Try Tarek’s Café In Tampa Palms For Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner!

Tarek 2WEBIf you love great food at very fair prices and you haven’t yet visited the new Tarek’s Café & Grill, located actually at our former address in the Shoppes at Amberly plaza in Tampa Palms, it’s definitely worth a visit no matter which meal of the day you’re eating.

Although his restaurant is a newcomer to the Tampa Palms dining scene, Tarek is no stranger to a lot of New Tampa residents — his original Tarek’s Café has been a fixture on the University of South Florida’s Tampa campus, just south of Fletcher Ave. off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., for 25 years.

“I’ve actually been in this business 40 years,” says Tarek Elsayed, the owner of the two local Tarek’s Cafés, which are two totally different types of places.

The USF Café is geared to busy college students and faculty members, but Tarek warns that it is still “much more than just a sandwich shop.”

Even so, the Tampa Palms Tarek’s is spacious, with room for 140-150 seats (there’s a little more than 100 inside right now) and attractive wood booths.

But, the menu is significantly more geared towards the sit-down audience — local residents who want a truly delicious breakfast, lunch or dinner in a casual setting.

TarekFoodWEB“We have all of the local proms and graduations happening now,” Tarek says. “Bring those parties over here. We want and can handle your group.”

I’ve only enjoyed breakfast at the Tampa Palms Tarek’s twice so far, but I didn’t post a pic of my favorite breakfast to date — the cinnamon French toast with crusty white bread — because I didn’t think my pics did it justice. Tarek says that virtually everyone who has tried his corned beef hash has raved about it.

“I hear it’s the best in this area…anywhere…all the time,” Tarek says proudly. “If it’s not, I’ll finish it for you.”

As for lunch and dinner, my favorite dishes so far are the braised (“for seven hours,” Tarek says) beef short ribs and TarekWhiteBallssmashed potatoes, the “Ooey-Gooey Ragout” (ask Tarek to describe it for you), the blackened (or grilled) grouper with buttery rice and perfect French-style green beans, the uniquely spicy Israeli-style couscous (available as a side), the turkey bacon cheeseburger, and the totally decadent, indescribable Oreo “balls” covered with rich white chocolate. They’re like the chewiest, most delicious brownie bites ever.

I also love the mini-baklavas Tarek is holding in the picture above and he usually has other great desserts,too.

There’s no alcohol served at Tarek’s Cafe (15345 Amberly Dr.), but it is open Tues.-Sat., 7 a.m.-7 p.m., and 7 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sunday. Call 252-3238 or visit
.

Ginza Endless Sushi & Hibachi — Great Food & An Even Better Value!

Ginza rainbowALTHOUGH MANY more people these days enjoy sushi than they did when I first started loving it in New York City in the 1980s, the biggest complaint I hear about most sushi places is that they’re just too expensive to enjoy too often.

Well, the new Ginza Endless Sushi & Hibachi restaurant, located between LA Fitness and Winn-Dixie in the plaza just south of County Line Rd. and west of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. in New Tampa, is bringing great value, as well as delicious sushi and other Japanese and Asian fare to our area (it’s located a few hundred feet south of Wesley Chapel), especially for lunch.

Ginza’s all-you-can-eat $12.95 lunch special (for ages 15 & older) really is as good as it gets if you’re looking for value, and the sushi is always freshly made to order and delicious — whether you get the all-you-can-eat special (which costs $24.95 per adult for dinner) or order off of Ginza’s extensive a la carte menu. 

Here’s How It Works…

Whether you get the all-you-can-eat special for lunch or dinner, you have a selection of more than 200 items and yes, you can get as much as you want of almost every item. The Zheng family, which owns Ginza, reserves the right to limit certain items, and can even charge you for unfinished sushi.

Ginza tatakiAlthough I also enjoy the clear and hot & spicy soups, my favorite appetizers on the all-you-can-eat menu include the truly delicious pan-fried dumplings, the Japanese-style green salad with ginger dressing, the super-crispy pork egg rolls and vegetable spring rolls and my surprise favorite, the chicken and vegetable tempura. The tempura green beans are better than any fried green bean appetizer you’ll find at the average chain sports bar.

I really love a lot of the available all-you-can-eat entrées, too. The hibachi steak (served with fried rice and creamy “yummy-yummy” sauce) is very tasty, if sometimes a little bit tough (and it’s not prepared tableside), and I also like the spicy chicken chow fun (back left) entrée, too, although the nicely spicy Mongolian beef (which is not available with the $12.95 lunch) and Mongolian chicken entrées are surely my favorites.

