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Columbia Restaurant on St. Armands Circle Sells Out Due to 50th Anniversary Special Offer
SARASOTA, Fla., June 26, 2009 - The Columbia on St. Armands Circle made a special offer to celebrate its 50th Anniversary making them the oldest restaurant in Sarasota. Couples married 50 years or longer could celebrate at the St. Armands Columbia with a complimentary lunch for two on Sunday, July 19th, 2009 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Due to an overwhelming response to the offer, the restaurant is sold out and reservations are no longer available. The Columbia is pleased to serve and celebrate with so many long-time happily married couples.
The Columbia Restaurant was founded in 1905 and is Florida’s oldest restaurant. Locations include the flagship restaurant in Tampa’s historic Ybor City, St. Armands Circle in Sarasota, the historic district in St. Augustine, The Pier in St. Petersburg, Sand Key in Clearwater Beach, Central Florida’s Town of Celebration and the Columbia Cafe at the Tampa Bay History Center. All Columbia Restaurants are owned and operated by the Gonzmart family, fourth and fifth generation members of the founding family, and are open daily for lunch and dinner.
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The Columbia Adds New Vegetarian Section to Menu
The Columbia Restaurant has added a new vegetarian section, along with some new menu items to their lunch and dinner menu in their six locations that include Ybor City, Sarasota, St. Augustine, St. Petersburg, Clearwater Beach and Celebration.
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Sparking wine lovers can enjoy a newly created dish; Pollo y Pasta “Cristalino” -- Sautéed chicken breast tossed with fresh pasta pockets stuffed with truffles and cheese simmered in a rich creamy sauce made with Spain''s premium Cava sparkling wine, Cristalino.
A new tapas item, Croquetas de Langosta, is two large croquettes made with Maine lobster meat, blended into a delicate roux, breaded with Cuban bread crumbs and served with a lobster sauce.
Vegetarians and those looking for healthier menu choices will find three dinner entrees to choose from, and a lunch entrée to try in our new vegetarian section.
New Vegetarian Dinner Entrees
Eggplant “Riojana”
Sliced eggplant breaded with ground plantain crumbs, smothered in our rich Rioja sauce of tomatoes, garlic, capers, olives and red wine topped with melted Galician Tetilla cheese.
Pasta con Trufas “Cristalino”
Fresh pasta pockets stuffed with truffles and cheese simmered in a rich creamy sauce made with Spain’s premium Cava sparkling wine, Cristalino.
Vegetarian “Cubana”
Yuca, black beans, white rice, platanos, tostones and sautéed fresh vegetables.
New Vegetarian Lunch Entree
Eggplant “Riojana”
Sliced eggplant breaded with ground plantain crumbs, smothered in our rich Rioja sauce of tomatoes, garlic, capers, olives and red wine topped with melted Galician Tetilla cheese.
Other New Items
Tapas
Croquetas de Langosta
Two large croquettes made with Maine lobster meat, blended into a delicate roux, breaded with Cuban bread crumbs, served with a lobster sauce.
Dinner Entrees
Pollo y Pasta “Cristalino”
Sautéed chicken breast tossed with fresh pasta pockets stuffed with truffles and cheese simmered in a rich creamy sauce made with Spain’s premium Cava sparkling wine Cristalino.
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Enjoy Waterfront Views at the Columbia Cafe
Enjoy waterfront drinks, tapas and World-Famous “1905” Salad™ with a waterfront view at The Columbia Cafe. The Columbia Cafe is inside the Tampa Bay History Center, next to the St. Pete Times Forum in Downtown Tampa.
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The Columbia Café offers lunch and dinner daily with an outdoor terrace on the water, and waterfront indoor seating.
The menu has been chosen to reflect some of the traditional Spanish and Cuban dishes that have made our family restaurant famous for over 100 years.
The Columbia Café is open from 11:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m daily. There is an entrance on the Channelside Riverwalk.
Address:
801 Old Water Street #1905
Tampa, FL 33602
Telephone: 813-229-5511
E-mail: columbiacafe@columbiarestaurant.com
Hours: 11:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Serving Lunch & Dinner daily, closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
Children''s Menu
Banquet space available
Founded in 1905 by Cuban immigrant Casimiro Hernandez, Sr., the Columbia Restaurant is Florida’s oldest restaurant and the world’s largest Spanish restaurant. Locations include the flagship restaurant in Tampa’s Historic Ybor City, St. Armands Circle in Sarasota, the Historic District in St. Augustine, The Pier in St. Petersburg, Sand Key on Clearwater Beach, Central Florida''s town of Celebration, and the Columbia Café at the Tampa Bay History Center. All Columbia Restaurants are owned and operated by 4th and 5th generation members of the founding family.
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Richard Gonzmart Interview on WEDU-TV
Richard Gonzmart was recently featured on WEDU-TV on the Suncoast Business Forum. Tune in for a fascinating discussion of the legends and myths of The Columbia, a 104-year-old family business.
Please click here to see the Columbia WEDU-TV interview.
