SERENDIPITY Serendipity is defined as good luck in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries. This was certainly the case as a crack caused me toI have the windshield replaced. "There will be a two hour wait." said the technician." A friend who had accompanied me and I set out to find a coffee shop to grab coffee and a snack as it was noon. We spotted what appeared to be a restaurant within walking distance. The sign outside "Tropical Cuisine" did not prepare us for what awaited inside. The restaurant is located at 9005 E Adamo Dr, Tampa, Florida As we entered and the door closed behind us we were amazed at the size of the restaurant and we found ourselves on a food line that stretched the full length of the restaurant. As we sat sipping a coffee and enjoying a doughnut Federal Express, postal workers, police, contractors, business workers and families with children provided a steady flow of customers to the unending line. We both decided to jump on the food line. The trip through the line presented two problems. With so many culinary choices we were selecting more than we could eat. When we got to the table we both realized we had more food than was possible to consume. The quality and taste of the food explained the unending arrival of customers. My friend begins to load his Takeout Box which will provide two additional meals. We will be returning in the near future. What a great find. read more

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I went in on 813 day to get a plate of oxtail. well I got my plate and the oxtails wasn't done and I had plastic in my food read more

We popped in here for a quick lunch and I really enjoyed it. I had chicken soup and my boyfriend had the roast pork with beans & rice. It's cafeteria style so you get your food right away. It's decorated stylishly and have music, which surprised me since he outside doesn't look like much. Service is quick and friendly. Want to try coffee next time. read more

Tropical Cuisine - Food & seating - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

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After hearing all the rave about this place from my two friends who live and work in the area I finally stop by and it's awful to say the least. As I walk I'm there are two ladies behind the counter arguing with each other ( which never stopped the entire time I was there) I scan the counter and there's no food!!! NO FOOD it's 6:45 and all i saw was grits, potatoes and a woman brought out poached eggs. So I'm immediately disappointed. To make a short story long, I ordered grits and potatoes and she threw in a sausage patty (which ended up being the worst sausage I've ever eaten i literally spit it out.) This woman tried to charge me $9.66 are you crazy!?? I couldn't believe it No bacon No scrambled eggs No toast And you think this is a $10? Naw champ This is my first and my last time coming here. I asked about eggs and I was told 10mins. Come on this is a breakfast joint that opened at 6:30 you know folks are heading to work and can't stay and sit for someone to whip up some eggs. I'm sorry I have zero tolerance for this and I'm upset at my two friends who sent me here to ruin my Friday read more

Tropical Cuisine - Trash - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

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Best mofongo I've had in a long time. Large portion, perfectly seasoned. My favorite!! read more

Tropical Cuisine - Mofongo with garlic and chicharones. - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

The flavors are great! That yummy Dominican / Puerto Rican spices and bold flavors jump right out in every dish I've tried so far. The Rabo (Oxtail for the gringos), so tasty. The sancocho (Mixed stew) well developed flavors and a hearty meal by itself. The location is very relaxed and welcoming for fans of Caribbean food. Even looking at the trays of food, you'll see life, color! At a nearby location, the food just looks sad and overcooked in the trays. Give these folks a chance. read more

I am visiting my family from out of state and the restaurant they suggested is closed on Sundays. So I found this one on yelp last minute and decided to try it out. The place is clean, food was alright. I'm half Dominican, I've had better. My biggest issue was with customer service, which is why my review is a 1 star. I like to respect others and expect that in return. With all the ladies behind the counter (I counted 4), you would think they'd be somewhat organized when receiving customer's orders. I felt anxiety the entire time ordering food. A simple "hi how are you this is how our restaurant works" would have avoided everything I'm about to explain. First of all, the music is too loud. Because of that, it's hard for them to hear us. And I can tell that they get easily annoyed by the constant questioning and misunderstandings...all because we barely can hear them. I did not like the way the 2 ladies who took our order made me feel. Specifically the shortest one with her hair up in a clip, she had a bad attitude and it was noticeable. I understand repeating yourself can get annoying after a while, I used to work in customer service. But y'all gotta start becoming aware of the blatant bad behavior that is projecting that onto people. For first time customers, we are literally just trying to figure out how to order food PLUS decide on what to eat WHILE trying to hear one another. I do not appreciate the lack of kindness. I also felt rushed. Before ordering, I planned on ordering some drinks to go after we ate but I did not want to give this establishment any more money. Overall, it was not a good experience and I won't be coming back when I visit again. I do not recommend this restaurant. There is a Dominican restaurant close by that is walkable that I would recommend going to instead. read more

