“Tasty Venues: your one stop for eating, shopping, traveling”
Valentine’s Tea and two dinner seatings on Friday February 14. Prepaid
reservations may be made at www.MyTastyVenues.com or by calling
813-381-4999. Look for other special occasion celebrations – Easter
Dinner, Mother’s Day Teas and Lunches, and more.
While most of the year Chef Cinzia is leading the Tampa Bay community
through the seasonally inspired dishes she creates from scratch, severa
times a year she travels with guests to Italy for literal culinary tours
Through her Tasty Suitcase excursions, she invites travelers to “live like
a local Italian,” visiting markets and wineries, olive groves, boutiques
and osterie (small restaurants with homemade, home-town specialties)
In fact, her 2020 tour of Sicily (May 24-June 3) is nearly sold out and
there are only a few seats left for Tuscany (Sept. 3-13). For your op
portunity to eat your way around Italy, visit www.TastySuitcase.com for
details.
Check out Facebook.com/TastyVenues for cooking and travel tips, an
nouncements of specials and sales, changes in hours and menus, and
news of culinary tours. You can also register for cooking class parties and
MyTastyVenues.com.
An experience at Tasty Venues Italian Bistro & Gourmet Food
Shop is like taking a culinary tour. Lunch and dinner menu items are
like stops on an itinerary that take you from the north to the south of It-
from faraway places (such as pasta from the city where it was invented
in Italy) as well as the best bites from local and American artisanal
craftspeople (things like bread, honey, fudge, and more). “Tasty Venues
is about exploring life through food,” asserts chef and proprietress
Cinzia Cripe.
How did the Italian-born chef land in Brandon? In 1990, her Air Force
vet husband brought her from Sicily to live in North Dakota and then,
more recently, the Sunshine State. Chef Cinzia’s profession took a
sharp detour as well-she earned her PhD in architecture before deciding
to cook for a living. “I got my degree to please my mother,” she shared.
said, ‘Okay, now I’m going to culinary school.’”
The graduate of the Culinary Institute of Italy knows wine, too. She
chooses varietals to offer in the store and bistro from small producers,
many from unknown and underrated regions. “You won’t
Cinzia is happy to match a diner’s dinner choice with a
special bottle.
she curates, wines are often paired with each course. On
very special occasions like Valentine’s Day, Tasty Venues
offers an evening of remarkable dishes and wines to help
guests create beautiful memories to carry with them long
after the evening is over. This year is no exception, with a
Re-creating a European bistro experience is only one facet of the jewel Tasty
Venues polishes in this community. On Sundays Chef Cinzia celebrates the
Italian-American dinner table by serving beloved favorites like lasagna and
meat ragu. At lunch and dinner the rest of the week she offers something for
everyone, whether vegetarian, gluten-free, keto, or diabetic, saying, “I treat
everyone as individuals with different tastes and needs.” Reservations are not
required but are encouraged. Sunday dinner is served 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; during
the week, lunch is served Tues-Sat 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; dinner, Thurs-Sat
5p.m. to 8 p.m. Also enjoy British Tea most Saturdays 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (call
for availability). The Gourmet Food Shop is open Sun, Tues & Wed 11 a.m.
to 3 p.m., Thurs-Sat 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Coming soon: dinner service Tues-Sat!
951 East Brandon Blvd., Brandon, FL 33511
The Very BEST of Everything Our AREA has to offer! Brandon AreaSELECT Magazine (813) 362-2634 17
/www.MyTastyVenues.com
/www.TastySuitcase.com
/TastyVenues
/MyTastyVenues.com