This restaurant has a great aesthetic! It has both indoor and outdoor seating! I went on a Sunday around 1 and there was no wait for 2 people, however the restaurant was pretty busy. Our server was fantastic! She was very attentive and provided great recommendations on the food options. They serve hot bread with butter before ordering, which is the perfect appetizer. I ended up ordering the seafood paella, which was very tasty. I actually split it with one other person, and it was more than enough. My favorite part were the scallops. They melted in your mouth and went perfectly with the other flavors. The rice itself was also had very good flavor. The only thing that threw me off a little was the meat because it was a little tougher to chew than the rest of the dish. However, overall it was a great experience and I would definitely come back. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Seafood Paella - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

I will say this, not all Columbia Restaurants are equal. This restaurant in Celebration is outstanding. Ambience is exquisite, decor is beautiful and a little noisy but it's ok - the ceiling are tall so it's not an uncomfortable noise level. Service was great! Food was excellent. My advice on the drinks is mixed. Wine, beer and a few mixed drinks were good. Some mixed lack alcohol and are loaded with nice. Next time I'll get it straight up with ice on the side. Totally worth a visit - 1905 salad is awesome and they make it at your table. Fun time! read more

Columbia is a stand by forever favorite. The food is always fresh and delicious. The atmosphere is great. The staff are above par, very attentive, friendly and professional. Columbia is consistently top-notch! read more

This place still delivers on excellent food (not sure if they actually deliver, so quit asking me, Yelp). The service is pretty good too. It can get crowded so I suggest making a reservation. On this trip we were eating vegan and vegetarian, so no 1905 salad for me (darn). We did get the hearts of palm salad and that was fresh and vibrant. The black bean soup wasn't much of a soup, but more flavorful black beans over white rice in a soup bowl. The vegetable paella was pretty tasty, although the waiter left a lot of the crispy bits in the paella pan. That's the best part, dude! It had lots of veggies, but could have used a bit more flavor to make up for the lack of meat and seafood. The star was the Eggplant Riojana. This eggplant was crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, with no mush to it. The red sauce was amazingly flavorful. Excellent offering. We also had a few glasses of wine, nothing stood out from their family collections. They were good, not great. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Eggplant Riojana - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

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The paella was below my expectations. The chicken overpowered the taste. I have tried paella in many places in the world. This one was the worst. I did also get the 1905 salad as a side to the paella. The dressing was good, but the portion was very small compared to what the table next to me got as a side dish to their entree. I did also ask that no ham is added to my salad, but I found pieces. I suspect that the salad was ready, and they just took out the ham pieces. I did not like that. When you ask for a dish without a specific ingredient, you would expect it not to be made (cooked, mixed) with that ingredient. For desert, I got the churros. They were cold and very oily. Overall, the service was a little slow, the atmosphere was nice, but the food was overrated! read more

Columbia Restaurant - Paella - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

A beautiful restaurant in a lovely area. Outside seating is lovely if it is nice out. Love the fresh bread service With individual loaves for each diner. Also the house salad is a must. It's pricey for a side salad because of all the protein and cheese they put in it. It's not your typical side Or starter salad . We ordered the Grouper Adelia, the mahi, and the pompano. All three entrées I felt the fish was over cooked. I know fish and I've had a lot of it over the last month in Florida and these delicate fillets were treated pretty harshly. I actually had to use a knife to cut the grouper and that's just wrong. That being said the seasonings were delicious, Spanish rice was the best I've ever had and the service was very attentive. But for 30+ dollars a plate I expect some flaky fish. read more

Columbia Restaurant - House specialty salad - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

The food was amazing. The server Steve was helpful and very friendly. The atmosphere was that of being in a family setting. You felt comfortable and relaxed. The music playing in the background wasn't deafening or overwhelming. I would highly recommend going. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Chicken Manchengo - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

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Truly a gem! I can see why it's still in business since 1905! I've always wanted to try this place out upon seeing it locally and then in St. Augustine. We made reservations for 5:45 pm and got sat at exactly 5:45 pm. Our server was super informative, attentive and helpful with making food choices, since it was my first time visiting! I had the white sangria, and for an appetizer, we ordered empanadas. I usually don't like ground beef empanadas, but these were perfect! The seasoning on the meat was just right. For my meal, I had the Lobster Cannellini. The cream sauce was savory and it had just the right amount of seafood! Not stingy on the portions at all! We were so full from the meal that we didn't do dessert, but I would love return to try them! read more

