Tazza Cafe

Small restaurant tucked away on the back of a small shopping plaza, so a short wait may be expected. Food was surprisingly good. I ordered the gyro platter which was served with taziki, basmati rice, small salad and a couple pieces of pita. The taziki was tangy and delicious. The meat was so tender. Portions are generous. Prices are reasonable.

Pretty good food, but VERY small, which leads to slow (but courteous) service and limited seating options. Food quality adequately makes up for these shortcomings though

Tazza café is my favorite place to eat by USF. The management and service is good and the food is excellent. There are a wide variety of dishes from chicken wings and burgers and pasta to kebabs and Turkish dessert (kunafa?). If I was still in Tampa, I’d continue to eat here and recommend it to everyone. My favorite dishes are: adana kebab (lamb but the chicken one is also good) and the blue cheese chipotle burger (I love the chipotle sauce they make!) and of course the lentil soup.
The negative reviews on here are pretty inaccurate. I’ve eaten at Tazza at least 30 times if not more. I’ve done take out and brought friends and family to eat in the restaurant. No one was ever disappointed. I’ve ordered multiple drinks and even made changes to my order after it was already brought to me and the owner happily accommodated me. Maybe some of the people who write these reviews are the ones that need manners.

Always love their food! Since I’m an Asian, I’ve already tried many delicious food in my country. It’s hard to find my favorite flavor in Tampa, but Tazza coffee satisfies my demand. Couldn’t imagine life without Tazza Café!

After a dance event, a part of our group that was headed to Miami found this place and wanted to grab a bit before they got on the road. There ended up being 11 of us total and despite the small size of the dining room, the owner/​manager happily accommodated us so we could all sit together.
I ordered the Adana Lamb Wrap, a Turkish coffee, and baklava for dessert. It was all amazing! The food takes a while to come out so I don’t recommend this place if you are in a hurry with a group but the food is worth the wait. If you order a coffee, do it as soon as you arrive. It takes a while to make because it is not fast-​pressed espresso like in the U.S. or Europe. They actually cook the coffee with the water and sugar in a pot. This is the traditional preparation for Turkish coffee so again, it’s worth the wait.
The owner/​manager was incredibly nice and a gracious host. I literally felt like I was in his home as a guest because he was taking such good care of us. This is going to be my new go-​to spot to grab a relaxing bite and a coffee with friends when I’m in the area. I can’t wait to come back with my boyfriend!

I was at the restaurant 3 weeks ago for work. I found the restaurant on Unilocal and walked in for a casual dinner. I ordered the chicken kabob platter from the menu, which was great.
I saw someone eat a delicious lamb dish, which the owner told me was their special of the week– he called it the Turkish Lamb Shank with chickpeas. It was the BEST lamb dish I have ever had. I came back the next day to have that dish, and then the day after to have the same lamb dish. It was a big portion and sadly I wasn’t able to finish the whole thing. I can’t stop thinking about the dish now. I will be back again, calling ahead to request the lamb special!
The place isn’t huge, but very comfortable and cozy. Should not miss it when in Tampa!

Amazing and insanely delicious Food, The staff is incredibly nice and welcoming. get the lamb. to die for!! i really recommend this place for all, it’s a definite Must try!

Worst experience in a restaurant in my life, owner needs to learn manners. I used to come here once a week since Feb 2016, but I will never be back. the place is very small with only one waiter+ owner. service quality will be awful when they have more than 5 – 6 people and apparently owner becomes rude, aggressive and sarcastic.
I took a few of my friends here last night, first the soup was almost half (same cup/​container but it was half full). I guess they didn’t have enough to serve everybody, but they chargee us full and they didn’t bother to explain the problem.
My friend got his soup and asked for a spoon, after ten minutes when he asked them again for that spoon owner teased him with his awful sarcastic tone, and said it was only 10 seconds and not 10 minutes so he should wait.
I asked at the beginning for Coke and then at the end of my meal for a glass of water and the owner became angry for no good reason, I guess you are only permitted to choose one type of drink and there is no refill (they give u can of soda)!!, owner said you guys only want us to walk around and serve you, and than he left while he was clearly angry. (it was my first request in that night!) what is this logic?
Being in this place only makes you feel bad. I wont be back for sure. owner really need to take some anger managment classes. He was definitly moody, at the begining he was calling us «brother»!!!

never coming back .
food was good but,
i received the hot tea i asked for about 30
min after i was seated .
i got a entrée before i got the drinks oh and the entrees were brought in 20 min apart and highlight of night** a cockroach crawled up on me from under the table.

Found this place from its great Unilocal reviews and stoked in Sunday night for dinner. When we walked in we saw a man eating a delicious looking meal. We asked and he was eating the chicken nigella. We ordered the spinach and feta triangles as an appetizer and for entrees, the nigella and schwarma wrap.
The chicken nigella was outstanding! I would order it every time. The pita and the salad that come with it are almost as good as the dish itself!
We will be back for our second time soon!

