Went downtown Tampa Tuesday eve to meet a friend, we were going to see a movie at Historic Tampa Theater, "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas". Before so, we went to Paninoteca, on Franklin Street, just north of Madison. Great small cafe type place, Greek music playing in the background, very warm smiles and greeting as we entered. The kitchen is right smack in the dining room, very nice! There are less than a dozen high top tables, plenty of windows to look out into the city, which was VERY quiet this Tuesday evening. We ordered the Chicken Salad sandwich, came on a HUGE piece of very fresh Foccacia Bread, the chicken salad was made Mediterranean style, very light and flavorful with chunks of fresh chicken, and also cam with a large side Greek Salad, made with mixed field greens, and Mediterranean veges, lots of feta, and a creamy Greek dressing on the side. Also to eat was a Mediterranean Chicken Pita, fresh warm Pita, juicy chicken, again very flavorful, and a small side salad as well....as if this very Yummy and filling dinner wasn't enough, we also tried some 'chocolate balls', fresh from the bakery, they had lots of dessert treats to try, can be a great dessert place as well, it stays open late.
After that great meal, we walked a block north on Franklin to Tampa Theater, a treasure of its own. The movie was about an eight year old boy during the Holocaust in Germany, and all I can say is it really took my breath away...an amazing feature, seeing the horribleness of that time period through a young boys eyes...I dont think there was a dry eye in the theater at the end of the movie, or everyone was just too taken away when the credits rolled, no one moved. By far one of the best films of the year!!
Showing posts with label tampa theater. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tampa theater. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
A Jewish Film Festival and Sarasota's Selby Gardens
I have a few Jewish friends in Tampa, so Saturday night I went to the Tampa Jewish Film Festival to get a taste of this culture on Film. We started having some dinner downtown Tampa a block form the Tampa Theater where the festival was being held this evening, it's and eight day event on both sides of the Bay.
SPAIN is a very nice Spanish/Tapas like restaurant on Tampa Street in downtown Tampa. With its all white and very clean atmosphere, white walls, white table clothes, white chairs, clean lighting, great separate bar area, and live Spanish/Flamenco music every Friday and Saturday night. Its cozy with less than 20 tables. The servers are even Latino. The menu has alot of Tapas items, and also some entree's. We dined on a Shrimp in a spicy/sweet sauce and Stuffed Grouper with Crab Meat. All entrees are served with great Cuban bread drizzled with Olive Oil, and there House Salad, mixed Greens with Feta Cheese and a Vinaigrette, and wither Yellow Rice or Vege of the Day(tonight it was Fresh Green Beans). The shrimp meal was good, although it would have been better if the Shrimps were grilled, but there were about 9 decent sized shrimp in somewhat bland sauce. The stuffed Grouper was very tasty, but very small portion for an entree size. We both felt that for $20 entree's, the serving sizes could have been bigger. Green Beans were ok, and lacked flavor, the yellow rice was typical. I loved the atmosphere, and live music was entertaining(they add $1.00 for each person on the bill for the live music cover charge). I have had other tapas style plates here which have been good, so i will be back, but more for the small plates.
We then walked a block up to Historic Tampa Theater to the Jewish Film Festival which is in it's 12th year, and saw "Someone to Run With", an excellent Movie filmed entirely in Jerusalem, great story line and acting, and from what I heard, it is based on a book that every teenager in Israel reads in high school. I was very moved by the story line, cinematography, and overall entertainment of this foreign film. The Festival continues through March 16th.
Sunday was a great day, crisp clean air about 65 degrees, blue blue skies. A great day for the annual Plant Festival at Marie Selby Gardens in Sarasota. About an hours drive south of Tampa, it was a nice drive over the Skyway Bridge to Sarasota. The Bay was looking beautiful, with aqua greenish/blue waters, many people were out today on their boats, para-sailing, wake boarding, etc. Selby Gardens is a nice, small Botanical Gardens located right in downtown Sarasota along the Bay, with every type of Florida species of plants, trees and flora, and just nice to hang out, walk around the trails, relax on the many benches with views of downtown Sarasota and the Bay. It was busy today with the Plant Festival, a good friend of mine owns Exotica Nursery in St. Pete, and was showcasing his many species of Bamboo and Palms at the Festival.