Columbia Restaurant - Lobster Cannellini - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

The Columbia is always on our must visit list when in the area. We the ambiance, the food and the experience always leaving wanting to return. read more

We have been to the original Columbia Restaurant in Ybor, the one in St Pete at the old pier, and even the one at Tampa airport. The food has always been outstanding. Last night our meal was meh. I was definitely not impressed. I ordered the stuffed shrimp. The stuffing was dry and the shrimp were over cooked. The yellow rice was sticky and mushy and the peas and onions were lukewarm and pretty tasteless. Had this been my first visit here I would not be back. Hubby ordered the mahi and he said it was delicious but the sides were also not good. The bread was delicious read more

The overall experience was solid. The cold welcome by the hostess team was not good. There was no welcoming smile and greeting. I had to get their attention to get seated. Our waitdress Alma did a solid job. The service was on the slow side, however, I'm not sure if this is by design. I ordered the paella and it was good. The tostones and chicken croquettes and beef empanadas were very good. The bread pudding dessert was divine. We arrived for a late lunch around 3 pm on a Wednesday. Overall it was a good experience. read more

We're vacationing in Disney and I told my wife the first night we arrive, lets do something non Disney. I did a search on Yelp and found Columbia Restaurant. When I had my business in Tampa in 2006, I loved going to the Columbia restaurant so I made a reservation for two a month in advance. Walking in, even better, driving to Celebration Florida?? What a beautiful town. The town was designed by Disney, I told my wife I want to sell our home right now and live here. It's beautiful. Columbia has a nice restaurant space in the town, makes the experience all the more exciting. We walk and are greeted at the hostess stand. We're shown to a nice table and are given menus. The restaurant is Spanish style and tastefully decorated. The menu has so many choices! You can order the paella, served many different ways but what I'm craving is their fresh fish offerings. I ordered the Pan fried Pompino but like Thanksgiving, Columbia Restaurant is all about the sides. I know my wife is going to love the Sangria so I ordered a white sangria, "Sangria de Cava" which is their signature Sangria. They make this drink tableside, very very cool. The Sangria I must point out, uses Sparkling white wine. So effervescent! It was pure perfection, a must order when your at any Columbia restaurant. We also ordered beef Empanadas to start. The empanadas are unlike anything I ever had, something so easy but packed with a flavor punch. While we're drinking and eating the deelish empanadas, they also brought over warm Cuban bread. This bread, think of a thin Italian crusty bread but sweeter? I didn't want to fill up on bread but it was soo good. My fresh, pan fried Pompino comes to the table. This "Florida" pompano fish can be found as north as Massachusetts! It was prepared excellent, exactly what I was craving and no one makes it better than Columbia restaurant. We're done with dinner, we ordered coffee and look at the dessert menu. My wife loves Key Lime Pie so we ordered one piece to split. All of a sudden, the wait staff is singing Happy Birthday to me?! (I told them in my reservation, haha) They brought to me in a candle, my favorite dessert, Flan. OMG! Another simple dish that was made perfectly at Columbia restaurant. Columbia restaurant, it was a pleasure to dine at your restaurant on my birthday vacation. read more

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Superb drinks, food, service. More than a meal: a dining experience. Love the sangria and the red snapper meals. Churros for desert and Cuban coffee. read more

Always amazing food, and great service. I've been at least 10 times and never had a bad or mediocre thing on the menu.

If you had two grandmothers from Cuba, the Columbia would be their kitchen. No matter the location, every location of the Columbia Restaurant shares the time honored family recipes that have made them Florida-famous. While the Columbia in Celebration lacks the old world tropical charm of Ybor City, you'll mostly pay attention to the oversized portions of Cuban and Spanish cuisine at your table. A friend and I visited on a busy weeknight. Reservations were accepted. I started with a 1905 dirty martini. The marinated olives were delicately stuffed with rich blue cheese. Tito's was the standard vodka. The menu has changed over the years. No navy bean soup and the good rice is no where to be found. That's disappointing. The 1905 salad is back to being served table side and was happily familiar. I had the Spanish bean soup; a thin broth with garbanzo beans, smoked ham, chorizo sausage and potatoes. Warm and delicious. My friend had the black bean soup served over rice with diced raw onions. Rich and hearty. For entrees I chose the La Completa Cubano, a large plate of roast pork a la Cubana, boliche criollo, Empanada de Picadillo, platanos, yuca, black beans and rice. Phenomenal and philling! My friend had the evening special of baked grouper stuffed with crabmeat and served with seasonal vegetables. He proclaimed that it was outstanding. No room for dessert but past visits yielded homemade sweets from abuela's kitchen. No matter the location, Columbia Restaurant should always be locked in your GPS. read more