Let me just take the smell home with me. The wonderfully aroma of Spanish Caribbean spice and MmmmMmmmmmmm good food. Service was excellent, friendly and accommodating. Mangu Tres Gulpes was basically smashed plantains, eggs, cheese and salami, perfectly portioned and nicely seasoned. The Mangu is boiled plantains smashed, and the boiled starchy water added - this was not as nicely seasoned as i have had in the past and was runny. The pernil was to die for, nicely seasoned, shredded perfectly and crispy skin. The boiled yuca was tender and not oily, the cucumber salad was bland although fresh. The bacalao (codfish) was dry, - ask for them to put the sauce from bottom of the coat Inter over it. Lunchtime was busy, and this is sure to be a popular place due to the locals dining in this casual establishment. The morir sonando was a 10 out of ten - Wear your stretchy pants, the servings are more than adequate. read more

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Ok... go here for the food. It is so delicious. Don't go here for the service, because the people tending the place are not very friendly or personable and they just wanna get to the next customer and move on with their day. But the food is amazing. Don't go here for the dine-in comfort, because the place is kinda hot the entire time you're there, even when it's not packed. Also... there was a bud crawling on the floor. But the food... the mangu is to die for. The sausage was delightful. The chicharrón was so rich and tasty. Even the cafe con leche was excellent. So go here for the food. It's absolutely worth it. read more

I got food poisining from them on 9-28-25. Food was spoiled and I was sick as a dog. I called them immediately because the vegetables smelled sour and all they could say was thatthey were sorry and call the manager on 9-29-25. Called all day and next day something told me to go to the restaurant because my calls kept going to voicemail. A BIG YELLOW SIGN POSTED SAYING CLOSED FOR HEALTH REASONS. NEVER GOING THERE AGAIN. THEY DONT LIKE CHANGING GLOVES AND WANT WASH THE SPOONS. THEY WOULD CATCH AN ATTITUDE WHEN I ASKED BUT I DIDN'T CARE. I had the Right as a paying customer. read more

I ordered red snapper on uber they sent me a little note saying they ran out of red snapper and sent me this nasty dried fish. I didn't like it. This is the last time i'm ordering from here!!! money in the trash. You shouldn't just canceled my order if you didn't have red snapper! read more

Tropical Cuisine - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Came for lunch around 12:30ish, it wasn't busy but then it got really crowed. We just ordered ribs, chicken, salt fish and maduros. We ordered small portions as we just wanted to try. They have lunch specials but we didn't get that. When I entered the smell of food reminded me of restaurants in Dominican Republic. The food was good, staff was nice. They have plenty of parking and seats. I forgot to take a picture before....guess i was hungry. read more

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Everything I have eaten from here has been delicious. The service has always been good. The place is clean also. This was my second time going. read more

Tropical Cuisine - Beef stew , rice, and plantains. - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Great food here. Especially if you have little money. You can enjoy a great meal. The restaurant was a Caribbean restaurant before. Now is tropical cuisine with a bit Caribbean taste. The restaurant is displayed with trays of food for your choice of combination. I got a plate of Mofongo as a base and cucumber salad as side. My main dish are the oxtail. The oxtail is soft and fall of the bone. Very good. My friend dish is the king fish with rice. He like his dish because not many restaurant serve king fish. This is the place to go if you want to get in and out for lunch in 30 minutes. This restaurant will be the best choice. We also got the guava juice for refreshing drink. Our experience is great. I will be back for their king fish. They also has dessert I have not try yet. read more

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It was good, but it wasn't as amazing as Mangú Latin Café (the previous Dominican restaurant that occupied the same space). I really miss their food. I felt that today's offerings at 4:00 pm weren't as fresh as what it would be for breakfast or lunch. The platanos maduros were dry, and not sweet. I tasted oil rather than plantain. The ropa vieja was good as well as the cucumber salad, but not amazing. The rice with gandules didn't have much flavor. The service was fast and friendly. The price and portions were all very good. They had a big selection of items including goat and oxtail stew. It appears to be a popular place because there were a lot of people there (many of Latin American descent). I may go back and try something different next time. Maybe for lunch on a Saturday. This girl of Puerto Rican descent was a little disappointed today after trying their food for the first time. I guess I had higher expectations after reading all the reviews. read more

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Everything is delicious. I just like my oxtails cooked a little bit more. It was tough.

