call (813) 999-1216.