The portions shown in the pictures on this page — which also includes a hibachi shrimp entrée that other folks in my office tell me is pretty good (since I’m allergic to shrimp myself) — are all the actual portion sizes, whether you have the all-you-can-eat lunch or dinner. The Mongolian chicken and beef both have lots of fresh broccoli, snow pea pods, carrots and other veggies, all in a zesty sauce tGinza2hat brings both heat and a little crunch to your mouth, and are served with a pretty good fried rice. Yum.

And yes, while you can have all you care to eat of all of the aforementioned items, you also enjoy nigiri-style sushi (over rice) or sashimi (slices of fish without rice), and the rare tuna (which is one of the items Ginza limits on the all-you-can-eat specials) and snapper are definitely my favorites.

I also did really enjoy the spicy white tuna (escolar) hand roll, the regular and “golden” California rolls, the rainbow (tuna, snapper, salmon and avocado-wrapped California roll) and the spider (soft shell crab) rolls. There are plenty of other favorites on the all-you-can-eat list, but some items — like a really tasty seared tuna tataki with wasabi cream and the grilled octopus with hot peppers, to name a couple (both are pictured on the next page), have to be purchased a la carte. And, I have noticed that most of Ginza’s a la carte sushi rolls sell for $1-$2 less than you’ll find at most other Japanese places.

No Liquor License? No Prob!

Although Ginza doesn’t currently have its liquor license, the Zheng family — which also owns the Ginza in Sarasota but was not involved in the Land O’Lakes Ginza which closed — invites you to bring you own alcoholic beverages until it does, and New Tampa Ginza general manager Andrew Zheng says he believes that should happen this month.

Ginza also has great kids’ favorites on its all-you-can-eat menu, which costs just $6.95 for kids ages 4-10 and $8.95 for kids 11-14 for lunch, and $8.95 for ages 4-10 and $12.95 for ages 11-14 for dinner.

Ginza’s décor is casual and modern, with separate bar (with a nice flatscreen TV) and sushi bar areas and the place is quickly becoming one of my favorites in the area. 

For more info about Ginza Endless Sushi & Hibachi (6417 E. County Line Rd.), which is open Mon.-Thur., 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. on Fri. & Sat. & noon-9:30 p.m. on Sun., call 907-1688, visit GinzaFlorida.com or see the ad on pg.  46 of our latest Wesley Chapel issue for some great coupon offers.

Nibbles & Bytes: Ribbon Cuttings Galore, And More!

AmbayCongratulations go out to U.S. Army Reserve Lt. Col. and plastic surgeon Raj Ambay, M.D., and his wife, dermatologist Aparna Ambay, M.D. (2nd & 4th from the left in the photo , right), the owners of both Ambay Plastic Surgery and 360 Dermatology in the Summergate Professional Park (behind Sam’s Club on S.R. 56).

On Mar. 28, the Ambays held a Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce (WCCC) groundbreaking ceremony at the site of their new Transformations Aesthetic Center, which will be located a couple of miles away, off Cypress Ridge Blvd., behind Tower Radiology Center and the New Tampa Surgery Center.

The day may have been dreary and rainy, but the rendering of the future building, which they hope to open by the end of this year, promises that it will be a one-stop shop for all of your plastic surgery, dermatology and other health and beauty needs.

We’ll provide a more in-depth update about the Transformations Aesthetic Center in a future issue.

For more info in the meantime, visit 360DermatologyTampa.com, AmbayPlasticSurgery.com or call 406-4835. The two practices currently are still located at 27716 Cashford Cir.

Also Cutting Ribbons at…

…Palms Pharmacy, Apr. 15!

The new Palms Pharmacy, located in The Shoppes at The Pointe Plaza in Tampa Palms, hosted its Grand Opening Celebration & WCCC Ribbon Cutting on April 15.

PalmsPharm4 copy“We are truly grateful to be joining the community of Tampa Palms and New Tampa,” said pharmacy director Shahida Choudry. “Our staff looks forward to serving the community and residents for years to come with this new location.”

Palms Pharmacy is a full-service pharmacy open six days a week. Convenience and service are paramount. The store is a traditional retail pharmacy, including local delivery, custom medication packaging, medication reviews, specialized vitamins and probiotics, refill reminders via text and email, patient counseling and drug adherence, friendly staff with prompt service and Spanish translation.

