Columbia Restaurant

The Columbia Restaurant at 2117 E 7th Ave in Tampa's Ybor City is Florida's oldest restaurant, in continuous operation since 1905, and one of the largest restaurants in the United States — the complex sprawls across a full city block with fifteen dining rooms covering more than 1,700 seats. Founded by Cuban immigrant Casimiro Hernandez Sr. during Ybor City's cigar-manufacturing heyday, the Columbia has evolved over four generations of the Hernandez family while preserving a menu and atmosphere that feel genuinely connected to their roots. The cuisine blends Spanish and Cuban traditions: the centerpiece is the 1905 Salad, prepared tableside in a vast wooden bowl — romaine, ham, olives, capers, Swiss cheese, and house-made dressing tossed with theatrical flair by a server in period costume, then dressed with a final squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of Worcestershire. It has been prepared this way since 1905. The Cuban sandwich at the Columbia is a source of intense local pride and is widely regarded as one of the definitive versions in Tampa — itself the city that claims to have invented the sandwich. Boliche, a Cuban pot roast stuffed with chorizo, and a traditional paella Valenciana round out the canon of essential dishes. The flamenco show, performed nightly in the grand Patio dining room — a sky-lit courtyard with fountains and Spanish tiles — is an Ybor City institution. The Columbia operates seven locations across Florida, but the Ybor City original retains the greatest historical and atmospheric weight.