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Columbia is truly one of my favorite restaurants in the US! Their 1905 salad is beyond compare and one of the best Cuban sandwiches I've ever had. Just as good as Versailles in Miami. Ronald my server was so genuinely nice and gave me great recommendations but I wheats get the same thing. If you are in Celebration you have to come here. Ask fir Ronald, get the 1905 salad and anything else on the menu. You will NOT be disappointed! The original location in Ybor City/Tampa and the Sarasota locations marvelous as well! read more

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Columbia Restaurant is located in the heart of Celebration and has amazing Spanish & Cuban food that is authentic and quality. I visited most recently on my birthday and I got the classics at Columbia: the paella, the 1905 salad, and a margarita. Pro tip: the paella has a wait time of about 30 minutes (they warn you about that) but in my opinion it's worth the wait for the flavor. The 1905 salad is a must a Columbias, they make it right at your table so you know it's very fresh. The margarita was very good. Columbia's also has fresh Cuban bread, and everyone at your table gets their own personal serving of it which is an extra treat. Another pro tip: parking is available behind the restaurant, parking in front of the restaurant is pretty limited. Great dinner option in the area and have the time to wait for some delicious and authentic food. read more

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We went to Columbia Restaurant last weekend and had a fantastic experience. The lunch rush was a bit overwhelming, as we weren't expecting such a crowd in the little town of Celebration. We had a late lunch reservation for two at 1:45 on Sunday. There was an active walk up wait of over 40 minutes. With our reservation, we were seated within about 10 minutes. I had two glasses of the sangria (delicious), while my husband had two margaritas. Each of the margaritas was made a little different from the other (one tasting a bit heavy on orange), but he enjoyed them both. I went with the suggested 1905 salad with the shrimp. I am so glad the waitress suggested the upgrade to the shrimp because they were cooked perfectly and added a warm bite to the cold salad. *Warning, only go for this salad if you do not have an aversion to garlic, olives, and cheese; it's heavy on all three of them. My husband opted for the classic Cuban sandwich (without pickles). While they forgot to remove the pickles, it wasn't a huge deal as there weren't many to pick off. The sandwich was so large he wasn't able to even finish it. He said it was within the top three Cubans he's ever had. The atmosphere, and extremely friendly staff rounded out our experience. We cannot wait to return to try even more items from the menu. It will now be a *must visit* during our vacations. read more

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Food was not good - service was very good - steak was ordered medium came bleeding rare, brushed with signature sauce meant it came with a glob on top and it was heavy vinegar based - Snapper was way over spiced to point it was inedible. Our waitress was very pleasant and apologetic. read more

We were fortunate once again to eat at one of the beautiful Columbia restaurants! This makes 5 for us, just 2 to go! We sat at the bar and had excellent service, as always at these restaurants! The food was soooo good as usual! We walked the town and park after! Celebration Florida rocks!!! read more

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I had the sirloin steak. It came with potatoes and vegetables. I enjoyed it but I'm not sure I can say it was the best steak I've had. I had the chorizo appetizer which I really enjoyed. Portion size of entre is good and filling. I have had several dishes here and I enjoy coming back to the salsa music and lively environment. Definitely recommend visiting if you are in Celebration. #attorneywithanappetite read more

Columbia Restaurant - Sirloin steak, potato slices and vegetables. - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

Love the food here, especially the Paella,it's top notch! Their bread is delicious too. Highly recommend this place