For more info, call 252-9063, visit ThePalmsPharmacy.com or stop in at 17008 Palm Pointe Dr.

…7 Layers Bakery, Mar. 24!

Congratulations also go out to my fellow transplanted “New Yawkas” William Morello and Evelyn Barreno on the Mar. 24 WCCC ribbon cutting at their new 7 Layers Bakery, which truly does have New York-style cupcakes (my fave was the “peanut butter surprise” cupcake), cannolis, cookies and of course, cakes. About 100 well-wishers packed into 7 Layers’ small space in the Grand Oaks Plaza (next to Amici Pizza) at 26306 Wesley Chapel Blvd. (S.R. 54) in Lutz.

For more info, call 388-2771, visit Facebook.com/7LayerCookieCakes or stop by and please tell William and Evelyn that you read about them here!

…Signarama, Apr. 14!

If you missed the Apr. 14 Grand Opening & multi-Chamber ribbon-cutting celebration held at the new unified location for Signarama of New Tampa/Wesley Chapel/ Lutz (at 1917 Passero Ave., just off S.R. 54 in Lutz), I just have to say that it was both one of the best — and best attended — Grand Opening events this reporter has ever seen…and I’ve seen a few!

SignoRama_RibbonWEBOwners Beatriz and Rob Hiller and their amazing staff received an outpouring of love from about 200 people, including many elected officials and Chamber and Rotary friends from New Tampa, Wesley Chapel, Central Pasco, Zephyrhills, Dade City and Carrollwood (to name a few).

Those who attended also received an outpouring of free, delicious food from six different providers — including local favorites like Little Italy’s and Latin Twist Café and new favorites like the gourmet tapas and Basque fusion cuisine from Kaixo Tapas Gourmet (photo above, right) catering — as well as a pouring of delicious wine samples from our friends at Time for Wine.

There also were dozens of free prize drawings with DJ John Jay of Finest Deejays (JohnJaytheDJ.com) hosting, and lots of warm wishes for Signarama’s new, combined sales and maufacturing office in Lutz, as the Hillers closed their location on BBD in Wesley Chapel (next to NutriSmart).

“We started with us and two employees,” Beatriz told the energetic crowd. “Today, we are at 26 employees and still growing, so thanks to our amazing staff and all of our wonderful friends, clients and Chamber and Rotary members.”

For more info, stop in to take a tour of the new Signarama, call 994-0101 or visit Signarama.com/fl-new-tampa-wesley-chapel. For the complete upcoming WCCC calendar and membership and other info, call 994-8534, or visit WesleyChapelChamber.com.

Think ‘A Special Rose’ For Mother’s Day!

Our good friend Rose O’Berry at A Special Rose Florist, located in the middle of the BBD “Segment A” widening just south of Tampa Palms (at 14546 BBD, next to what has been a Shell gas station but is now being converted to a Chevron.

“The construction on BBD and now the gas station has cut down on our walk-in traffic a lot,” says Rose, who always has an awesome selection of fresh-cut flowers, plus plants, gift baskets and other great gifts. “I just want to make sure everyone knows that we are still open during all of this construction and ready to serve all of your Mother’s Day, prom, graduation, wedding and other floral and gift needs.”

For info, call 979-9453 or visit ASpecialRoseFlorist.com.

Check Out Serenity Spa & Salon Suites!

Pam Edmonson, the owner of Creative Permanent Makeup by Pam, says, “We are so excited about our new and beautiful place of business — Serenity Salon & Spa Suites (33913 S.R. 54, Suite 101, in Wesley Chapel).  Our clients are loving it and the feedback from everyone has been amazing!”

As the name indicates, Serenity Salon & Spa Suites offers a serene & peaceful environment with a professional salon area offering the most up-to-date styles and colors with highly educated stylists.  We also feature beautiful, individual suites offering many different services, including facials, permanent makeup, massage, waxing, micro-needling, scalp therapy, gels & pedicures and much more.

For more info, call 731-3350 or email serenitysuites@icloud.com.

Tampa Premium Outlets Welcomes New Retailers

Simon, a global leader in retail real estate, is pleased to announce that GNC Value Nutrition, Journeys & Oakley Vault have recently opened their doors at Tampa Premium Outlets (TPO).

