Caramel Cafe, Tampa

Last weekend when I was in Tampa, Jeff (the meat eater) and I (the vegan) got a recommendation from a friend to try out Caramel Cafe & Wine Bar in South Tampa.  Great recommendation!

They don't take reservations on Saturday evenings, and the wait for a table was not bad. Menus are uniquely on iPads.  When you want to order an item, you just select it, type in special instructions -- i.e. "plz make vegan" or "no mash sub quinoa."

Only order what you're ready to eat, because the food will come out  minutes after you hit the "place order" button. We ordered tapas-style, choosing one item at a time so it would come out fresh.  The waiter came by periodically to refill water, but other drinks were also ordered from the iPad.

Red Pepper Muhammarra

 Our first food item was the Red Pepper Muhammarra, a specific recommendation from our friend.  With the consistency of a red pepper hummus, muhammarra is a Middle-Eastern dish typically made with pepper, walnuts, olive oil and pomegranate. It was fantastic and unique dish that had great flavor and both the vegan and meat eater devoured it.

Chickpea Frites

Chickpea Frites were especially intriguing and ordered next.  When I asked if they had egg in them, the waiter responded, "No, they're vegan." (awesome!)

As a side note, its always good when the wait staff is thoroughly informed and educated about the food they are serving. They fact that they can rattle off whether a dish is vegan, vegetarian or contains honey is impressive and shows that they are an informed and integral part of the restaurant's team -- as they should be when they are the face of the restaurant when dealing with a customer!

The vegan Chickpea Frites had the consistency of mashed potatoes formed within a delicately fried frame. They were served with tomato jam made from tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, and spice which was delicious and I would rather have in the place of ketchup for everything!  It was also served with a curry aioli - not vegan - but which Jeff thoroughly enjoyed. 

Edamame Hummus (partly eaten, we get so excited about the

 food

 we forget to take pics)

Edamame hummus was ordered next.  It too had great flavor and consistency.  I liked that the rice chips served with it were bland and their sole purpose was to serve as a vehicle for delivering the hummus.  I did not inquire as to whether this was vegan and just assumed it was.  The day after I had stomach pains and Jeff thought that the Edamame hummus may have had a dairy product in it.  I can usually tell immediately, however this one alluded me, if so.  The vegan diner should ask if ordering this dish.

Vegetable Platter with Apricot Couscous in the middle

For my main dish, which Jeff partook in, I had the Roasted Vegetable Platter ("no mash sub quinoa").  The vegetables - broccoli, cauliflower, grilled onions, carrots, zucchini and onions --were freshly grilled or broiled sans any sort of meaty or smokey flavor. Just clean grilled vegetables.  I substituted the mashed potatoes for an apricot couscous -  slightly sweet and a must try.

Jeff had the Ceviche to himself.  He thought it was fantastic (ate it so fast I couldn't get a picture!).  He was not a fan of the rice-chips served with it however.  He felt regular tortilla style chips would be better and are his preferred delivery mechanism for ceviche generally.

Overall, this was a fantastic date-night dinner location.  Great atmosphere where the wait staff didn't have to be included in the date but where very helpful and appeared only when needed.  We've since recommended it to other friends in the Tampa area.  The vegan & meat-eater  will definitely be back!
 

Tapas Tuesday at Ceviche

The last time I visited Jeff down in Tampa we decided to try out Tapas Tuesdays at Ceviche. Tapas Tuesday’s big appeal is $4 tapas, $4 sangria, and live salsa music.  

Jeff and I had a busy day and didn’t get there until about 8:00.  We’d been told there was valet parking if you get there before 7pm – someone can correct me if I’m wrong.  Ceviche’s was packed, which was good sign when trying out a place for the first time. 

Live salsa music was playing inside, we put our name on the wait list for a table, got drinks and then hung out on the patio-deck awaiting our table. 

It was a hot night but we had cold drinks, good company, and Ceviche’s had a fun up tempo atmosphere.  We waited about 30 minutes until we were seated at a table inside. 

Bread with olive oil & pesto

Inside the restaurant was hot, loud, and filled with people.  It was hard to talk across the table, but the salsa music was good and the restaurant décor had a vibrant, yet at-home flavor.

We were immediately served bread with olive oil and pesto – which is a nice change from the standard butter or simply olive oil you usually find at restaurants.  No cheese in the pesto, and it was fresh and fantastic.

The vegan and the meat eater found numerous options on the menu.  We ordered five tapas dishes:

Baba Ganoush – described as roasted eggplant with tahini, garlic, olive oil, served with toast points. 

Corazones de Alcachofas – marinated artichoke hearts, sweet onions, hearts of palm and caper berries.

Pipirrana- “beautiful salad with faboda beans, crispy cucumbers, capers, tomatoes, sweet peppers and onion in Jerez vinegar.

Champinones del Monte – Grilled and marinated woodland mushrooms with garli, olice oil, fresh herbs and sherry.

Calamares Frites – Tender squid lightly dusted in seasoned flour and fried crispy, served with lemon and paprika aioli. 

Corazones de Alcachofas on the left, Baba Ganoush on the right

I found the baba ganoush to be mostly tahini and the texture not consistent throughout, it was almost just tahini butter in places.  That being said, I couldn’t taste any eggplant, though I presume the eggplant gave the dish it’s light and fluffy consistency.  It had a nutty flavor and I preferred it with the veggies rather than the toast points. The toast points don’t do it any favors and Jeff simply did not like the dish at all.

 

Corazones del Alcahofas

The capers, artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, and onions in the Corazones del Alcahofas were an excellent combination together mixed in a light oil and vinegar marinade.  The vegetables were tender and had a refreshing crisp flavor.

  

Pipirrana Salad, eggs on Jeff's side, cucumber on mine.

The Pipirrana salad was indeed a beautiful array of colorful vegetables.  It did come with hard boiled eggs, but I just turned them towards my meat eater’s side of the table and we shared the salad. The vinegar on the salad was just the right amount and overall the salad had great flavor. The faboda beans and capers were excellent additions that really made the salad. 

Champinones del Monte

The Champinones del Monte can best be described as the best marinara sauce you’ve ever had, prior to it being sauced. This was probably my favorite and a great blend of veggies in oil and vinegar.  

I was most impressed with the freshness of all the dishes and how light the oil and vinegar were - just enough to compliment the veggies and blend the flavors.  The marinades were never heavy and oppressive.  Just right.

  

Jeff with his Calamares Frites & Sangria

Jeff will have to add his comments [here] on the Calamari Frites – we took notes in the restaurant but I can’t read his writing and wouldn’t want to confuse “dusting” with “disgusting.”  I do know, however, he had some strong words for the baba ganoush. 

As we enjoyed our meal and the night went on, it became significantly less noisy with fewer people and Ceviche's was really quite pleasant.  The best features of Tapas Tuesdays were the live salsa music and $4 tapas – and of course good company makes it all the better.  I highly recommend you try it out, but get there early!