We spent a week in the Orlando area doing the resorts and tourist thing and hands down this was our favorite spot. We tried a lot of places and this one is the one that we wished we visited earlier in the week so we could have gone more than once. Learn from our mistake! And, at 1/3 of the resort restaurant costs it was a crazy value. The restaurant fits very well in the Celebration decor. I almost thought we were in an old Charleston or Cuban restaurant. We sat outside on a perfect evening people watching the couples, families and people strolling around the park. The hostess must have been one of the owners, her customer service skills made me doubt why this was a well rated place. The waiter more than made up for it. He was fabulous. Attentive, there when needed but not hovering, genuinely nice. We started off with a pitcher of mojitos. I highly recommend that. They make the sangria and the mojitos by your table and that was a nice touch. I felt way out of my league stirring my mojito with a spear of sugar cane. The bread was almost a half loaf each and the butter was divine on the warm, fresh bread. We went with two tapas and a paella between the two of us. It was almost too much but after seeing the ginormous serving of paella that was definitely the pro-tip of the night. We started off with the Ybor City deviled crab croquettes. It was a pair of fried crab croquets that tasted great. They were piping hot with a bit of paprika that really added to it. Next up we ordered one of the tapas from the daily specials menu. I usually don't go with yucca because they often are under cooked. These were absolutely perfectly cooked with a mango salsa and a sauce I could not describe without re-reading the menu. If you see Yucca on the specials, go for it. Recklessly! Finally we shared a paella. We went with the old school, old country version: Campesina. It came out in a cast iron paella pan and was very large for one person. Perfectly sized for two or some to go home. Very flavorful, perfectly cooked rice and a nice mix of chicken, sausage, and small slices of chorizo. I have a hidden hobby of making paella and this showed me how much of a poser I truly am! We were very full but had to keep going. My food rating demanded it! We finished off with a slice of their Key Lime Pie. It tasted wonderful and the crust was just spot on. No whipped cream here, just a focus on the actual substance of the pie. Definitely recommend this spot and look forward to trying this again. read more

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The best food I had while visiting in Florida ! The salmon and rice was cooked to perfection and the service was amazing!

I went to Florida to watch my son play soccer but my favorite part of the trip was the 1905 salad. Will try and fail to recreate it here in California until I go back again. read more

Other than the server not being attentive, the food was amazing. The sampler was a great choice to try some of the appetizers. Main course was delicious, absolutely no complains food wise. read more

The Ambience is great when you first walk in, definitely the highlight of the experience as I had high expectations that were nowhere close to being met. I tried the cuban black bean soup, average at best as I know I can do better at home. I love empanadas and after I ordered them I was surprised at how average they are. Just a bit better than bland. Ive actually had better at airports. The customer service was also just okay. I wouldn't come back to this location, id be willing to try the original someday maybe. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Empanadas - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

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Excellent food and always worth the drive!! Everything we order is perfect and always the best staff. Their professional attitudes and work ethic make it a joy to visit and watch the teamwork! This is exactly what I would imagine any of the best restaurants in Florida should model their business after. The entire place gives you an airy feeling with plenty of room to eat and enjoy the atmosphere. I still feel like I can have a private conversation sitting at a table positioned in the middle of the room! What a great place to get a Great Meal! read more

Made reservations for 7 for the 7 of us. They don't accept reservations for parties more that 5 online. I do highly suggest making a reservation. When reserving I advised of 2 separate families and checks as well as confirmation that it was for a birthday celebration when asked if we were celebrating anything. Staff was very friendly on the phone when making the reservation. They even called the day of our reservation and confirmed. We were celebrating my hubs birthday this evening. We arrived 25 minutes early and checked in. Hostess staff was friendly and we were seated within 5 minutes. Sat in a corner table and greeted by our server (Marlin F.) as soon as we sat so we thought it'd be a nice meal. Everyone at our table ordered water which is typically our preferred drink...I did order a mule to share with my hubs. So after he got to the 4th person that ordered water he firmly stated "so basically 7 waters!?" Like wow! Brought our bread and drinks out and we placed our food order. Food was out in no time! We were amazed!! Our waiter never came to check on us while dining and we sat there for the longest time waiting for him to come to bring us boxes and our check however my hubs had to go to the hostess to tell her that we needed our waiter to visit our table so she went to the back and he came out immediately. Brought the credit card machine and laid in front of us for payment. We wanted the check split between the parties but only had the option to split directly in half from the machine. The receipt got jammed and he said he'd bring it out to us, he walked away and never came back. Good thing we didn't need drink refills during this visit because we wouldn't have gotten any. This wasn't the best of service or food that we have had at this restaurant. Left disappointed. By far our favorite location is St. Armand's. read more