“Since the groundbreaking of (TPO), Simon has remained dedicated to offering our customers the best names in outlet and value shopping,” said Sarah Rasheid, director of marketing and business development at TPO. “These new retailers are a continuation of this promise.”

Tampa Premium Outlets is a 441,000- sq.-ft. outlet center that houses more than 110 retailers delivering great brands at great prices.  For more info, visit PremiumOutlets.com/tampa— GN

Neighborhood Nibbles & Business Bytes

TareksBy Gary Nager

Tarek’s Café & Grill Opens 2nd Location…In Our Old Location!

Considering that I’m celebrating my 22nd year of owning and editing this publication (as of the day before this issue’s cover date), I can’t help but be impressed by someone who has been doing something great in our area for even longer than I have been serving this community.

Case in point — Tarek Elsayed, who has been the owner of Tarek’s Cafe & Grill near the intersection of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. and Fletcher Ave., on the USF Tampa campus, for 24 years!

I hope some of you may already have tried Tarek’s new place which — because he expanded into our former location in the Shoppes at Amberly plaza in Tampa Palms, actually has our old address — 15345 Amberly Dr.! Tarek promises to serve great American cuisine with a Mediterranean flair at his now-open Tampa Palms café & grill!

TarekstorefrontWhether you’re craving a great hamburger or sandwich, or maybe want to try a tomato and mozzarella salad with a side of homemade couscous (photo) or authentic Middle Eastern pastries, Tarek has been keeping USF students, professors and staffers happy for nearly a quarter of a century and his Tampa Palms location is a lot bigger and nicer than his hugely popular takeout counter at USF.

For more info, visit TareksCafe.com, call 252-3238 or see the ad on pg. 47 of our current issue.      

 


Congratulations to everyone at CentraCare Florida Hospital Urgent Care, which hosted a Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting at its location in front of the Wesley Chapel Target on Feb. 9. For more info, visit CentraCare.org.

CentraCare4


Irish 31 To Open Next To Panera In Wiregrass Mall!

As nearly 22,000 of you already viewed on our Facebook page, former USF football star Jay Mize, who already has four successful Irish 31 restaurants (in Hyde Park Village, Westshore, Westchase & at the Amalie Arena), says he hopes to open his fifth & sixth locations by the end of 2016.

irish31One of those new locales is on Clearwater Beach & the other is in The Shops at Wiregrass mall, in a shared building that just began site work next to Panera Bread.

Mize says the Irish 31 at Wiregrass will be 2,800 SF & will feature the same great chef-inspired (I call it ‘Irish-plus-gourmet’) cuisine as the other Irish 31 locations. “It’s sort of a race to see which of our new stores opens first,” Mize says. “But we hope both will be open by the end of 2016.”

Visit Irish31.com and stay tuned to NTNeighborhoodNews.com for updates.


 

RGA2RGA Promises Great Networking & Fun!

I hope you will start joining me and dozens of other happy business networkers at the next RGA Network weekly networking luncheon or monthly networking Happy Hour, both of which are held at the Shops at Wiregrass mall. The lunch events are held every Thursday at GrillSmith (2000 Piazza Ave.), 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., and the Happy Hours are held the third Tuesday of every month at Pinchers Crab Shack (28330 Paseo Dr.), where $5 gets you free appetizers and free chances to win great prizes given away by other happy networkers. I’ve already made several great, new contacts at Pinchers, where I recently gave away about a dozen gift cards.

For more info, visit RGANetwork.net and please tell them I sent you! — GN

Neighborhood Nibbles and Business Bytes

Capital Tacos Opens, Kinda

CapitalTacologoWEBCapital Tacos, the hugely popular local eatery with an original location at 6765 Land O’Lakes Blvd. (U.S. 41) in Land O’Lakes, has opened its second restaurant in the former location of Café Fresco at 27209 SR 56, in the plaza next to Sports + Field.

As the budding business transitions to having two locations, the hours of the SR 56 location are currently from 2-8 p.m. Friday through Sunday until further notice. You can follow facebook.com/CapitalTacos for the latest changes in the new location’s schedule.

The Land O’Lakes location is always packed, even at night, and the buzz on the Wesley Chapel Community Facebook page is that most of the local community is ready to embrace Capital Tacos’ affordable, tasty fare.

For more information, visit CapitalTacos.com or call 973-3777.— GN

Russell’s Western Wear Coming to S.R. 54

RussellsWEBIf you’ve been looking for a place to stock up on all of your favorite western gear close to home, look no further than the former RaceTrac convenience store located just east of I-75 on S.R. 54 in Wesley Chapel, which will become the fifth Florida location of Russell’s Western Wear.

