Going to Ybor City next week
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King Corona. Beautiful place. Good people, good selection, good coffee. And an awesome view of the street.
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Definetly the places listed above. We were in Treasure Island (just across the bay from Tampa Bay/Ybor City) and we hit up some of those places. Another place I recommend if you're across the bridge in the Clearwater/Treasure Island/St Pete area is Cuban Paradise. Small family owned place. They have a couple of stores. One is in John's Pass, and Another right on the main road in Treasure Island. They hand roll all the cigars right there in house. I picked up several from both stores and they were really great. A co-worker of my wife's is heading down this month and I'm sending some cash with her to bring me some back..they were that good.
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i live in the tampa area, and used to work in ybor. king corona is a pretty good place, there is an unband cigar they have there simply called ybor city handmades, get the torpedo (6x52)...(and cheap too) there is a place there thats much smaller, got a hanging fuente sign out front that is also not bad, small but good people. i honestly. truly, incourage you to go to a place called cigar castle, its not in ybor, its about 15-20 minutes away, close to USF, but IMHO its the best B&M in the tampa bay area, i often take the hour long drive from my home just to go there. they have good prices, great selection (always has opus, liberty, and most of the time you can find flying pigs there too) even better service, guy there named trace is more then helpful and knowledgable, very kind. also a full bar. one of my favorite brand of cigars is sosa (best is the lonsdale, churchill is my second fav) there average price so i suggest trying one, they sell them here, one of the few places that as them.
back to YBOR, there is a few small cigar places only selling there own stuff, rolled there often in the window, i suggest trying some of them, most cigars are cheap and pretty good for the price. my favorite one (thus suggesting you try) is called nicahabana cigars. i believe i paid $2 or $3 for a maduro last time i was there.....also, they give you a free beer when you buy one of there smokes (assuming that you smoke it there of course, and the beer selection is NOT vast, but its free)
as for food in ybor, my favorite is carmines. alot of people will tell you they got the best devil crabs in the country. on fridays (and i thinks sat also) they have my favorite, crab meat pasta. another notable restaurant is acropolis. if you like pizza, chicago style, the best in town in right down for raymond james. its called giordanos, best stuffed pizza you can get. its a must to get a cuban sandwich, most places around here does a good job, the best two places are in brandon and im not sure your gonna wanna go to brandon for a sandwich. lol, but if you end up there for something else, try la septima's or the latina market off state road 60, both make the best cuban's in town. and of coarse you should stop and get a loaf of casino bakery cuban bread, best for the bakery, but most publix and sweetbays in town have it too, and for $3 for a 3 foot loaf, why not? the columbia is a good place to eat as well its just expensive....though there is a place called six tables, reservation only, super expensive, over $100 for two people, but if your married or got a girl with you, its the most romantic place you can find.
i know this is alot, but there is just so many good places for smokes and food, again, i suggest you go cigar castle if no were else.
if your a pipe smoker there is an edwards pipe and tobacco off of henderson 5 minuts from the stadium, they have a few cigars too, not many places for pipes and baccy in tampa believe it or not.
if i think of anything else, i will tell you. but thats pretty much it. again, cigar castle!
back to YBOR, there is a few small cigar places only selling there own stuff, rolled there often in the window, i suggest trying some of them, most cigars are cheap and pretty good for the price. my favorite one (thus suggesting you try) is called nicahabana cigars. i believe i paid $2 or $3 for a maduro last time i was there.....also, they give you a free beer when you buy one of there smokes (assuming that you smoke it there of course, and the beer selection is NOT vast, but its free)
as for food in ybor, my favorite is carmines. alot of people will tell you they got the best devil crabs in the country. on fridays (and i thinks sat also) they have my favorite, crab meat pasta. another notable restaurant is acropolis. if you like pizza, chicago style, the best in town in right down for raymond james. its called giordanos, best stuffed pizza you can get. its a must to get a cuban sandwich, most places around here does a good job, the best two places are in brandon and im not sure your gonna wanna go to brandon for a sandwich. lol, but if you end up there for something else, try la septima's or the latina market off state road 60, both make the best cuban's in town. and of coarse you should stop and get a loaf of casino bakery cuban bread, best for the bakery, but most publix and sweetbays in town have it too, and for $3 for a 3 foot loaf, why not? the columbia is a good place to eat as well its just expensive....though there is a place called six tables, reservation only, super expensive, over $100 for two people, but if your married or got a girl with you, its the most romantic place you can find.
i know this is alot, but there is just so many good places for smokes and food, again, i suggest you go cigar castle if no were else.
if your a pipe smoker there is an edwards pipe and tobacco off of henderson 5 minuts from the stadium, they have a few cigars too, not many places for pipes and baccy in tampa believe it or not.
if i think of anything else, i will tell you. but thats pretty much it. again, cigar castle!
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For the past year I have given serious thought to re-locating to Tampa, and Ybor City is the main reason. There is NO cigar tax in Florida and outside of Miami's Little Havana, Ybor City in Tampa is THE place to go. I want to live there, and not just visit, because I am sick of living in a 70% Cigar Tax state like here in Minnesota.
Enjoy Ybor City dude! I can't wait to get there myself! :smoke2:
Enjoy Ybor City dude! I can't wait to get there myself! :smoke2:
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Wow guys, thanks so much for the recommendations. Me and a buddy spent the day in Ybor and I smoked my brains out. We started and ended the day at King Corona with a cigar and a coffee and even my friend who doesn't smoke partook in a cigar and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
Spent a lot of money picking up samplers up and down the street, and I really blew my budget at Tampa Sweethearts, lol.
The devil crabs and cuban sandwiches at Carmine's were absolutely delicious. We ate dinner at the Coronado and had a fabulous time.
We caught the Rays/Yankees game and went hoarse screaming for the Rays. Walk-off homer in the bottom of the eleventh. . . Ray's win. Best baseball game I've ever seen.
My wife lets me go on a guy trip to a football game once a year, we go to a different venue to see either the Browns (my team) or Broncos (my buddy's team) every year, but we had such a good time in Tampa that we may be going back.
Spent a lot of money picking up samplers up and down the street, and I really blew my budget at Tampa Sweethearts, lol.
The devil crabs and cuban sandwiches at Carmine's were absolutely delicious. We ate dinner at the Coronado and had a fabulous time.
We caught the Rays/Yankees game and went hoarse screaming for the Rays. Walk-off homer in the bottom of the eleventh. . . Ray's win. Best baseball game I've ever seen.
My wife lets me go on a guy trip to a football game once a year, we go to a different venue to see either the Browns (my team) or Broncos (my buddy's team) every year, but we had such a good time in Tampa that we may be going back.
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Glad you had a good time. Live here for a reseaon. Lol. Next time you come down if you do. Hit me up.
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Sounds like you did it right!
I was just there in June and had an awesome time. I also blew my budget at Tampa Sweethearts. Josh gave me the full tour (even showed me stuff I wasn't allowed to photograph
) and got to hang out with Arturo Jr a little!Carmine's was great. Columbia was good, but expensive. Smoked a few sticks out of the local roll-on-sites and had an overall great time!
Thanks for sharing your trip!
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