This week work takes me to Miami.
SPAIN is a very nice Spanish/Tapas like restaurant on Tampa Street in downtown Tampa. With its all white and very clean atmosphere, white walls, white table clothes, white chairs, clean lighting, great separate bar area, and live Spanish/Flamenco music every Friday and Saturday night. Its cozy with less than 20 tables. The servers are even Latino. The menu has alot of Tapas items, and also some entree's. We dined on a Shrimp in a spicy/sweet sauce and Stuffed Grouper with Crab Meat. All entrees are served with great Cuban bread drizzled with Olive Oil, and there House Salad, mixed Greens with Feta Cheese and a Vinaigrette, and wither Yellow Rice or Vege of the Day(tonight it was Fresh Green Beans). The shrimp meal was good, although it would have been better if the Shrimps were grilled, but there were about 9 decent sized shrimp in somewhat bland sauce. The stuffed Grouper was very tasty, but very small portion for an entree size. We both felt that for $20 entree's, the serving sizes could have been bigger. Green Beans were ok, and lacked flavor, the yellow rice was typical. I loved the atmosphere, and live music was entertaining(they add $1.00 for each person on the bill for the live music cover charge). I have had other tapas style plates here which have been good, so i will be back, but more for the small plates.
We then walked a block up to Historic Tampa Theater to the Jewish Film Festival which is in it's 12th year, and saw "Someone to Run With", an excellent Movie filmed entirely in Jerusalem, great story line and acting, and from what I heard, it is based on a book that every teenager in Israel reads in high school. I was very moved by the story line, cinematography, and overall entertainment of this foreign film. The Festival continues through March 16th.
Sunday was a great day, crisp clean air about 65 degrees, blue blue skies. A great day for the annual Plant Festival at Marie Selby Gardens in Sarasota. About an hours drive south of Tampa, it was a nice drive over the Skyway Bridge to Sarasota. The Bay was looking beautiful, with aqua greenish/blue waters, many people were out today on their boats, para-sailing, wake boarding, etc. Selby Gardens is a nice, small Botanical Gardens located right in downtown Sarasota along the Bay, with every type of Florida species of plants, trees and flora, and just nice to hang out, walk around the trails, relax on the many benches with views of downtown Sarasota and the Bay. It was busy today with the Plant Festival, a good friend of mine owns Exotica Nursery in St. Pete, and was showcasing his many species of Bamboo and Palms at the Festival.
This week work takes me to Miami.
Plant and Garden Festival at Marie Selby Gardens
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Tampa: Mad Dogs, Riverwalk, Cigars, Fly, Deborah Harry
It's only Sunday, and what a great weekend so far. Weather turned very cool on Friday, I had to pull out my Winter wool coat for Friday night with temps in the 40's..but we know that doesn't last long as temps during the day bounced back to the 70's on Saturday, clear blue skies, this must be 20 days in a row now.
Friday evening, Darin, Maida, Maggie and I met up at Mad Dog's and Englishmen restaurant, on MacDill Ave in South Tampa. This little neighborhood eatery is joined by many other establishments and shops in the area. It reminds me of an authentic English Pub, with a little bit of decorative style. We got there around 730pm, even though it was chilly, there were people eating and hanging out on the outside patio and bar area, the heaters were all on. We ventured in the restaurant to the bar where Summer quickly took our drink order while we waited for a table. The hostess kept coming by to update us and let us know about how much longer, a great personal touch, we didn't mind waiting. After about 20 minutes we were seated, and the very friendly Becky told us the specials, and made sure we had our drinks. We started with Appetisers of Hummus and Cucumber Salad. WOW, the hummus portion was large and sat on sliced red plumb tomatoes, with Greek olives, and plenty of very fresh, hot, pita triangles. This was so delicious, we didn't want it to stop. Their cucumber salad was very interesting, length wise sliced cucumbers, piled on top of each other crisscrossed in three layers, with the tangiest, delicious, vinaigrette dressing and yet again, we didn't want to stop. For our entrees, we did the Shepard's Pie, not one drop of grease, full with beef, veges, edamame, and creamy mashed potatoes with a very light layer of cheese, crispy yet creamy, and a very large portion; Mad Dog's salad with chicken came out on a large plate, crisp variety of greens, and very tangy, delicious house dressing, and crumbled cheese, with a large grilled breast of chicken, super moist and flavor full; and tempura fried shrimp, 6 HUGE shrimp, lightly battered, with two types of dipping sauces..again, another winner. We couldn't be happier, and demanded the Sous Chef (Tavis) come over to our table to compliment him on his and the Chef's culinary skills. He was wonderful, we chatted for a bit, and he surprised us with tow homeade treats he just made fresh that day, Oatmeal Cookie Ice Cream, and Peppermint Ice Cream..YUM!! A great ending to a perfect meal. After a two hour dinner with great friends and great food..it was time to come home a relax with a fire in the backyard pit, enjoying the crisp air and clear skies.
