Editor’s note: Chris Bartlett, co-founder and co-host of Worth Tasting, contributed to this column.
With the New Year upon us, now is the time to plan those 2024 vacations. Here’s a destination to consider, especially for epicureans, those who are passionate about food and drink and unique culinary experiences.
Where beach meets city, and Bayshore Boulevard hugs Tampa Bay, the neighborhoods of Hyde Park Village and Soho (South of Howard Avenue) in Florida rise high like glittering sapphires. Two sparkling gems, shimmering with fantastic facets of art, culture, Southern hospitality and of course, culinary delights. It is here that comfortable walking shoes could be considered your greatest, easiest and most desirous method of transportation.
From the jaw-dropping Bayshore Estates to beautifully appointed and architecturally crafted bungalows, being on foot between the sleek Epicurean Hotel and Hyde Park Village is essential, if one cares to bathe in the magical coziness of both the inviting exteriors of the private homes and sublime commercial hub that punctuate the streets with sizzle and style.
It takes less than two minutes of moving about Soho and Hyde Park Village to know something special is in the air. Somehow, in an instant, life feels easier and friendlier here. A calming happiness seems to spill into its atmosphere.
The Epicurean Hotel at 1207 S. Howard Ave., https://bit.ly/4aCUJqA, was developed in collaboration with the legendary Bern’s Steak House across the street. The hotel’s food theme prevails throughout the property. Wooden sides of wine crates adorn the walls and ceiling at the wine-themed check-in desk. Of course, I was mesmerized by the sitting areas with bookshelves filled with vintage cookbooks available for sale, with proceeds going to a culinary scholarship fund.
Hundreds of handwritten recipe cards have been turned into a work of art in one of the dining rooms. The artwork throughout the property conveys one of four food themes: grow, create, imbibe and indulge. Even the light fixtures aside the room numbers are etched with food- and wine-related items.
When people think of resorts, they think of golf, spa and theme park resorts. Think of the Epicurean as a culinary resort, with the “theme park” being the world-famous Bern’s Steak House, right across the street.
Cooking and wine classes as well as meetings take place in the state-of-the-art tiered Epicurean Theatre. The late Bern Laxer strongly believed that in the business of food and wine, one must be a student for life.
Edge, the hotel’s rooftop bar, is the place to be to enjoy craft cocktails, wine, beer and small plates. It’s the perfect location for sunset views and taking in eclectic works of art.
The stunning Lobby Bar features chef inspired plates plus a cocktail program that showcases well-made classics, while highlighting creative signature offerings. The Elevage Burger is a fresh take on the classic with cheddar, bread and butter pickles topped with comeback sauce.
We are told the menus change seasonally; however one foodie-favorite dish remains on the Lobby Bar menu; the Homage to Bern’s (shaved ribeye, caramelized onion, Alpine cheese on focaccia), a nod to the Epicurean’s legendary neighbor, Bern’s Steak House.
Bern’s Fine Wines & Spirits is right off the lobby. How convenient! Bern’s Steak House has accumulated one of the largest, private collections of wines assembled in the world. Sommeliers will help you find the most interesting wines, many not available in most wine shops.
Across from the hotel’s entrance is Chill Bros. Scoop Shop.
“At Epicurean, we’re all about food and fun, so we’re thrilled to partner with Chill Bros., whose dedication to quality mixes so sweetly with ours,” said the Epicurean’s general manager, Shawn Routen.
Throughout my stay I was eyeing the featured flavors, Malty Millionaire (velvety vanilla malt ice cream filled with bite size millionaire’s shortbread squares and thick swirls of salted caramel), and Apple Pie (cinnamon vanilla ice cream, homemade apple butter, Granny Smith apples cooked to perfection with brown sugar, flakey homemade pie crust sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.) Which would be your choice? Perhaps both . . . need sampling!
Evangeline, the on-site full-service spa, offers a recipe for relaxation with a delectable variety of treatments. The epicurean theme extends here with treatments such as “Champagne Tub & Table for Two,” “Crushed Cabernet Body Treatment,” “Hot Whiskey Scour Massage,” “Bern’s Bourbon on the Rocks Foot Treatment” and what I indulged in, the ”Dulce Delight Body Wrap,” which began with a coffee salt exfoliant of Arabica bean extract that energizes, exfoliates and soothes dry skin.