Very clean, excellent selection of great food. Stopped by to grab a sampler while my car was getting serviced. The meat was very flavorful & tender & fell off the bones. Staff was very friendly & helpful. Excellent service! Will be back! read more

Tropical Cuisine - Oxtails - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

First time ordering here through door dash. I was craving some of that Caribbean cooking again but something more accurate. King fish Mofongo was divine! Mofongo was very moist n the quantity was a lot! I split my meal down the middle n shared it with my mother. I dropped the ball and forgot to take a picture of the pork soup. Holy cow! That was sooo good! There was a whole chuleta (pork chop) just hiding inside the big tub! Very chunky pieces of vegetables to. I love it when they do that. Big tip, we always order soup with our Mofongo cuz the garlic tends to be strong. So we pour some into the mofongo to make it more wet n manageable. The king fish was well fried, instead of ending my craving I really was tempted to drive over n get like 4 pieces of just the fish. Well seasoned n not to salty. Fried well done. I'm definitely driving down there next week cuz I really want to give them a proper rating inside n obviously try other food! read more

Tropical Cuisine - Grub hub title - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

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I am so angry!!!! I can't believe that restaurant owners or managers allow their employees to get away with sending out poorly prepared food. I like mangu, but I never ever had soupy mangu! It was terrible. I will never eat there again and I will let all know how the quality in your food has gone down. read more

I am beyond impressed with this place! Went in not expecting much but wow! BEST BAKED CHICKEN IN TOWN! Yeah I said it, and I stand behind it! While watching them plate my order I had to fight back tears, it was that beautiful lol! But in all seriousness, the food was delicious! I ordered the baked chicken, yellow rice, and some garlic potato things! All of which were amazing! I'm definitely returning back! And so much food for about 7.50! You can't beat it! Plus a free pop for checking in on yelp! (Always check in) ;) I'll leave pics below! read more

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The one located on Hillsboro has really disappointed me. I have been going to this place for years and for some reason today they have new people that are working there that don't know what they're doing . The rice was very hard through my whole entire plate away. What a waste. The oxtails were hard they need to train the workers better you guys hired a prices, but did not hire correct people to serve. I also sent my sister over to this place as she walked right out after trying to order her food. The workers need to learn to pay attention to the person they have in front of them when they are ordering and not to each other and talking about their life at home. This was a waste of my money today. read more

Mangu de aquí es terrible. El mangu estaba aguado y los huevos estaban viejos y demasiado cocidos. La salchicha estaba poco cocida. Compré un pedido grande de esto y terminé tirándolo. ¡Pagué $21 por esto! Ni siquiera creo que quien haya cocinado esto se lo coma él mismo. Nunca volver a realizar pedidos desde aquí. read more

I love tropical cuisine because it's always clean , food never looks old , deserts are tasty , the Picadillo and white rice , the coconut flan is so good , tres leeches I'll be trying for the first time because the lady before me racked up on everything like she was in a mid life crisis and if that's what she wants while she's going through it then dammit I want one too lol but seriously she just kept grabbing everything like it was crack obviously she had kids. Comfort food man and the Julipta pineapple soda hit lol read more

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¡Loco portions! ¡Cabrito es Neato! The value and flavor and customer service especially to a gringo like me who might need a little extra help in making a decision given so many temptations... so you just have to experience it for yourself! If you haven't tried Dominican food you are cheating yourself from this local sensational delight! There is something for all of us who prefers veggies, pescatarian, eats every part and leaves nothing on the plate... It's all here for you and it is absolutely delicioso! And here is an added tip. Bring your own to-go containers and help save the blue planet and win me corazon. But learn from my lesson and bring more than one. The portions are that magnifico! ¡Me gusto mucho! read more

Tropical Cuisine - ¡Loco portions! ¡Cabrito es Neato! ¡Me gusto mucho! - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Great food and service. Really nice people inside. A lot of food options to choose from.