Saturday morning, John and I decided to partake on the first ever City of Tampa Riverwalk walking tour. There were about 20 of us, most were from out of town, visiting and staying in one of the downtown hotels. Very knowledgeable associates from the city's parks department and also from the Mayor's Youth program went into the very interesting history of Tampa(Seminole Wars, Fort Brooke, Civil War, Spanish American War, Cigar Capital), and led us along the Riverwalk portion from the new Tampa History Center being built next to Channelside, to the Platt Street bridge area currently under construction. In all, the Riverwalk was beautiful, all along the downtown Tampa waterfront, huge yachts lined the channel between Harbour Island and downtown Marriott Waterside, some great views of the downtown skyline. When completed in 2009, it will be nearly a 2.5 mile walkway from Channelside to Tampa Heights area all along the Channel and Hillsborough River downtown. Cafes, Bikers, Joggers, entertainment are to be scattered along the waterfront. It was a great tour, and a perfect morning for it.
Afterwards, we walked over to First Watch restaurant downtown on Tampa Street for Brunch. There was no wait around 1130am, we were promptly seated. Our server was not very friendly, and never checked back with us, and forgot several things we asked for. We ordered one of their omelets, and the Al B Core tuna sandwich. Both orders came with First Watch potatoes, which it seems they could hardly spare as there were maybe a spoonful of diced potatoes on our plates(disappointing because they are tasty), my Tuna sandwich was drenched in mayo, and on what seemed like stale dark wheat bread(something you might feed seagulls with), I just ate the tuna, and left the bread, it also came with a salad which was literally a few shreds of lettuce leaf, with a teaspoon of diced cucumber, were they kidding? I've had some great meals here, and some not so great..I don't think I will be taking my chances again..poor service, poor food, and when we advised the cashier, she just said sorry, and exclaimed that our server always gets complaints(than do something about it!).
John and I then headed over to Ybor City for the annual Cigar Heritage Festival, and Saturday Morning Market. What a great crowd, and the smell of all kinds of cigars, people just relaxing, eating foods from the many vendors, enjoying the live bands, checking out Ybor and the arts and crafts on display, among the many merchants that come by Centennial Park each Saturday morning..there were alot of people milling around Ybor on this beautiful day, and they had a special tent set up for us to watch the college football games.
After a quick nap, Bryan and I went to Fly Bar for some eats and cocktails before heading to see Deborah harry(from Blondie) in concert at Tampa Theater downtown. Fly Bar was happening, it was nice having the outdoor tables, and all the windows wide opened in the very stylish and eclectic restaurant on Franklin Ave downtown. Plenty of microbrews and International beers on tap and bottled, great mixed cocktails menu as well. The place is known for sharing plates of different foods(kind of like tapas). We ordered the Kobe Sliders, Organic Chicken, Wild Mushroom Risotto, and Grilled Asparagus. At first you think "did we order enough food", but then you taste, and the flavors were bold and delicious in all our plates. The sliders were thick and juicy and beefy, the chicken was about a small portion including the little leg, cut up in a warm and delicately mild sauce with brocallini, the risotto was perfectly cooked, moist and tender, with wild mushrooms, and a creamy sauce, the asparagus was very lightly grilled with paper thin slices of cheese. PERFECT, we were very satisfied, but not stuffed. the menu is a little on the pricey side, but the atmosphere, and taste were well worth it. They had a nice high def tv at the bar, where the USF game was on(long story short, I had tickets to tonights last USF home game against Louisville, but by accident I thought the Deborah Harry concert was Friday night, but looked at the ticket and DAMN, it was tonight) After 10pm there is usually a live band or DJ, there is also a great rooftop patio with a bar and music.