Then, a full- body, dark-chocolate mask was applied before I was wrapped in a cocoon enhancing absorption and detoxification. After showering off, a sweet cream milk body massage completed the “feast” for the body.
Dinner at Elevage SOHO Kitchen & Bar, the hotel’s restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and brunch, is headed up by Executive Chef Jonathan Atanacio.
As the restaurant website states, “Whether you want to call them epicureans, foodies or gourmands, we’re crafting dining experiences that speak to lovers of life’s great flavors.”
We can attest to those flavors with the dinner savored. The pumpkin soup poured tableside incorporated apple, quince, and sage. The pickled beets, served with arugula, feta cheese and cucumber is drizzled with a delicate, red wine vinaigrette. The creative preparation of the roasted Chilean seabass (figs, sunchoke, turnip, pearl onion, apple brown butter) lives up to the quote above with flavors so well-orchestrated.
The Mediterranean Caesar Salad bursts with flavor and color. The Diver Sea Scallops are accompanied with chestnut risotto, kalettes, leeks and just enough tasso butter to tantalize the palate. To top off this epicurean experience, was the Fall Harvest Cobbler (apple, fig, pear, dates, topped with peanut brittle ice cream) and the Flourless Chocolate Brownie adorned with peanut butter swirl ice cream and peanut brittle chocolate sauce. Wine connoisseurs will appreciate the all-encompassing wine list. It is “approachable to the wallet” Atanacio said. Scotch and whiskies number well over 100.
Eating dinner at Bern’s Steak House is a dining experience like no other. This is a place where the book does not look like the cover . . . Upon entering, you are taken back in time. A previous guest described the lobby as “Harry Potter meets luxury brothel.”
Caviar lovers will be impressed with the 16 choices. If you can’t find a cut of beef to your liking, you won’t find it anywhere. If beef isn’t your thing, there is poultry and seafood. Steak entrees include French onion soup au gratin, steak house salad, baked potato, onion rings and vegetable tasting of the evening, quite often from Bern’s farm.
I upgraded to the Soup Tasting: a trio of French onion, vichyssoise and lobster bisque. The petit filet mignon, the “turf” of the Surf & Turf was cooked to perfection, a treat for me since I rarely eat beef. I thought, if I was going to enjoy a steak, it had to be here. The “surf” was blackened Day Boat scallops.
My dining partner savored the lump crab cake, chock full of tender crab surrounded by a splash of Green Goddess. An entrée of roasted snapper was accompanied by potato puree, Hen-of-the-Woods (mushrooms), and arugula, topped with white truffle beurre blanc.
Oenophiles will be in paradise with an almost 200-page wine list. Bern’s has 500,000-plus bottles and 6,500 unique labels. Guests can also choose from 150 wines by the glass starting at $10 to a $30,000 bottle. The cellar is one of the most respected and largest collections in the world. After dinner, guests are offered a tour of the massive kitchen and wine cellars. We were given a tour of the meat aging room as well.
And then it was off to the Harry Waugh Dessert Room, one of the most famous and popular aspects of Bern’s. I was in heaven, with more than 50 house-made desserts to choose from with more than 1,000 dessert wines and spirits plus creative, specialty coffee drinks. The dessert room was built as a tribute to Harry Waugh, an internationally known and respected wine connoisseur, director of Chateau Latour and good friend to Laxer. California redwood wine holding tanks were used to create private booths. You have to see it to believe it.
I indulged with the banana cheese pie, a banana cream cheese mousse in an almond praline crust with fresh bananas and whipped cream. The recipe, which has not changed, dates to 1956, and was one of Laxer’s favorites. The server didn’t have to talk me into trying the Macadamia Nut Ice Cream. This secret recipe was developed by Laxer. He tested and retested the formula hundreds of times before he was satisfied with the results — a sweet, creamy ice cream with buttered, roasted macadamia nuts.
Our other dessert, peanut butter and chocolate, a match made in heaven, shone in the Peanut Butter Truffle (Oreo brownie, crunchy peanut butter, peanut butter mousse, caramel milk chocolate mousse, with a generous scoop of peanut butter fudge swirl ice cream). This dessert extravaganza was the crème de la crème!
Everything about Forbici Modern Italian says welcome, and exudes a European charm, from the casual yet modern space to the fresh approach to the most beloved, Italian classics — think scrumptious, house-made pastas, pizzas, sandwiches and salads. This place has character.
