EATS! American Grill

Sometimes you just want to go where everybody knows your name. Or maybe just to a spot where you can go as you are and be enveloped in a warm easy-going environment of good food and good drinks. That spot is EATS!

Eats American Grill is a casual American eatery in Tampa that serves up classic American comfort foods. I visited EATS on a Saturday afternoon and there were plenty of regular customers on hand. These frequent EATS diners had nothing but wonderful things to say about this Tampa eatery! 

My meal started with Saratoga Potato Chips. While many restaurants are eliminating the complimentary bread basket, EATS is serving up housemade fresh potato chips to their guests. The chips are served with a cool Saratoga dipping sauce. It is hard not to fill up on chips while you ponder over the menu! 

EATS has a big variety of dinner salads, sandwiches, and entrees to choose from. I knew I wanted to try one of the new menu items EATS offers. This was a really tough choice! I wanted to try the Houseblend Burger (bacon and Angus beef on a brioche bun), the Rib and Mac sandwich (rib meat, mac and cheese, and onion on Texas Toast), and the Tree Dog Mad Sweet Chicken (grilled chicken breast with Tree Dog onion salsa and cheese, baked). Don't they all sound amazing? These are just a few of the new menu items EATS recently added to their lineup. Once my eyes found the new Mahi Fish Tacos, my mind was made up. 

The Mahi Fish Tacos can be ordered blackened, grilled, or fried. The fresh fish is served on a warm flour tortilla with cabbage, fire roasted corn salsa, and EATS signature spicy sauce. A rice pilaf accompanies the tacos. Here are some close-up shots of the tacos. As you can see, the mahi is fresh and flaky, and the corn salsa is filled with diced peppers for an extra kick. The EATS spicy sauce is definitely spicy. Maybe not for you big heat seekers but it's spicy enough for me - a big wimp when it comes to seriously spicy food! Speaking of spice - did you know EATS was featured on a Food Network episode of Heat Seekers? Pretty cool! 

While I was at EATS I also wanted to try some of their macaroni and cheese. When a restaurant has a good homemade mac and cheese, you can't pass it up. Check out this fresh baked dish of deliciousness! I could have eaten a whole meal of this mac and cheese and been happy. It was topped with crispy bacon bits. 

Even though I was full at this point I wanted to make sure I tried one of the new dessert items, an Ice Cream Truffle! I can't resist ice cream. EATS offers 3 truffle choices: The Manhattan, Cookies and Cream, and Strawberry Cheesecake. This was another very hard decision! I decided to go with the Cookies and Cream truffle. The truffle is ice cream in a crispy chocolate shell with whipped cream. It was a perfect ending to an afternoon meal. On my next visit to EATS I look forward to trying the Fried Oreo Sundae and the Pineapple Upside Down Cake. 

EATS is located near Gandy and Dale Mabry - a short drive for us St. Pete folks! EATS will welcome you with whatever you're in the mood for. Whether it's a cold beer, a BLT, or some classic Apple Pie, EATS serves up good classic American comfort food with a lot of heart!

Special thanks to Tracy from My Other City by the Bay for introducing me to EATS!

Check out what others are saying about EATS on UrbanSpoon

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Brunch at Mangroves

Mangroves Restaurant in Tampa recently added Sunday brunch to their lineup. The new brunch menu joins hands with a dinner menu, full bar, and nightlife scene to make Mangroves a go-to spot in the Tampa SoHo area. I recently had the pleasure of trying some of the new brunch items. Mangroves does a great job of putting a new twist on some traditional brunch items.

Let's start with the cocktails - Bloody Mary's and mimosa's are available along with the regular bar menu. I had a couple of mimosa's (my favorite) and the Bloody Mary's get a thumbs up as well. We all need our daily dose of fruit and veggies, right?

Chicken and Bacon Waffles - a bacon infused waffle topped with crispy fried chicken and maple syrup. The fried chicken tender had a great flavor and crispiness to it. The bacon flavor was not overpowering in the waffle.

Eggs Benedict and Eggs Florentine - poached egg on a brioche roll, topped with hollandaise sauce. The Benedict has Canadian Bacon and the Florentine has creamed spinach. I really enjoyed the flavor and crunch of the crispy brioche roll. 

Truffled Scrambled Eggs - scrambled eggs infused with truffle, in a phyllo cup and topped with tobiko. Definitely not your mama's scrambled eggs! The eggs were fluffy and great, but I would have enjoyed this just the same without the tobiko on top. 

Grilled Cheese Sandwich and Cobb Salad - The sandwich had bacon, mango, and brie on a toasted brioche bun. The Cobb salad had avocado, bacon, blue cheese, red onions, tomato, and mixed baby greens. This was my 2nd favorite dish. I am a recent convert to brie cheese, so this was fantastic for me! The brie was perfectly melted and pairs well with the mango. You really can't go wrong with this option! 