It was off to Tampa Theater a few blocks down, we saw people standing around outside and were told the Deborah was not going on for another 40 minutes, so we headed into the Hub, for a stiff cocktail, and some great tunes on the jukebox. Always an interesting crowd at the Hub, and for the money, they best drinks poured in all of Tampa.
Tampa Theater is a one of kind, even for concerts, we had 11th row seats, it was almost like she was singing right to us. Deborah played most of her new songs, very Indie Pop/Alternative, and she gave some great acoustic renderings from her past Blondie tunes like "Heart of Glass". I was a little disappointed that she only played for an hour, and was hoping to hear more Blondie tunes, but it was a good time.
Bryan wanted to meet one of his friends at City Side, and alternative bar in South Tampa, as we walked in it was packed as they were celebrating their 17th anniversary.., very smokey, but they have an outdoor patio, and in the back area a pool table and darts with flat screen tv's showing the college game highlights....i'm not a big fan of the packed bars like this, but they were playing great tunes and had the videos to the tunes playing on the monitors throughout the club, Bryan never met up with his friend.
It's Sunday, and time to take advantage of this great weather today..biking, kayaking, hanging with the kids at the dog beach/park, a festiuval with the family, or maybe some yard work...just need to get out!
Friday evening, Darin, Maida, Maggie and I met up at Mad Dog's and Englishmen restaurant, on MacDill Ave in South Tampa. This little neighborhood eatery is joined by many other establishments and shops in the area. It reminds me of an authentic English Pub, with a little bit of decorative style. We got there around 730pm, even though it was chilly, there were people eating and hanging out on the outside patio and bar area, the heaters were all on. We ventured in the restaurant to the bar where Summer quickly took our drink order while we waited for a table. The hostess kept coming by to update us and let us know about how much longer, a great personal touch, we didn't mind waiting. After about 20 minutes we were seated, and the very friendly Becky told us the specials, and made sure we had our drinks. We started with Appetisers of Hummus and Cucumber Salad. WOW, the hummus portion was large and sat on sliced red plumb tomatoes, with Greek olives, and plenty of very fresh, hot, pita triangles. This was so delicious, we didn't want it to stop. Their cucumber salad was very interesting, length wise sliced cucumbers, piled on top of each other crisscrossed in three layers, with the tangiest, delicious, vinaigrette dressing and yet again, we didn't want to stop. For our entrees, we did the Shepard's Pie, not one drop of grease, full with beef, veges, edamame, and creamy mashed potatoes with a very light layer of cheese, crispy yet creamy, and a very large portion; Mad Dog's salad with chicken came out on a large plate, crisp variety of greens, and very tangy, delicious house dressing, and crumbled cheese, with a large grilled breast of chicken, super moist and flavor full; and tempura fried shrimp, 6 HUGE shrimp, lightly battered, with two types of dipping sauces..again, another winner. We couldn't be happier, and demanded the Sous Chef (Tavis) come over to our table to compliment him on his and the Chef's culinary skills. He was wonderful, we chatted for a bit, and he surprised us with tow homeade treats he just made fresh that day, Oatmeal Cookie Ice Cream, and Peppermint Ice Cream..YUM!! A great ending to a perfect meal. After a two hour dinner with great friends and great food..it was time to come home a relax with a fire in the backyard pit, enjoying the crisp air and clear skies.