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Horrible food served cold (most of the time) with painfully slow service to boot (even when the place is not packed). The quintessential tourist trap. First time there, food tasted like bad leftover Chinese takeout. The second time, the "pork" tasted and had same texture as canned tuna - go figure. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Can you guess what this is? Neither could I. But it does remind one of Pedigree dog food - the dog food tastes better. - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

Went to the Celebration Florida location while on vacation. We arrived early for our reservation, but they were able to seat us right away. The ambiance sets the mood of Cuba perfectly, with high ceilings, fans and chandeliers as well as tons of art/pictures evoking 1950's Havana. Our servers (one in training) were attentive, but not pushy. Excellence all the way around. I needed soft food that night (dental issue) so ordered the Black Bean cakes, stuffed mushrooms and crab cakes. I knew I'd be sharing with hubby even if these "appetizers" made up my dinner. Hubby had the famous "1905" salad and the Seafood Paella. The Black Bean cakes were so good that I got their Columbia Restaurant Cookbook so I could replicate them at home. The Crab Cakes were equally delicious - rich and full of favorable crab. Not like some places where a crab cake is mostly cracker. The mushrooms were good, just not as outstanding as the other two items. Hubby loved his Seafood Paella. He ate every bite and said it had more seafood in it than most seafood entrees in other places. Don't skimp on the cuban bread and butter - even if you are trying to cut down on the carbs, this is worth it. I promise you. read more

This is a must-eat every time I am in Florida. The food is consistently top notch, flavorful and filling. Every server I have had is always accommodating and considerate and the ambience is welcoming and charming. We ventured out from our usual steak order and tried the seafood paella and were so glad we did. We like the Spanish bean soup as a starter and you can't go wrong anywhere on the menu. Whatever you do, be sure to end your meal with their flan. It is the best we have ever enjoyed. read more

Lunch here was an easy experience with some tasty choices. I ordered the Champiñones Rellenos, a side of Columbia's Original Salad and Pollo Manchego. All were good choices, and left me feeling full but not grossly overloaded! An element I also enjoyed was reading stories about each dish on the menu, it was an nice way to connect to the food. read more

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I've been here before and my server was amazing. The food was very delicious but this server was new or just horrible. He single-handedly ruined the evening. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Café con Leche our waiter missed calculated the amount of milk for two people it's not even halfway full? - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida

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Absolutely horrendous. Do not go for the Tapas. Overpriced, small portions and just awful. The Mojito pitcher was just sweet water. For a Cuban place to screw up a Cuban sandwich.... read more

So far one of the best seafood paella I've ever had!!! The place was beautiful and they sell their merchandise. You gotta have their sangria! Our server was really accommodating. They gave me free flan for my bday! read more

Florida chain Cuban restaurant located in the Disney town of Celebration. Ambience is nice, service was OK and food hit or miss. The Friituras Bacalao were amazing as was the complimentary Cuban bread. The 1905 salad was very good. Unfortunately, the "award winning" Cuban sandwich was surprising bland and the black beans just "ok". Dessert was an olive oil cake served with toasted almonds and strawberries and would order again. Given the enjoyable atmosphere and a menu with plenty of options, I would return again. Thumbs up. read more

I visited twice in 2 days. Thursday and today. Friday. Thursday was excellent. Fantastic food and service. Friday I was on my own and sat at the bar. Big mistake. Barman went on about his medical conditions and how the "bosses " only want him to serve one lot of butter instead of two and how they cut back on the nice toilet paper. I wanted to relax after a hard work week, not hear about management making cut backs. It was inappropriate. read more

This is a top-flight restaurant serving great Cuban Spanish food. They seem to be expanding their footprint now across Florida I was here with a large group celebrating a birthday. We ordered a lot of different foods and shared, everything was delicious. The server did well with the large group and was attentive. read more

Wow! My husband and I just had an amazing experience and excellent meal at Columbia Restaurant this evening. We shared a pitcher of Blanco Sangria. It was prepared right at out table. We each received a large piece of Cuban bread...delish! The calamari appetizer we shared was light and tasty. I enjoyed the Pollo Manchego as my entree and it was fabulous! My husband enjoyed the Paella a la Valencia, also very good. We ended the meal with decaf coffees and split the blueberry cheesecake dessert. The wait staff was exceptional. I highly recommend Columbia Restaurant in Orlando. read more

Columbia Restaurant - Cheesecake with blueberries in a rum reduction sauce. - Spanish Near Me - Celebration, Florida