By Matt Wiley
A new restaurant is poised to fill the void in the Shoppes of Wesley Chapel shopping plaza.
According to a flier posted on the window, Only The Best (O.T.B.) Delights Café will be moving into the space vacated by Baja Fresh in the shopping center located across Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel (FHWC).Continue reading
By Matt Wiley
Cravings for meals from restaurants located outside of New Tampa are many times easily extinguished by thinking about the travel time and traffic that will be encountered on the way to the eatery. However, one local company is making it as easy as a few clicks on a computer to have food from more than 130 restaurants from around Tampa Bay brought straight to your door, usually in less than one hour.
Started in 2009 by siblings and Hunterâs Green residents Jennifer Mekdeci, 29, and Chris Shelton, 27, Mobile Meals is a far-reaching food-delivery service that delivers meals from restaurants from Apollo Beach to Wesley Chapel.Continue reading
By Gary Nager
The last time Iâwrote about Wolfâs Den restaurant owner Roger Wolf, I was telling you about the passing of Rogerâs beloved wife Patty (âPatty Wolf – The Smile &âSpirit Of Wolfâs Den – Remembered At Memorial,â March 16, 2013) from ovarian cancer.
Fast forward just seven short months and a lot has happened at Wolfâs Den, which Roger and Iâlike to call âWesley Chapelâs Neighborhood Diner,â located on S.R. 56, in front of Samâs Club.
The man who was among the first U.S. troops to serve in Vietnam nearly 50 years ago (when he was just 17) has been looking for the best way to expand his hours and menu at one of our areaâs most successful mom-and-pop eateries.
By Gary Nager
You may have noticed that Winners Sports Grill, which has been located at 5429 Wesley Chapel Village Market on S.R. 54 just east of I-75, has closed. Although a lot of local residents already are loving the place, what you may not have realized is that former Winners owner Gerry Malynowsky already has completely revamped the restaurant into the elegant newâCity Grill, which is one of the first true sit-down, non-chair restaurants in Wesley Chapel, featuring what Gerry calls âchef-created fresh seafood, pasta and more.âContinue reading
By Gary Nager
When I first heard that Hibachi Japanese Express was opening in the Wesley Chapel Village Market at the intersection of Bruce B. Downs (BBD)âBlvd. and S.R. 54, I wasnât sure what to expect.
Well, I donât know if youâve checked out owner Deyan Chen (everyone just calls him Chen)âs new âcafeteria-styleâ (meaning you walk up to a counter to order for dine in or take out, whether you want to sit at a table or at the sushi bar) Japanese restaurant and sushi bar yet, but if you havenât â and you enjoy Japanese cuisine, of course â this is a little, inexpensive gem of a place with food quality which equals or surpasses some of the much-more-expensive Japanese steakhouses Iâve tried â at âcafeteriaââprices!
First of all, Iâm not a guy who enjoys buffet-style Asian restaurants because Iâdonât want my âfreshââsushi prepared until Iâm ready to eat it. And, even though the sushi at Hibachi Express is sold at a lower average price than most sushi bars, it is still freshly prepared and I assure you that all of the seafood sushi and sashimi Iâve sampled there to date â including tuna, snapper, tilapia and even an outstanding spider (soft shell crab) roll â has been made fresh to my order, elegantly presented and absolutely delicious. In fact, the awesome $6.95 spider roll is Hibachi Expressâ Special Roll of the Month for October. If you like crab, try it.
Iâm also very partial to the Crazy Tuna roll, which is perfect for two tuna fanatics to share for $8.95. It features a snappy, spicy tuna, avocado and tempura flakes on the inside and sashimi slices of tuna on the outside. Yum.
Yes, Hibachi Express also has a variety of other great sushi rolls (and sashimi, served without rice), just like your favorite Japanese steak house. But, while it doesnât have teppanyaki (hibachi) tables to sit at, Chen promises that he does serve outstanding hibachi steak, chicken, shrimp, scallops and even salmon, prepared on the hibachi grill in Hibachi Expressâ kitchen â without both the âshowââ(flipping salt shakers and shrimp tail tossing) and the usual inflated prices.
In fact, even the âsmallââsize hibachi entrĂ©es, which start at $5.95 for just hibachi veggies or chicken, $7.95 for real, choice New York strip steak or shrimp or $8.95 for salmon or scallops â Iâwas stunned at how good the scallops were â are plenty large enough for one person for lunch or dinner, and still include a nice ginger house salad, tasty grilled veggies, Japanese fried rice and everyoneâs favorite âyummy-yummyâ sauce.
âOur steak is choice New York strip,ââsays Chen, who has been in the business for 20 years, although this is the first restaurant he has owned himself. âAnd Iâknow our scallops, shrimp, salmon, chicken and our sushi also are all high-quality.â
Or, âupgradeââto the âlargeââsize for just $6.95-$10.95, or try your favorite combination for $10.95-$11.95.
Also available are chicken, shrimp and steak fried rice ($5.95-$6.95), appetizers like edamame ($1.95), gyoza and shumai dumplings (six pieces of either for $3.50), seaweed salad ($2.95), teriyaki rice bowls with chicken shrimp or steak ($6.95-$8.95), chicken katsu ($6.95), a kids menu featuring fried chicken or shrimp with french fries ($4.95-$5.95).
Thereâs no beer or wine at Hibachi Express, but soft drinks are available, as are vanilla, green tea and red bean ice cream.
Hibachi Japanese Express (5315 Village Market) is open Mon.-Thur., 10:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m., until 10:30 p.m. on Fri. &âSat &â11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. on Sunday. For more info, call 991-9582.