Columbia Cafe at the Tampa Bay History Center

Chris was our waiter and he was awesome. He made great recommendations and was very attentive and pleasant. Highly recommend this little gem!

Great place for a wonderful meal downtown. The ambiance is hard to beat and the service is always good.

Great setting and fun environment, but the food was very average and the drinks were below average. I would not recommend.

Our service was poor, at best. We ordered apps- never got them. Never got our bread. No refills. Left my salad sitting by the table for 10 minutes. Asked to cancel apps since they never arrived and we were still charged for them and had to dispute it. It's a shame, I always loved this spot but I may not be back.

I recently visited Columbia Café and had a mixed experience. I ordered the Original 1905 Salad, which was fresh and flavorful, just as good as expected. I also tried the Paella Casa Benigna; it was alright. The seafood was cooked well and tasted fresh, but the dish itself leaned a bit too salty for my liking. Unfortunately, the service was the biggest disappointment. Our waiter was noticeably unattentive, he never checked up on us throughout the meal. I actually had to ask another server to help find him just so I could get my water refilled. On top of that, the overall vibe felt rushed, and the first time he truly returned to the table was to drop off the bill. Having dined at the original Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City, this was a very different experience and fell far short of the excellent service. The food had potential, but the poor service really overshadowed the visit.

I have dined at their main location in Ybor city and it was excellent. The cafe food was poor. We were a table of 6 and everyone was not impressed at all. Eggplant was overcooked and all you could taste was overcooked breading. The steak was extremely dry. Best part was the deserts. We had the bread pudding, flan and butterscotch pie and the were delicious. But overall left pretty disappointed.

The service as great from the minute we walked in. The mojitos were great too! The food though was not up to par as the sister restaurant in Ybor. It's a great location and I'm glad to see that thy take reservations now, but the food taste and quality is not consistent with rest of the experience.

Excellent experience, as always, at Columbia Cafe. Seated quickly with a reservation on a busy Friday night before a big event at The Ice Palace. Food was excellent and service was attentive.

We chose the Columbia Cafe because of its location to the Tampa History Boat Tour. It was perfect for that. We know the food at Columbia is always good. We ate light - split a Cuban and Gazpacho soup - which was very tasty and had a couple beers. The sandwich was fine and a nice portion. We would go back but just understanding this is not for fine dining experience but was a nice outside cafe on a beautiful day. The service was ok - not the most happy server but he got our order right and on time since we had to catch the boat. A great option to have on the River Walk.

SUPERB restaurant. Food is consistently excellent, with just a little Cuban accent on long-time favorites. Drinks were imaginative and were all extremely tasty. Columbia will be my first option for lunch or dinner in whichever city I can find one.

The food was well-prepared, fresh and delicious. Staff was very nice and attentive (looking at you, Nadia!). Definitely recommend.

This Was a great choice because if you can't choose one dish you can pick a couple or three tapas and sample everything. We sat outside. It was divine.

Our first time at this Columbia location. Very nice experience, we will be back. We had an early lunch outside overlooking the river. The food, service and ambiance were perfect. Columbia doe is right!

It was Santa’s departing date with Mrs Claus and they delivered the wrong Empanada - Beef instead of Chicken. Not a problem, I brought it to the maître D & he returned with her desire. My Hot Sexy Wife didn’t want to take any action, but she wasn’t eating that! I had the best out of 3 Cuban sandwiches & “The Cuban Sandwich Competition” is over! It was authentic and within walking distance. I had a glass of Sangria & Leslie had a glass of Pinot Grigio $51.60 bill $5

The first thing we noticed is that the portions were HALF the size they were six or seven months ago when we were there last— all for the same price, of course. The famous 1905 salad was quickly thrown together by a bored-looking waitress and was oily and not nearly as flavorful as it normally is. The food was decent, but not as good as in previous visits. The Cuban bread still rocks, though, and the sangria made it all a bit easier to accept. Don't think we'll be returning, though.