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Columbia on Facebook
The Columbia Restaurant is on Facebook. You can view videos and photos, read about special events sponsored by The Columbia, and get information about all the restaurant locations. You can also post your own videos and photos
about The Columbia, and share stories about your experience at our restaurants.
Please click here to see the Columbia Facebook page
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The Gonzmart Family and The Columbia Featured on The Today Show
Richard and Andrea Gonzmart were interviewed live on The Today show by Al Roker on Thursday, January 29, 2009. Viewers nationwide enjoyed hearing about Florida’s oldest restaurant, owned and operated by members of the 4th and 5th generations of the founding family.
They also learned what makes a Tampa Cuban Sandwich unique. …(it’s the salami!) The Columbia’s Original "1905" Salad,™ named one of “One of America’s Top 10 Best Salads” in USA Today, along with Paella were sample by Mr. Roker.
The Columbia Restaurant Flamenco dancers were also featured on the show. The Today show televised their broadcast live from Ybor City as part of their pre-Super Bowl Coverage.
If you didn’t get to see The Columbia’s interview, or the Flamenco dancers performance, you can view both of them at Youtube.com, (type in “Columbia Restaurant Today show”) or on the Columbia’s Facebook page,
Please click here to see the Columbia Facebook page
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The Columbia Offers Gluten Free Menu Items
For a list of gluten free menu items, please see list below:
Spanish Bean Soup
Black Bean Soup
“1905” Salad
Lula Mae Salad
Beefsteak Tomato Salad
Chicken & Yellow Rice
Roast Pork
Palomilla
Shrimp Criollo
Paellas
Mahi Mahi Cayo Hueso
Mussels y Chorizo
Queso Fundido
Shrimp Ajillo
Flan
Crema Catalana
Moros y Cristianos
Snapper Bilbao
Filet Mignon
Delmonico Sonny
Pollo Valencia
Snapper Adelita can be made if not dusted with flour, just seasoned and grilled. Topping is okay.
Ternera Isabella can be made if not dusted with flour, just seasoned and grilled.
These Sauces Are Not Gluten Free
Boliche Sauce
Columbia Sauce
Barcelona Sauce
Alicante Sauce
Chacho Sauce
Amontillado Sauce
Mornay Sauce
What is gluten?
Gluten, is a mixture of proteins present in the cereal grains. The long molecules of gluten, insoluble in water, are strong and flexible and form many cross linkages. This gives flour its characteristic chewiness and permits breads and cakes to rise during baking as the gases within expand and are trapped in the gluten superstructure. Various flours have different ratios of gluten to starch (called hardness) and are appropriate for different types of foodstuffs. Thus soft flour is used for cakes, harder flour for pastry, hard flour for bread, and the hardest, or durum, for pasta. The hereditary disease called nontropical sprue is characterized by an inability to digest gluten. In this disease the gluten acts as an antigen (see immunity) and forms immune complexes that cause damage to the mucus lining of the intestine.
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The Columbia’s Original "1905" SaladTM was selected as “One of America’s Top 10 Best Salads”
The Columbia’s Original "1905" SaladTM was selected as “One of America’s Top 10 Best Salads” by the Salad Guy, author Wiley Mullins in USA Today. The Columbia is the only restaurant in Florida named to this list.
Wiley Mullins, author of Salad Makes the Meal: 150 Simple and Inspired Salad Recipes Everyone Will Love, shared his list of favorite places in the United States with Kathy Baruffi for USA Today.
Regarding the Columbia, Mullins says, “The 1905 Salad is famous throughout Florida, and salad lovers travel near and far to enjoy it. No wonder it’s trademarked!” “Tossed and created at your table, this masterpiece of a meal includes the juiciest beefsteak tomatoes you’ve ever tasted, lettuce, tender baked ham, Romano and Swiss cheeses, olives and a deliciously smooth garlic dressing.”
The others places named to the list include Ching’s Table in New Canaan, Conn; City Grocery Café in Oxford, Miss.; Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills, NY; Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif.; 84 High Street in Westerly, RI; Café Pasquals in Santa Fe, NM; Firefly in Lenox, Mass.; Hall Street Grill in Beaverton, Ore.; and True in Mobile, Ala.
Link to story: http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/10great/2008-05-08-10-great_N.htm
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Stone Crab in Sarasota!
Stone Crab Claws are back in season, and the Columbia Restaurant in
Sarasota has them!
Served fresh from the Gulf of Mexico, either chilled or steamed, with butter, mustard sauce and lemon, or broiled “Carioca” style with Latin spices. We invite you to celebrate Stone Crab season with us.
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Columbia Restaurant Removes Grouper from the Menu In All of Their Restaurants
TAMPA, Fla., May 1, 2007 - - The Columbia Restaurant has removed grouper from the lunch and dinner menus of its six restaurants in Florida. “We are taking a pro-active response to the difficulty in meeting the demand for authentic Florida grouper by taking all grouper items off of our menu,” said Richard Gonzmart, President and 4th generation family member for the Columbia Restaurant Group.