Service, very rude and nobody understands English , could not communicate what was missing from the order I was picking up

I really love this place for lunch. Fast service but the good stuff runs out so get there early. Simple order method with juice and sandwich bar. Good place to eat and even better to get a refreshing drink. Lunch time rush is a bit hectic though. read more

Sitting at Courtesy Toyota waiting on my vehicle was starving and decided to try this place out and the yelp rating backs up the cuisine. Landed on a small roast chicken lunch plate with a side of cucumber salad and topped it off with a small flan and now my soul is satiated. Prices, quality, quantity and service will bring me back to this little jewel again and again!! read more

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The service is amazing my server was Sarah I was with a smile the food was delicious I've been back three days in a row and I keep recommending people to go there I have been taking friends of mine there just so I can get something else to try something different every time and every time I'm surprised how good it is the price is so affordable is ridiculous it's my new favorite hotspot read more

Tropical Cuisine - I got the roast pork chicken and rice and sweet plantains - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Sparking clean interior with such nice ladies serving. The options are so many and everything tastes good! This place has breakfast, lunch and a dessert bar as well as fountain drinks and plenty of seating. I'll be back! read more

I haven't had mangu THIS GOOD in so long. First off I never leave reviews, but secondly. I'm not even done eating yet and My mouth is experiencing pure joy right now. A lot of options for my vegetarian and pescatarian friends, it's always soooo hard eating Latin food bc EVERYTHING HAS MEAT. And everything is priced really well. Will be coming back again to try more meals thank you guys! read more

Tropical Cuisine - Mangu Tres Golpes Breakfast Platter - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Came here for breakfast when in the area for a event. Great food and service. Friendly staff very clean place. Wish there was one in JAX read more

Tropical Cuisine - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Woke up really craving a Latin American breakfast and Tropical Cuisine DELIVERED. Ordered on Uber Eats and it came fast, everything was packed up nicely and it was DELICIOUS. Do not sleep on Tropical Cuisine. read more

Tropical Cuisine - Mangu Tres Golpes Breakfast Platter - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

Um..HECK TO THE YES!!!! I always wanted to try this spot I work at amazon and always seen it never stopped but WOW. This place food is amazing! So seasoned soooo well!!! Perfect lunch time meal! The lady who helped me out was so sweet! She noticed I wasn't Spanish and walked me thru what I could have...staff very sweet! Once again it was the winning factor of it all..I definitely will be back and I will bring friends with me! 5 stars!! Love this place. read more

Tropical Cuisine - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

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Delicious Food at a reasonable price! Always clean and friendly environment! Thank you very much for helping your community! Thank you for always saying yes to help Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church! May God Bless you always! Comida deliciosa! Servicio de calidad y amigable! Muchas gracias por ayudar a su comunidad y por siempre ayudar a Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church! Dios los Bendiga abundantemente! read more

Food was good but restaurant was super packed. We sat down to eat then started seeing bugs (live and dead) through out the restaurant. I don't get grossed out easily but this just made me loose my appetite. read more

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We really like the food here. My better half is Dominican so she knows good Dominican food. The black beans are great. The Pernil (roasted pork for the non-latinos) is always deliciously moist and has great flavor. The girls are always so nice and helpful. My biggest complaint is their hours. They close at 7 but you go at 5:30 and there's almost no food. The place is really popular and always people; why would they close at 7 instead of closing at least at 8 and get the total dinner rush. And have someone make food for the whole time. People stop going late cause they know there will be no food. At least on the positive side they are now open on Sunday. read more

Although small in size, the food options and flavors are wide. This is a great lunch spot to grab a filling meal to go. I have had the stew chicken and mofongo and loved both. On Mondays and Wednesday's they have empanadas for .99 cents! If you want authentic, fresh and affordable Spanish food, I recommend this spot. read more

Tropical Cuisine - Small plate with stewed chicken, rice and platanos - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

I ordered the oxtail mofongo. The mofongo was very dry. I didn't enjoy it and wasn't able to finish it. The oxtail was ok. It was kind of tough. All in all disappointing. I don't have much else to say about it read more

Best food in tampa!! Best price!! A+++ customer services. Love this place!! Taste great! read more

Tropical Cuisine - Latin American Near Me - Tampa, Florida