And it has super-approachable twists on each of these classics thanks to the vision and understanding of fundamental recipes that Executive Chef Raymond Ortiz applies to the creation of each new dish. In his desire to keep things fresh, Ortiz features six new recipes (a pizza, pasta, protein, salad, sandwich and dessert) monthly both to excite his team and to delight his family of customers.
From expertly prepared and served fried calamari to the Cup and Char pizza (dough takes three days to be ready and is cut using special scissors, forbici in Italian), we reveled in one taste sensation after another. Beautifully sauced, steamed mussels — so great we wanted to slurp it. Luscious meatballs that were tender, yet flavor packed. The FGT salad (fried green tomato) left us craving for more, that good, and a creative approach for a salad.
The most moist and soft textured Lemon Olive Oil Cake ever swept our taste buds far away to Italy, where dining alfresco is one of life’s richest pleasures. And on that sweet note, we bid Chef Raymond, “ciao” as we made our way onto a day made better from the joy and passion we experienced for food and hospitality at Forbici Modern Italian.
From The Salty (a must!) for an exquisitely tantalizing donut (think decadence) to Oddfellows Ice Cream (Yes, the flavor combinations are that unusual, but amazing) to Buddy Brew (the coffee roaster has a social mission called “Brew Good, Do Good”).
Hyde Park feels like it has an eternal spring of culinary spots popping up for bites, beverages and specialty treats any time of day. While busily walking both to and from our main meals, we couldn’t help ourselves from stopping by to give at least one thing from each place a try.
The Hyppo, creates an array of super-fresh ice pops using every fruit and flavor imaginable. Not only are they visually bursting with vibrant colors, but your taste buds will thank you for the delectable treat. A culinary-merchandise market stop-by at Fig & Julep (one of the best we’ve ever shopped) proved to be a delight. So worth a visit. They have a remarkable, curated collection of local, regional, and national food products from honey to tea, maple syrup to phenomenal soup blends. Truly something special for any foodie.
Finding ourselves needing something to nosh on between meals, we opted to try a freshly made Caprese Panini at Sweet Sorrento. And while it was exactly what we wanted — tasty and like we’ve had in Italy, it took willpower to forgo the menagerie of homemade Italian desserts that was staring out at us.
Mid-afternoon heat drove us into CineBistro for a showing of the 1980s classic film “Planes, Trains & Automobiles.” The elegant theater, complete with a huge, quintessential lobby bar, and eight cinemas, offers in-seat delivery of everything from their full libations and extensive food menus. This place is classy. A fun, tasty and unique experience.
Needing a break from eating, we found ourselves quickly swept up in all the hubbub going on over at The CandlePour. It’s truly exciting and engaging to experience candle making from the focal point of creating “ones unique essential oil blend” then using it to infuse the scent and final aroma the candle will emit. We cannot express how much fun this was. A do not miss stop.
Interestingly, we found ourselves at Goody Goody (a classic diner and part of Tampa’s culinary history), not once, but three times. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert are all delicious, fresh and plentiful. The flashback theme and servers both give the place a charm and warmth that’s also reminiscent of simpler, happier times, when local, community life meant everything to its people, and gathering at the table fostered good relationships.
With a seemingly endless number of interesting food establishments and diverse restaurants, here are a few that “got away this time” but are high on the list for our next visit.
We skipped Bar Taco despite being fans, simply because we’ve enjoyed it before, and in other cities. The Italian Steakhouse, Timpano, was always bustling and had quite the elegant appeal. Since we were already going to Bern’s Steakhouse, it simply was a no-go this time. We were unable to fit in a visit to Haven, the newest member of the Bern’s family, specializing in the concept of crafted, cultured and cellared.
From what was mentioned, the menu features fresh, approachable cuisine and a diverse beverage program. The “newish” Meat Market Steakhouse Tampa looks to be very hip and happening with a great crowd, and menu, but we needed one more day in the neighborhood to make it there. The popular On Swann piqued our interest from our first stroll by, with its inviting, minimalist-bistro space. Both the thoughtful lunch and dinner menus would be incredible to eat-our-way-through each subsequent visit.
The sophisticated and delectable looking Ro, with an exquisite, Japanese/Asian menu featuring sushi, sashimi and Korean BBQ, appears to be where we need to eat on our very next night in the neighborhood.
Stephen Fries, is professor emeritus and former coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College in New Haven, Conn. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 15 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven. He is a board member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Email him at Stephen@stephenfries.com For more information, go to stephenfries.com.