Grand Marnier French Toast - this was my favorite dish on the brunch menu! Perfectly tender french toast with a hint of sweetness, it was almost like a dessert. I felt the only thing the french toast was missing was a little whipped cream and/or some fresh berries on top. It was a heavenly dish and I would gladly eat it again and again. I have been thinking about it since Sunday! 

All brunch dishes are served with sweet potato hash - diced sweet potato and bell peppers.

Brunch at Mangroves also features live music. The singer of the day was good. She played a lot of female lead songs from the 90s, like The Cranberry's and Sixpence None the Richer. Check out this cool disco ball! 

Outdoor seating is available

Cool interior design

Mangroves new brunch menu features everything you could want on a Sunday morning. Prices are reasonable between $9-$14. The next time you are in Tampa's SoHo neighborhood, be sure to check out Mangroves - for brunch, dinner, or a hip night spot.

Which brunch dish at Mangrove's would you most like to try?

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Papa Murphy's Pizza

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's... pizza?! Papa Murphy's Pizza is making it rain pizza on Thursday February 7th at 6pm. YOU are invited to join Papa Murphy's for this event, where goodies will be tossed down to guests from a hot air balloon. Prizes include gift cards, pizza, and party packages. A few lucky guests may also win free pizza for a year. This fun and family friendly event will take place on the USF Golf Course at 3801 North 46th Street in Tampa.

Papa Murphy's is opening a new location in Tampa at 5383 Ehrlich Road, Suite 105. A portion of all proceeds at this store from Thursday February 7th-14th will be donated to Williams Syndrome Association, to help send local children to a music therapy camp.

Fresh pizzas baked at home

So what is Papa Murphy's? Fresh take and bake pizzas. Stop by a Papa Murphy's on your way home from work, order a pizza, and pop it in the oven when you get home. No more greasy delivery pizza or frost bit freezer pizzas! The best part is that the pizzas are made to order and completely customizable. Papa Murphy's uses only fresh ingredients, and your pizzas will be made right in front of you. Check out the Papa Murphy's menu here.

Which pizza from the Papa Murphy's menu would you like to try?

The Heart Baker - available for Valentine's Day

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Dreaming of sushi

Jiro dreams of sushi. Do you? Why yes, I do. I dream of lump crab meat, asparagus, and scallions, topped with filet mignon and eel sauce, then torched (Vue 19 Surf n Turf). I dream of Hook's Toyko Love Story Roll which is no longer on the menu (BOO!). I dream of sushi shared with friends, and of a day where I can use chopsticks correctly!

Here are some of the sushi adventures I have had this month:

Yoko's Japanese Restaurant - soft shell crab, spicy tuna, Hurricane, & Volcano

Sushi Rock Grill delivered by 727 Food Now - Krazy Zobe, California, & Bang Bang Chicken

Chopstick Express - California roll
Yes, sushi via drive thru!

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Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar

I recently made my first visit to Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar in Tampa. My sweetheart picked Fleming's for his birthday dinner after falling in love with their steak during several work dinners with various vendors. He claimed that Flemings is the best steak he's had in Tampa.

We arrived at Fleming's around 8pm on a Tuesday night. The parking lot, bar, and dining room were still relatively full. The food menu is 2 pages, and the wine menu is huge! I ordered a glass of champagne, and skipped the wine. Maybe next time.

We started with our appetizers: Sweet Chile Calamari ($13.95) and Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes ($15.95). These were gone before I even remembered to take a picture. The sweet chile sauce on the calamari was light and not overbearing at all. The crab cakes were full of real crab meat, and no filler! The crab meat was tossed with red pepper and lime butter sauce. The 2 crab cakes were worth every penny and were the best crab cakes I've ever had.

Classic Caesar salad 

The biggest downside to Fleming's is the a la carte menu. If you are ordering steak you get just that - steak. (Note: There are a few exceptions to this, but not many. Check the menu for details.) Any salad or side items are optional and will cost you extra. The good news is that the side items are large and big enough to share with 2 or 3 others. Sides range in price from $7.95 to $9.95 . Side options include potatoes prepared to your liking (baked, mashed, loaded, or fried), veggies (corn, spinach, green beans, asparagus, mushrooms), and Chipotle Cheddar Mac and Cheese. 4 varieties of salads are available, and range in price from $8.50 to $9.50.

Half and Half - fries and onion rings

Sautéed mushrooms

Grilled asparagus

The steaks at Fleming's are USDA aged prime beef, and seasoned with only salt and pepper. They are broiled at 1600 degrees to the doneness of your choosing. I ordered the Lite Filet Mignon which is around 6 ounces and actually came with a side of Fleming's potatoes ($35.95). The peppercorns on the outside of the steak were a little too big and coarse for my taste. Luckily, a quick swipe with my fork easily removed the offenders.

Lite filet mignon

Prime bone-in ribeye

We were too full to order dessert. The best part of the night was that the server presented us with a $25 gift card for our next visit for celebrating a birthday there. I have never seen a restaurant present something so valuable for a birthday, and I thought it was pretty awesome! Thanks, Flemings!

So does Fleming's cook the best steak in Tampa? You will have to pay them a visit and decide for yourself.

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