Monday, February 21, 2005
Ybor City: Cigar Capital of the World - Part Two

Ybor City early morning street scene
I could write so much about Ybor City, and would recommend any lover of cigars, coffee, fine food, history, Hispanic culture, or plain-and-simple relaxation to visit there.  But alas! I'm not a travel writer, and we really didn't fully exhaust the possibilities by seeing and doing everything there.  So I thought I might close my report of our visit to Tampa's Ybor City, Cigar Capital of the World, by compiling my own, personal list of "Best Of's."

Keep in mind that each visitor to Ybor would have their own list of bests, which almost certainly wouldn't coincide with mine.  And I certainly received only a snapshot of the place, so I may have missed out on even better experiences.  But, for better or worse, here is ...

The Best of Ybor City as experienced by Mr. & Mrs. Cigarjunkie last week:

Pure enjoyment:

Best place to relax with a cigar and a drink:  King Corona Cigar Bar and Café

Best place to drink coffee and watch cigar rollers in action:  the new Havana Dreams Cigar Factory (website still under construction)

Best place to have an animated conversation in Spanish with genuine Cuban expatriates and cigar professionals:  Havana Dreams Cigar Factory

Best wine list at a cigar venue:  King Corona Cigar Bar and Café

Best café con leche:  El Molino

Best Cuban coffee:  King Corona Cigar Bar and Café

Best stage show:  Flamenco dancers at Columbia Restaurant

Friendliest people: a tie: King Corona; Havana Dreams

Dining:

Best Cuban breakfast:  at the La Tropicana Café, toasted Cuban bread dunked in café con leche

Best burger:  Green Iguana (best hot sauce, too)

Best Cuban sandwich:  La Tropicana Café

Best Cuban dinner:  Ropa Vieja at Columbia Restaurant

Best Argentine food:  El Puerto Argentinean Grill

Best haute cuisine: Big City on the second floor of the restored Centro Espańol

Touring:

Best museum overall:  Ybor City State Museum

Best factory museum:  J. C. Newman Cigars

Best historical site:  the enormous Ybor Cigar Co. Factory where José Martí gave his famous "Cuba Libre" speech

Best park:  a tie: Parque Amigos de José Martí; Centennial Park

Best historical furnishings and restoration:  Don Vincente de Ybor Historic Inn

Shopping:

Best selection of premium cigars:  Metropolitan Cigars

Best cigar factory deals:  The lobby of the Fuente factory at Tampa Sweethearts Cigar Co.

Best selection of cigar-themed T-shirts:  El Sol Cigars

Best selection of Guayaberas (traditional Cuban dress shirts):  King Corona Cigar Bar and Café

Best cigar artwork:  Arnold Martinez

Best deal on a great local cigar:  the Don Barco Capitan (5.0 x 50) at King Corona

Best full-bodied locally-produced cigar:  Havana Dreams Imperiales (6.0 x 48) at Havana Dreams

Best "refined" locally-produced cigar:  Gonzalez Y Martinez Churchill (7.0 x 50) at Gonzalez Y Martinez Cigars

Posted at 10:55 am by cigarjunkie

Dave
May 2, 2005   04:24 PM PDT
 
The best Burger in town hands down is Tampa Bay Brewing Company on 15th street between 7th and 8th. They also have the best beer with an excellent cigar friendly balcony to enjoy the burger, beer, and cigar.
 

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