Best Restaurants for Groups in Ybor City

We had our reservation for Thanksgiving at 2:00pm arrived early but were seated a before our time. We had a nice seat on a corner. Our server Kelly was the best. Very attentive and knowledgeable. We ordered the Brussels sprouts as an appetizer. The best we have ever had. The food was great and the portions very big. We will come back next year.

This is our 4th year in a row having our Thanksgiving meal at The Columbia. We really enjoy the Thanksgiving dinner and the pitcher of sangria. However, this was the first year my husband wasn’t able to swap one of his sides for something else. He was cut off immediately when he made the request and was told no. It kind of dimmed the mood for a moment…as we were used to them always so accommodating to us in previous years. It was such a shame, they chose to waste some of the food over letting a customer get what they want, but oh well. Overall, everything else was perfect. We will definitely go back next Thanksgiving and continue our tradition.

Had a wonderful time at Jackson’s celebrating a coworker’s retirement. The friendly hosts seated us immediately even though we were a little early for our reservation, and we got a great spot outside overlooking the bay. Our server was awesome; very attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. Rarely had to ask for anything as he was always right around the corner already bringing it our way. I’m sorry that I don’t remember his name, but he really was great. We had sushi, grouper bites and coconut shrimp for appetizers and they were all perfect. The sweet sauce used to dress one of the rolls (can’t remember the name of the roll but it was lightly fried, with crab) was TO DIE FOR. So good! For entrees I had the special of pecan crusted salmon over brussels and sundried tomatoes, the sweet green sauce was the perfect compliment to the dish and if it wasn’t frowned upon I would have licked the plate clean. My coworkers ordered the lobster po’boy and the Tuscan chicken and we were all very impressed with both the quality and the plating. As a first time diner at Jackson’s, I have to say I was very happy with the experience. The restaurant interior was beautiful and so was the outdoor seating area. The only negative part was that there was a good bit of construction being performed right near the building so at times it got a little loud (and there was a bumblebee that reaaaally wanted my espresso martini lol), but it is what it is. Thank you to the wait staff, hosts, and the cooks/Chef for providing a 5-star experience. I’ll definitely be back with more friends!

Our first visit to Ulele. We were celebrating our anniversary. Service was attentive and helpful. We LOVED the chili and the jalepeno corn muffins!! I had a wonderful entree of Grouper and my husband ordered meatloaf. His meatloaf was barely warm and was the one downside to the meal. Overall, a good experience and a lovely location in Tampa.

Cozy Ybor restaurant. Nice holiday touches. Tapas and dessert were good. Dumplings needed some extra to give it pizzaz. Chocolate mousse tasty. Chef/owner visited the table, nice guy.