8 9 10 11
THAI RUBY
Shoppes at Amberly, Tampa Palms
15319 Amberly Dr.
(813) 558-0570
KOBE JAPANESE
STEAKHOUSE
LIANG’S BISTRO
ASIAN CUISINE
17515 Bruce B Downs Blvd.
(813) 978-1225
Pebble Creek Collection
19601 Bruce B Downs Blvd.
(813) 994-6600 Even though I prefer many of the entrées
12 13 14 15
KOIZI ENDLESS
HIBACHI & SUSHI
Shoppes at The Pointe
17012 Palm Pointe Dr.
WOODFIRED PIZZA
Palms Connection
2822 E. Bearss Ave.
(813) 341-2900
(813) 971-1919 The first woodfired pizza place to open
Neighborhood News @NTWCNews For Advertising Information Call 813-910-2575 • Volume 28, Issue 8 • April 10, 2020 • NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net 23
As Thai restaurants go, Thai Ruby is the
most beautiful Thai place in New Tampa and
also has the best food, especially since Sukhothai
closed a couple of months ago. The spring rolls,
ginger chicken, the spicy Thai combination fried
rice (with chicken, beef and pork), the Siam
chicken, filet of grouper and soft shell crab are all
top-notch and Thai Ruby may have the largest
selection of veggie dishes you’ll find anywhere
(I love the steamed broccoli with carrots, green
beans and snow peas). But, this is the place I go
when I have a craving for crispy duck, whether
it’s the tender roast duckling shown above or the
“fancy” duck with sweet & sour sauce.
For those who crave the teppanyaki (hibachi)
table experience in our area, you won’t find
a better choice than Kobe. And, even though
Jannah and I usually sit at the bar rather than
share a table with families with young children,
you get the same great meal, just without the
show. Kobe definitely has the best-quality filet
mignon, sirloin steak and chicken of any Japanese
restaurant in our area, and you can even
get pepper-crusted tuna tataki hibachi, as well
as beautiful-looking surf-&-turf combos with
lobster, shrimp and scallops that I (sadly) am not
able to enjoy. The sushi is really good, too.
at Fushia a little more than the main dishes at
Liang’s, there’s no doubt that this is a very nice,
upscale Chinese (with other Asian options) restaurant
with very good food. My favorite entrées
are the steamed (with mixed veggies) or Liang’s
crispy fish, the sizzling Shanghai steak and
Sichuan chicken, but I love Liang’s for its New
York-style BBQ spareribs, the teriyaki wontons
and especially, the crispy egg rolls shown above.
The item Jannah and I take out most often,
though, are Liang’s awesome sautéed string
beans, but I order them in a spicy chili sauce,
rather than the usual oyster sauce. So good.
Don’t get me wrong...even though I find
Full Circle Pizza’s deep-dish, Chicago-style pizza
shown above very tasty, I’ll never say I like it
as much as the New York-style pizza I grew up
with. And, even though I know that deep-dish
and thin-crust Chicago pizza is a big reason why
many locals love Full Circle, I’m actually a much
bigger fan of the other delicious menu items
owner/chef Freddy Nova and his wife Julia have
added since taking over the place in 2017. My favorites
are the chicken and broccoli in garlic and
oil and the meatball and chicken parmigiana subs.
For anyone who’s asking, for my money,
Sushi Café has the best sushi in New Tampa or
Wesley Chapel. With a huge assortment of sushi
rolls, including some truly unique options like
a Pacific fusion roll with spicy tuna, crunch, cucumber
and avocado on top, plus a wide variety
of sashimi, Sushi Café also has one of the best
spicy tuna tataki appetizers in our area (photo). I
also really enjoy the “hibachi from kitchen” entrées,
like the filet mignon and chicken options,
even though (especially because?) there are no
teppanyaki tables. I also recommend the crispy
chicken katsu and chicken and veggie tempura.
FULL CIRCLE
PIZZA
Pebble Creek Collection
19651 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.
(813) 994-3700
When you’re looking for the best value
for your money in our area, I believe that Ginza
has to be in that conversation, especially for
lunch Monday-Friday, which costs only $12.95
for adults ($6.95-$8.95 for kids 4-14) for all of
the sushi, appetizers and entrées you care to eat.
Even at $21.95 for adults and $8.95-$12.95 for
kids for dinner, it’s a great value, especially when
you consider the quality of the unlimited egg
and spring rolls, pan-fried pork dumplings and
dishes like the spicy Mongolian chicken shown
above (the Mongolian beef also is top-notch).
And, while Ginza’s sushi may not be quite as
good as Sushi Café’s, I do enjoy Ginza’s white
meat fish sashimi, California roll and others.
SUSHI CAFE
The Walk at Highwoods Preserve
18015 Highwoods Preserve Pkwy.
(813) 977-7800
Anytime you get into a discussion with a
local about which endless hibachi and sushi restaurant
they prefer — Koizi or Ginza — things
can get a little heated. Koizi is $1 less for adults
for lunch ($11.95) and dinner ($18.95) and it
actually does have teppanyaki tables (above), I
just have long felt that the quality of most items,
especially the appetizers, is better at Ginza. Even
so, the hibachi filet mignon, New York strip
steak and chicken are all pretty good at Koizi
and there is a great variety of sushi and sashimi
available. The teriyaki and black pepper chicken
are also pretty good options.
in (or near) either of our distribution areas is
known for its high-quality pizza ingredients, as
well as owner Peter Taylor’s unique pizza names
— like my favorite Pizza Raquel, which features
house-made fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, grana
padano cheese and olive oil, to which I usually
add either pepperoni, fire-roasted sausage or
Italian-style meatballs (Peter’s “carnivore” pizza
has all three) and fresh spinach. The wood-fired
meatball appetizer and wings also are delicious,
and I’ve yet to sample the wood oven petite (4-
oz.) filet mignon, but the classic Caesar, Greek
and iceberg wedge salads are excellent, too.
GINZA
6417 E County Line Rd.
(813) 907-1688
/NeighborhoodNewsOnline.net