Columbia Restaurant

My brother, Jason, is a total Foodie. So when I hear him in rhapsody over a restaurant, I know it’s going to be a phenomenal experience. Case in point: the Columbia Restaurant in Tampa, FL. Columbia is the oldest Latin restaurant in Florida and one of its Top 25 restaurants overall. It opened in 1905 and has since been named an All-American Icon — only one of 50 restaurants in the country to have the honor as bestowed by Nation’s Restaurant News. The food is influenced by the cuisine of old Spain and on certain nights, even have extraordinary flamenco shows to complete the experience.

After attending a NY Yankees vs. Tampa Bay Rays game this past Sunday, the Hubs and I decided to stop by. Jason had also told me that the decor was as outstanding as the food. I thought he was talking about the interior but lo and behold, I found these tiled beauties on the exterior of the building.

One image just a bit closer

(above) Click to Zoom

A smaller tiled mural is right next to this bigger one.

There were also several beautiful elements in the interior design. They have fifteen (15) dining rooms in total and each is as interesting and different as the previous one. The restaurant itself is 52,000 square feet. Click here for more information and to read about their fascinating history. Below are images I took and some pulled from their website.

Reception (left) and the view — with painted columns and ornaments — from our table (right)

Cafe Dining Room

The Red Dining Room with an allover design on the walls

The Kings Room -- love the tiled chair rail.

Oh, yes. You may be wondering about the food. Although we did not have the 1905 Salad (rated one of America’s best salads by USA Today), we did have amazing tapas, paella, sangria and decadent desserts. [And hey, thousands of Facebook fans can't be wrong.] Our fantastic waitress, Megan, practically had to roll us out of there with both our stomachs and eyes happy. What could be better?