727 Food Now

I am very excited to share with you a service I am sure I will be using a lot! FoodNow is a new local food delivery service - delivering your favorite restaurant meals straight to your front door.

There are currently 13 restaurants that can be delivered to my zip code including Grattzi, Bowled, and Fred Fleming's. I have heard that Casita Taqueria will be added soon. The order process is simple - visit their website, place your order, and answer the door when the delivery driver shows up. The only extra fee you will pay is a convenience fee, ranging from $3.99 to $7.99. The restaurants have minimum delivery orders as well.

I am looking forward to placing an order with FoodNow this week!

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TacoSon Mexican Grill - St. Pete location

Welcome to St. Pete, TacoSon!

TacoSon Mexican Grill has been open in Tampa for over a year. Today (December 4^th) is the grand opening of their St. Petersburg location. TacoSon St. Pete is located in the former home of Panchero’s Mexican Grill on 22^nd Avenue North. Since this is so close to home, I had high hopes of good Mexican food to make up for the waste of space that was Panchero’s.

I decided to take a chance and see how TacoSon was doing on their first day of St. Pete business. The grand opening special, tacos for 99 cents, drew me in. How could I pass that up? In addition, it would help me figure out how much potential the place has. If they can’t make a good taco, how good can they really be? I ordered 5 soft tacos on flour tortillas: 2 Pollo (chicken), 2 Carne Asada (steak), and 1 Cochinita Pibil (shredded pork). I also ordered a small Chips and Guacamole for $1.50 and a medium fountain soda ($1.89). Grand total was $9.92 after tax and tip. Not bad for lunch for 2 people.

Sauces on the table - chimichurri and TBD?

The order is placed with the cashier, and the food is brought to your table once it is prepared. I waited less than 5 minutes for my to go order to be ready. Driving to TacoSon, placing my order, and driving home took less than 15 minutes round trip.

5 soft tacos topped with cilantro, tomato, and onions

The tacos are served with shredded cabbage, onions, cilantro, and tomatoes. Soft tacos normally run $1.99. Cheese is an additional 25 cents per taco and sour cream is 30 cents (dislike!). Hard tacos include cheese and sour cream for $1.99. The Carne Asada was very salty to me, and very fatty. The chicken was well marinated, and the pork was tender and moist. The guacamole was smooth and pale. I wondered if it is mixed with sour cream? It was nowhere near as good as Chipotle’s guacamole, but for $1.50 the price is right. The guacamole was filled with cilantro, onions, and tomatoes. A large Chips and Guacamole is $4.50. Also available are Chips and Salsa ($1.25 small, $2.25 large) and Queso and Chips ($1.75 small, $4.50 large).

I will definitely pay TacoSon another visit in a few weeks. In addition to tacos, they have other Mexican classics (burritos, tortas, tostadas, flautas, chimichangas, nachos, and ceviche). They also serve breakfast: scrambled eggs, tomatoes, onions, cheese, your choice of meat (chorizo, ham, turkey ham) in a burrito, taco, totra, or plato. TacoSon runs daily specials, which are $5.75 for lunch and $6.75 for dinner.

www.tacosonmexicangrill.com

2510 22^nd Avenue North

St. Petersburg, FL 33713

727-851-9800

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Other notable dining experiences

Below are some notable dining experiences I have had over the past few months:

Roy's Restaurant
"Hawaiian fusion cuisine"
Tampa, FL
Crispy pork belly, trout, hot chocolate souffle

Stonewood Grill and Tavern
"Oak grilled steaks and fresh seafood"
Brandon, FL
Steak and bleu cheese flatbread, filet and portobello ravioli, coconut cake

Conch Republic 
"Grill and raw bar"
North Redington Beach, FL
Calamari, potato skins, tilapia, fish tacos, seafood pasta

Cafe Alma
"Tapas, wine bar, grill"
St. Petersburg, FL
Crab stuffed mushrooms, wild mushroom ravioli

Sorry, no pictures right now... but that gives me an excuse to go back.

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Update on my Bucket List of Tampa Bay restaurants

I have been doing plenty of restaurant exploration,  I just have not had time to update my blog. My goal for 2012 is to take far better care of my sweet blog. Pun intended :)
Below is an updated list of restaurants in Tampa Bay that I want to try. I have bolded the items I have completed so far.

400 Beach Seafood Tap House
Burrito Boarder
Cafe Alma - Completed!
Carmelita's Mexican
Capital Grill
Cassis American Brasserie - Completed (drinks and dessert only)
Ceviche
The Hangar Restaurant and Flight Lounge - Completed
J Alexander's
The Lobster Pot
Parkshore Grill
Red Mesa Cantina - Completed
Ruth's Chris Steak House
Square One Burgers
Wright's Gourmet House

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