Saturday morning, John and I decided to partake on the first ever City of Tampa Riverwalk walking tour. There were about 20 of us, most were from out of town, visiting and staying in one of the downtown hotels. Very knowledgeable associates from the city's parks department and also from the Mayor's Youth program went into the very interesting history of Tampa(Seminole Wars, Fort Brooke, Civil War, Spanish American War, Cigar Capital), and led us along the Riverwalk portion from the new Tampa History Center being built next to Channelside, to the Platt Street bridge area currently under construction. In all, the Riverwalk was beautiful, all along the downtown Tampa waterfront, huge yachts lined the channel between Harbour Island and downtown Marriott Waterside, some great views of the downtown skyline. When completed in 2009, it will be nearly a 2.5 mile walkway from Channelside to Tampa Heights area all along the Channel and Hillsborough River downtown. Cafes, Bikers, Joggers, entertainment are to be scattered along the waterfront. It was a great tour, and a perfect morning for it.
Afterwards, we walked over to First Watch restaurant downtown on Tampa Street for Brunch. There was no wait around 1130am, we were promptly seated. Our server was not very friendly, and never checked back with us, and forgot several things we asked for. We ordered one of their omelets, and the Al B Core tuna sandwich. Both orders came with First Watch potatoes, which it seems they could hardly spare as there were maybe a spoonful of diced potatoes on our plates(disappointing because they are tasty), my Tuna sandwich was drenched in mayo, and on what seemed like stale dark wheat bread(something you might feed seagulls with), I just ate the tuna, and left the bread, it also came with a salad which was literally a few shreds of lettuce leaf, with a teaspoon of diced cucumber, were they kidding? I've had some great meals here, and some not so great..I don't think I will be taking my chances again..poor service, poor food, and when we advised the cashier, she just said sorry, and exclaimed that our server always gets complaints(than do something about it!).
John and I then headed over to Ybor City for the annual Cigar Heritage Festival, and Saturday Morning Market. What a great crowd, and the smell of all kinds of cigars, people just relaxing, eating foods from the many vendors, enjoying the live bands, checking out Ybor and the arts and crafts on display, among the many merchants that come by Centennial Park each Saturday morning..there were alot of people milling around Ybor on this beautiful day, and they had a special tent set up for us to watch the college football games.
After a quick nap, Bryan and I went to Fly Bar for some eats and cocktails before heading to see Deborah harry(from Blondie) in concert at Tampa Theater downtown. Fly Bar was happening, it was nice having the outdoor tables, and all the windows wide opened in the very stylish and eclectic restaurant on Franklin Ave downtown. Plenty of microbrews and International beers on tap and bottled, great mixed cocktails menu as well. The place is known for sharing plates of different foods(kind of like tapas). We ordered the Kobe Sliders, Organic Chicken, Wild Mushroom Risotto, and Grilled Asparagus. At first you think "did we order enough food", but then you taste, and the flavors were bold and delicious in all our plates. The sliders were thick and juicy and beefy, the chicken was about a small portion including the little leg, cut up in a warm and delicately mild sauce with brocallini, the risotto was perfectly cooked, moist and tender, with wild mushrooms, and a creamy sauce, the asparagus was very lightly grilled with paper thin slices of cheese. PERFECT, we were very satisfied, but not stuffed. the menu is a little on the pricey side, but the atmosphere, and taste were well worth it. They had a nice high def tv at the bar, where the USF game was on(long story short, I had tickets to tonights last USF home game against Louisville, but by accident I thought the Deborah Harry concert was Friday night, but looked at the ticket and DAMN, it was tonight) After 10pm there is usually a live band or DJ, there is also a great rooftop patio with a bar and music.
It was off to Tampa Theater a few blocks down, we saw people standing around outside and were told the Deborah was not going on for another 40 minutes, so we headed into the Hub, for a stiff cocktail, and some great tunes on the jukebox. Always an interesting crowd at the Hub, and for the money, they best drinks poured in all of Tampa.
Tampa Theater is a one of kind, even for concerts, we had 11th row seats, it was almost like she was singing right to us. Deborah played most of her new songs, very Indie Pop/Alternative, and she gave some great acoustic renderings from her past Blondie tunes like "Heart of Glass". I was a little disappointed that she only played for an hour, and was hoping to hear more Blondie tunes, but it was a good time.