“We will offer grouper as a special only if we receive the entire fish from our supplier, not just a fillet; this way ensuring that we know we are serving what we say we’re serving,” he said.
Grouper is a prize catch because diners like its mild flavor and white, flaky meat. Florida is known for grouper because it''s caught in the coastal waters of the Atlantic Ocean, or from the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. In the opinion of Gonzmart, the best grouper comes from the Gulf of Mexico.
Grouper also comes into the state of Florida from all over the world. More than seventy different species of grouper are imported into the United States, including Asian grouper that sells at half the cost of the kind caught in Florida.*1
“On top of that trade, unscrupulous businesses sell cheaper fish under the grouper name”, said Bob Jones, executive director of the Southeastern Fisheries Association, which represents Florida fisheries, importers and exporters.*2
The Florida Attorney General''s Office recently tested fish sold as grouper at 24 restaurants in the Tampa area and found that 17 served a different fish.*3
“We will never compromise our family’s name and reputation by serving our guests any kind of substitute item. If we say it is grouper, it will be grouper caught in Florida,” Gonzmart said.
Gonzmart recently took a grouper sandwich off of The Columbia’s lunch menu and in its place is serving a Mahi Mahi Cubana Sandwich, which is Mahi Mahi seasoned and topped with sautéed onions, mushrooms, green peppers and smothered with cheese on Cuban bread.
He also took Florida grouper off the dinner menu, and is serving a newly created crabmeat dish called Langosta y Jaiba Enchilado, a mildly spicy sauce of Maine lobster meat and blue crabmeat, tomato, onions, green peppers, garlic, oregano, white wine and chili peppers, served over pasta. The Columbia is also working with other fresh fish from Florida and with a variety of fish from around the world for their menus and daily specials.
The Columbia Restaurant was founded in 1905 and celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2005. Locations include the flagship restaurant in Tampa’s Historic Ybor City, St. Armands Circle in Sarasota, the Historic District in St. Augustine, The Pier in St. Petersburg, Sand Key on Clearwater Beach and in Central Florida''s town of Celebration. All Columbia Restaurants are owned and operated by 4th and 5th generation members of the founding family.
Please see www.columbiarestaurant.com for more information.
Sources: *1, *2 and *3 Florida Times-Union --February 13, 2007
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Longtime Waiter Appointed Columbia Ambassador - Will Lead Free Tours of Columbia Ybor City
Now you can experience a walk through Over 100 Years of Columbia Restaurant History with a guide who has over 50 years of first-hand knowledge.
Joe Roman, 80, started working at the Columbia Restaurant in Tampa’s Historic Ybor City in 1954 at the age of 26. He has always taken great pride in his work and it earned him a good living, on which he raised two sons with his wife of 59 years.
In 2002, after 48 years of work, Joe began to cut back on his hours due to problems with his knees, and then had to retire. He was very distressed that this meant he would not reach 50 years of service.
“We knew how important it was to Joe for him to reach that milestone,” said Gonzmart. “We created a position just for him in conjunction with our 100-year anniversary in 2005. Joe has been named our "Columbia Restaurant Ambassador." In this role, he continues what he does best, greeting guests and sharing the Columbia story with them. He will be giving tours of the restaurant. We don''t have to train him in our history, he lived it first hand.”
You can enjoy your own free tour of Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City with Joe anytime from 12-2 p.m. Monday –Friday. There is no formal sign up sheet, you can let your server know that you’d like to take the tour with Joe, and your server will have Joe visit your table and lead you on the tour at your convenience.
Joe Roman is a favorite among guests because he often spontaneously breaks into song. He earned his nickname, “The Singer Waiter,” in 1962, the year the first song that he sang to guests was released, Tony Bennett’s classic, I Left My Heart In San Francisco.
Joe has built his entire life around working as a waiter. He and his wife have two sons and four grandchildren. He was able to raise his family entirely on his salary as a waiter. He was born and raised in Ybor City, and takes great pride in sharing the history of the area with visitors and locals alike.
Joe has also received other honors for his loyalty and longevity. “For his dedication to his work and to our family, we inducted Joe into our Columbia Restaurant Hall of Fame in 2000,” said Richard Gonzmart, fourth generation owner of the Columbia. “We created our Hall of Fame to honor employees who have contributed to the legacy of Columbia Restaurant.”
In 2006, Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio proclaimed August 16, 2006 as “Joe Roman Day” in the City of Tampa, Florida, to honor Columbia Restaurant’s Ambassador for over 50 Years of Service in the Hospitality Industry, along with acknowledging Mr. Roman’s commitment and dedication that have made a lasting impact on our community and its citizens.
In August of 2004 Joe was honored as the recipient of the Iris D. Larson Hospitality Award at the Florida Governor’s Conference on Tourism held in Orlando, Florida.
The Iris D. Larson Hospitality Award was created to recognize hospitality/tourism industry professionals who exemplify the qualities of selfless spirit of service and leadership in their work experience.
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