Tampa (Oldsmar) - Andy's on the Bay

[askdrtodd]

I went for lunch today, it was a bit tricky to find but was really worth it! They had a solid cuban (which was brought to a whole new level when dipped in their house spicy/herby/awesomey sauce), and the beef with olives & black beans & rice (with these really tasty little crunchies in it). The the lady working the counter (Andy's mother I believe?) was a real sweetheart, I want to go back just to talk to her again haha. The place was recommended to me by a friend for their pork sammich, which I couldn't wait to try but unfortunately they were catering a huge party today and didn't have a number of menu items (most of them). Really looking forward to going back, if the pork sandwich is as good as everything else they'd prepared for the catering gig (which was a LOT of food), then this could be one of my favorite new hidden gems!

[gemuse]

We stopped by here today on your recommendation. Thought the cuban was just OK at best (I would not suggest to anyone to go out of their way for this cuban). The roasted pork sandwich was much better. It's a pile of shredded, stewed pork on cuban bread. The special sauce seems to be a mojo base with lots of oregano and some dried crushed chillis added. It definitely did add a bit of brightness to the pork sandwich, but my partner thought it gave the sandwich too much of a "pizza" vibe.

Next time I plan to try one of the meat and rice meal specials. That's what everyone else was ordering, and it seems to be what they do best. There was a continuous line of customers the whole time we were eating, and I only saw one other person order a sandwich. It should be noted that they are only open for breakfast and lunch.

[askdrtodd]

the cuban was OK, not the best one I've ever had by any means, I just thought it became awesome when you dipped it in the house mojo hot sauce stuff. I really wanna try that pork sandwich now!!

[gemuse]

Yeah, no worries. We're living here temporarily and we're on a mission to try as many cubans around Tampa as possible. No harm in trying one that rates middlin' on the scale. (And I wonder if they took extra special care with yours the day you ordered, to compensate for being out of the pork.) All the better to discover some of the other dishes, and nice to have a cuban food joint on the far west end of town.

[Mild Bill]

Closer to Dale Mabry on Hillsborough is La Caridad Bakery...
They do a decent Cuban... Not in the running for the best, but a good standard Cuban, and real nice folks... Big, pressed well, juicy, pretty flavorful...

[askdrtodd]

Put Wright's Gourmet, The Colombian, and Datz' "Havana Hottie" on your list, those are all really solid.

[gemuse]

Thanks for the suggestions, all. I've been following a couple of earlier cuban sandwich threads. So far have had La Teresita, La Ideal, the Colombian, the Tropicana, Arco Iris, Cafe Hey, and one gigantic version from Bravo supermarket. Had La Teresita on several occasions, and found it inconsistent-- both one of the best and one of the worst we tried. Cafe Hey was delicious, but a sloppy mess with way too many ingredients. Had to eat with knife and fork. Appreciated the geometric precision of the Columbia version, but didn't find it significantly tastier than the others.

Still hoping to get to Wright's and Datz. Will also make note of La Caridad. Thanks!

-----
Cafe Hey
1540 N Franklin St, Tampa, FL 33602

Arco Iris Cafe
4001 N Habana Ave, Tampa, FL 33607

[askdrtodd]

Both Wright's & Datz ask for them to be extra pressed (assuming you like them that way), I thought that really bumped it up a notch. Also the mustard at Datz is a hot & sweet mustard, I asked for an extra side of it we liked it so much. I'm a huge fan of spicy though.

[RibDog]

I would also recommend Cacciatore & Son on Armenia for their Cuban sandwich.

[Mild Bill]

Ok, tomorrow's my run up that way---- I'll pop in for lunch...
I'll probably see how their roast pork is, and get a Cuban for the road--- or the parking lot...

[Mild Bill]

Jeez--- I wrote that after midnight so it's actually today... Thursday...

[Bear1101]

Thanks so much for this review. I live up in Palm Harbor, and its so rare to see anyone talking about restaurants in my neck of the woods! Will try it out soon.

[askdrtodd]

Bear if you're in Palm Harbor, you must try Ohana Cafe, talk about a place where the staff and owners absolutely treat you like family and the food is the freshest tastiest healthiest thing ever...

[RibDog]

Keep in mind that the Ohana Cafe is in Ozona, not Oldsmar.

[askdrtodd]

Well that's like 2000 feet from Palm Harbor, not a horrible drive ;)

[RibDog]

Sry about that, missed that they were in PH. Thought we were still speaking of Oldsmar.

[Bear1101]

To Ribdog/drtodd

Palm Harbor is on both sides of US19 so technically its near both oldsmar and ozona. So you are both right lol

[askdrtodd]

we know, I was just giving RibDog a hard time :)

[RibDog]

And I deserved it!

[Bear1101]

I will keep this one on my list too. Thanks!

[deet13]

Heh, I went there a few years ago to pick up a friend who worked just down the road.

I remember liking the food there; but to be honest, I had forgotten all about the place. I'll have to swing back up there to try it again, when I'm in the area.

[Mild Bill]

Ooooo, I'll pop in on Thursday for lunch when I do my Oldsmar, Palm Harbor, and Tarpon Springs route! Hopefully they'll have the Porkage... Sounds excellent!

[askdrtodd]

sweet, make sure to get the house made herby awesome sauce!

[kempshark]

Does anyone know what days/hours they're open? I'm dying to try this place.

[askdrtodd]

I meant to look when I drove back by, I forgot to tho. If anyone finds out let me know, they don't have a website that I know of.

[scubadoo97]

They were not open today, Sunday, but here is the phone number
[phone]

[scubadoo97]

Thanks for the tip!

[askdrtodd]

Oh and an excellent value too, this is it, two large cuban sanwiches, two drinks, and the beef/olives/rice&beans special- $15

[Little T.]

Looks yummy! Thanks doc.

[Manderley]

He's not really a Doctor, he just plays one on TV ;)