Although the dining area is small and service is sometimes slowed by the dinner rush, the food is AAAAAMAZING — well worth the wait. The menu is filled with an assortment of ethnic and American dishes varying from shawarma to curry to burgers and pasta. You can come here with any kind of craving, and be able to find something… For a reasonable price too. I get something different every time I eat at Tazza, knowing that even the most basic dishes (i.e. Spaghetti/​meatballs, salmon burger) will exceed my expectations. In all honesty, it seems the reason that the food can take long at times is because everything is made fresh in the house. That’s not a bad thing!
The owner is a wonderful man as well. Very friendly and kind. He really tries to get to know his regulars. Even if you avoid the small talk like I do, he will still recognize you and show his appreciation for your business. It’s also nice knowing that he supports halal practices, meaning that the meat used in his dishes were all killed as humanely as possible.
Tazza is definitely one of the top restaurants in the USF area. If you haven’t tried them yet, you’re missing out big time.

Excellent food and service. Falafel dish, shawarma sandwich and hummus app all delish! Reasonable prices AAA++

My friend and I came here after a day spent at the Renaissance Faire — we we tired and quite hungry. I checked Unilocal for nearby restaurants and this place looked promising.
The dining area is quite small but cozy and it is decorated nicely. We seated ourselves by the window and a man (I’m assuming the owner) greeted us and handed us menus. I immediately informed him of the 10% discount through the Unilocal app and one free iced tea and he was more than accommodating. He gave us ample time to look over the menu and was polite and professional.
Tazza offers a lot of different dishes for such a small place. Everything sounded fantastic and it all seemed reasonably priced. I ended up ordering a lamb burger with a side of fries and my friend ordered the spanikopita platter and a mocha coffee. I tried her coffee and it was really good — I’m not much of a coffee drinker but had I been cold, I would’ve ordered one. My burger was delicious — I never get lamb at home so this was a real treat. It was seasoned and cooked to perfection and topped with fresh cubes of feta and sauteed spinach. Her spanikopita (spinach and feta wrapped in phyllo triangles) were yummy and so was the rice and yogurt dressing. She couldn’t stop raving about her salad and the dressing they used — it was light but full of flavor that went well with the feta. All in all the food was tasty, fresh and filling. I will be back for more!

Great food with good and friendly service. The owner is a professional Chef who doesn’t try to cut corners when it comes to quality of the food. The menu has a great selection and you can definitely find something to your taste.

It’s really small place but food it’s really good so far I had turkish food, adana kebab iskender kebab it was soo good

The food is nice, but coming from NYC, I know that their Mediterranean food is waaaay too pricy.
Their drinks are also pricy. The place is neat, but very small. They provide a few seating outside, which is not bad.
Their deserts are also pricy. You better off stopping at any Arabic or Mediterranean bakery and get your deserts on for way less money.
The freshness of their food and the taste are definitely very good.
I would go back there sometime in the future, but its a place that I can only afford few times a year, compared to many of the Mediterranean places in NYC which we used to go to every week.

I’m incredibly impressed with this little café, and kicking myself that I haven’t come here sooner!
Though it is a small restaurant, they have done a great job with the interior design to transform the space into a very cozy place to eat. Our waiter (who I’m assuming is the owner?) recommended the Chicken Nigella over the Chicken kabob platter, and I’m so glad I went with his recommendation! I will never think of chicken the same way again; but the menu pretty much had me at «chipotle cinnamon spice.» I don’t say this lightly when I say that this is quite possibly my most favorite chicken dish I’ve ever had the pleasure of delighting my taste buds with. Not only was the chicken tender and had its own spices, the sauces that are drizzled over it are worthy of licking the plate clean. It has a great spiciness to it from the chipotle, but it isn’t too intense. Just perfect, I would say.
They also didn’t have any problems substituting rice for more salad (for those diners who avoid too many carbs like me). The salad had a great zesty flavor and was nice and light. I also appreciated the fresh feta! It was soft and a bit salty– went well with the dressing. The pita also seemed to be made fresh, and was also incredible.
The dolmades and spanakopita are also delicious for appetizers, each served with their home-​made yogurt sauce. Yum!
There’s no question I’ll be back here soon to try more items off their large menu.

Came to Tazza all the way from Fort Lauderdale. This is, hands down, the best halal restaurant out there. It has an extensive menu that ranges from wraps and burgers to kabobs and pasta. The presentation of their meals show that they take pride in what they do. I ordered the jalapeño mushroom Swiss burger and my mom ordered the bang bang chicken and shrimp. Both had huge portions, tasted great and we very filling. I wish I lived in Tampa so I could come here more. Their prices are very reasonable too!

Food is very good, but the promotional Unilocal code for check in was not honored as this was apparently from the previous owners.
For my entrée, I had the chicken curry, which was delicious and had the perfect amount of spice. It was also served with 2 slices of garlic bread.
The restaurant interior was small, but the staff was extremely nice and attentive to our needs.

I have been here several times, but this was the first time since they’ve been under new management. I usually go to Petra or Zeko’s, but this was more along my route. The new décor was quite a pleasant surprise. The dine-​in part is small but can easily accommodate a medium-​sized party. The service was generally good. Keep in mind that they automatically add a 15% tip to all checks!
Now on to the food, I ordered the chicken kofte. The accompanying Greek salad was fresh and flavorful. I sometimes find that Greek dressing ends up being mostly oil, but this one had a good citrusy zing. The kofte itself was served on rice with a yogurt sauce. The kofte were very flavorful and had a pleasant tang. The texture was tender and complemented well by the chopped, aromatic vegetables inside. I will definitely plan to come back and try some other dishes. They have a large menu with everything from wings to Cajun pasta, and the prices are very affordable.