Russell’s, a one-stop shop for cowboy boots, hats, jeans and apparel with stores in Ocala, Lakeland, Dover and on N. Dale Mabry Hwy. in Carrollwood, is expected to be open before the holidays, says marketing manager Chloe Gray. “We don’t have a specific date yet because we’re still working through the permitting and construction process,” Gray explains.

She says that a Wesley Chapel store made sense to reach the customers in between the Ocala store and the regional headquarters in Tampa.— MW & GN

Florida Orthopaedic Inst. Coming To Shoppes Of WC

Although the Shoppes of Wesley Chapel (on Bruce B. Downs {BBD} Blvd., across from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel) doesn’t yet have a restaurant tenant to fill the former D’Alessio Restaurant location, Shoppes leasing agent Barry Jackson of Momenta Real Estate says that the Florida Orthopaedic Institute has leased the remaining 6,000 sq. ft. of space (everything not already leased by Samantha Taylor’s Pure Health Fitness Studio) on the second floor of the plaza.

“It’s official, and we’re really excited,” says Florida Orthopaedic Institute’s director of marketing Donna Bossuyt. “We plan to open sometime in December.”

The Shoppes of Wesley Chapel office will be the 10th location for the medical group and will feature state-of-the-art X-ray technology, physical therapy and rehabilitation treatment, as well as at least three sub-specialty surgeons. Surgeries will not be conducted at the new location.

For more information, please visit FloridaOrtho.com.

Señor T’s Taking Over  Macaroni Grill Location

SenorTsWEBThe long-vacant former New Tampa Macaroni Grill, located on BBD, in front of the also-vacant former Sweetbay Supermarket has not been occupied for more than a year, but that’s about to change, as Señor T’s Mexican Restaurant is getting ready to move in.

A Señor T’s spokesperson says the new Mexican eatery will be the first link in a small, planned start-up chain of about seven locations, with a second location rumored to be moving into the former Macaroni Grill location on N. Dale Mabry Hwy. in Carrollwood. While the inside of the restaurant still is being renovated at our press time, Señor T’s plans to open on November 15. Once open, the restaurant will feature indoor and outdoor seating, a full premium liquor bar and mid-priced Mexican fare. — MW & GN

VIP Elite Barbershop’s Community VIP Event

VIP_WEBIf you’re looking for a great haircut at a great price, I can personally recommend VIP Elite Barbershop (20309 BBD, next to Bruster’s Ice Cream), even though I’ve never personally had a “fade” or any other razor cut before.

I took part in VIP’s “Community VIP” event on October 14, when men’s and kids’ haircuts were just $10, and you could even get the VIP Elite logo design in your cut (photo below; although I chose to not have that done) at no extra charge.

“We had some guys get Tampa Bay Lightning bolts, too,” says VIP co-owner Joanne Rivera, whose husband and Master Barber Omar cut my hair. “We had free food and beverages, provided by a number of sponsors. It was just one of our ways of giving back to this community we love.”

VIP is open seven days a week, but you can get the same, outstanding haircut I got from Omar — or any of VIP’s well-trained barbers — for just $10 on any “Ten Dollar Tuesday.” You also can get $5 off any haircut or hot shave with the coupon from the VIP Elite ad on page 34 of this issue.

Walk-ins are always welcome at VIP, or you can make appointments at VIPEliteBarbershop.com or by calling 994-4057. — GN

Tarek’s Cafe & Grill

TareksGrilleWEBA new breakfast, lunch and dinner restaurant is coming to the Shoppes at Amberly shopping plaza off Amberly Dr. in Tampa Palms, in the space we once called the Neighborhood News headquarters.

Tarek Elsayed, who has owned and operated Tarek’s Café & Grill on the University of South Florida (USF)’s Tampa campus for the past 23 years, is set to open a second location, which will take up not only our old offices, but also the former Spices of India market next door, totaling 4,300 sq. ft.

“I’ve been thinking about a second location for years,” Elsayed says. “The opportunity never came. But the location became available.”

Elsayed says the café at The Shops will serve all three meals in 150 seats and will feature an open-kitchen design. The restaurant also will offer vegan options, but will not serve alcohol. Elsayed says he hopes to officially open in early December.

For more information, please visit TareksCafe.com. — MW