Bryan wanted to meet one of his friends at City Side, and alternative bar in South Tampa, as we walked in it was packed as they were celebrating their 17th anniversary.., very smokey, but they have an outdoor patio, and in the back area a pool table and darts with flat screen tv's showing the college game highlights....i'm not a big fan of the packed bars like this, but they were playing great tunes and had the videos to the tunes playing on the monitors throughout the club, Bryan never met up with his friend.
It's Sunday, and time to take advantage of this great weather today..biking, kayaking, hanging with the kids at the dog beach/park, a festiuval with the family, or maybe some yard work...just need to get out!
TAMPA RIVERWALK>Looking east towards Channelside, the Forum is on the left
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Stiff Drinks and a Film Festival Downtown Tampa
Im taking off for Chicago today, and wanted to at least participate in the Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (TIGLFF)here in Tampa for two weeks until Sunday the 14th...i'm a HUGE fan of all kinds of movies, and there are usually some great independent movies that rarely make it to main stream, and it's a once a year festival. What I didn't know was that it's the 5th largest Gay and Lesbian Film Festival in the country, and this is the 18th year here in Tampa, and it takes place on both sides of the Bay(Tampa and St. Pete). There is also nothing like the experience of seeing a movie in Tampa Theater.
Prior to the start of the movie, we stopped by another Tampa icon next door to Tampa Theater, The Hub, for some of the stiffest, cheapest drinks in town. A mish-mosh of people in this dive lounge with a great juke box, a few video games and an attached package store, from lawyers and business people just getting off work to the true Hub drinker that had been there since opening to a few college students from nearby University of Tampa.
The movie we went to was "For the Bible Tells Me So"...I knew alot about the bible being raised Catholic, but watching this documentary was very eye opening, especially for those that seem to only choose which parts of the Bible they wish to read and interpret. All in all, it was well done, funny and enlightening and entertaining. A must for those who are closed minded and that believe that according to the Bible, homosexuality is an abomination(hmm, so is eating Shrimp, wearing linen and wool, mixing crops).....
Off to Chitown till next Wednesday!
Prior to the start of the movie, we stopped by another Tampa icon next door to Tampa Theater, The Hub, for some of the stiffest, cheapest drinks in town. A mish-mosh of people in this dive lounge with a great juke box, a few video games and an attached package store, from lawyers and business people just getting off work to the true Hub drinker that had been there since opening to a few college students from nearby University of Tampa.
The movie we went to was "For the Bible Tells Me So"...I knew alot about the bible being raised Catholic, but watching this documentary was very eye opening, especially for those that seem to only choose which parts of the Bible they wish to read and interpret. All in all, it was well done, funny and enlightening and entertaining. A must for those who are closed minded and that believe that according to the Bible, homosexuality is an abomination(hmm, so is eating Shrimp, wearing linen and wool, mixing crops).....
Off to Chitown till next Wednesday!
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
A Night at Tampa Theater...
So The Police were at the Forum tonight, and I opted to go see an Independent Foreign Film at Tampa Theater, besides $200 is a bit too steep for the old rockers. We picked up some dinner to go and sat outside the Tampa Theater on Franklin Street in the TECO Plaza area. It felt cooler than usual evening sitting in the shade of the trees and TECO building, admiring a piece of Tampa history. It seems it doesn't matter what show you go to at Tampa Theater, it is just a great establishment, with over 80 years of stories insides its walls.
"La Vie en Rose" is a true story about Edith Piaf, one of France's most beloved singers and a national Icon. At first I was like who is this person, and subtitles, im not sure about this one, but thankfully it turned out to be an awesome movie, great story line, amazing acting. Its great to watch a movie you know nothing about, and then want to come home and learn more about the person. I was truly moved by this one, and subtitles were no bother at all.
"La Vie en Rose" is a true story about Edith Piaf, one of France's most beloved singers and a national Icon. At first I was like who is this person, and subtitles, im not sure about this one, but thankfully it turned out to be an awesome movie, great story line, amazing acting. Its great to watch a movie you know nothing about, and then want to come home and learn more about the person. I was truly moved by this one, and subtitles were no bother at all.
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