The Fold Pizza Co is an italian pizza restaurant in Tampa Heights, Tampa.
The Fold at Heights Public Market folds Neapolitan-style pies fast for the Armature Works lunch crowd, with classics and seasonal specials. The room fills.
Must order: Margherita pie or the weekly seasonal special.
Tip: Order at the counter; eat at the picnic tables on the Riverwalk lawn.
Address: 1910 N Ola Ave, Tampa, FL 33602
La Teresita on Columbus Drive has run a Cuban counter and dining room in West Tampa since 1972, owned by the Capdevila family across two generations.
Order: Palomilla steak with yellow rice and black beans.
Tip: The counter side runs 6am to midnight Friday and Saturday; the dining room takes reservations next door.
Brocato's on East Columbus Drive in Tampa has built Cuban sandwiches, deviled crabs and stuffed potatoes since 1948 from a neighborhood storefront.
Order: The Cuban sandwich with a deviled crab on the side.
Tip: Cash and card both work; the party finger sandwiches (mini Cubans and mini deviled crabs) are the catering pick.
Wright's Gourmet House on South Dale Mabry has built Tampa's classic Cuban and roast-beef sandwiches plus the famous rum cake since 1963. A Tampa table.
Order: Cuban sandwich pressed and a slice of the rum cake to take home.
Tip: Pete and Marjorie Wright started the shop on April 20, 1963; the Casper family bought it in 2024 to keep it Tampa-owned.
Bavaro's downtown is Florida's first traditional Neapolitan pizzeria since 2009, with hand-crafted wood-fired ovens and a 100-year Ferrara family yeast.
Order: Margherita pizza out of the wood-fired oven plus a glass of Chianti.
Tip: Walk-ins only at the bar; the dining room books out by 7pm on weekends.
Ichicoro Ramen in Seminole Heights opened in 2015 in a converted Florida Avenue bungalow and pulls Tampa's benchmark tonkotsu broth and pork bao buns.
Order: Tonkotsu Ichicoro ramen with slow-cooked chashu and a bao bun.
Tip: No reservations are taken at this counter; the patio handles overflow when the dining room fills up at peak times.
Psomi on North Howard Avenue in Tampa holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand for Chef Christina Theofilos' Greek daytime kitchen and bakery. The patio fills first.
Order: Octopus ceviche, house-made dolmades and a Greek coffee.
Tip: Closed Monday and Tuesday; breakfast and lunch Wednesday to Friday, brunch on weekends.
