Oxford Exchange – Tampa, FL

It’s great living in the town I grew up in during the holidays because so many people come home to visit their families this time of year.  Luckily I’ve gotten to catch up with a lot of my friends who have since moved away from Tampa. 

Today a group of us went out to lunch at Oxford Exchange.  I don’t know how I somehow have missed writing a blog post about this place since I've been there many times, but better late than never.  It opened back in 2012 and having a background in design, I fell in love with it immediately.  They took two older buildings (one from the 1800’s) and transformed them into a multipurpose space with coffee a tea shops, a restaurant, bookstore, and gift shop. 

The interiors are beautiful with a gorgeous glass atrium that lets in the Florida sunshine, a mix of marble and herringbone wood floors, a grand staircase in the center, and a mix of brick walls and detailed wood paneling. 

It is right across Kennedy Boulevard from the University of Tampa, so it’s the perfect place for students to come study while enjoying TeBella tea or Buddy Brew coffee. 

Today I had an arugula salad with grilled chicken, quinoa, roasted butternut squash, crispy Brussels sprouts, dried cherries, pistachios, and feta with a citrus vinaigrette.  It was probably one of the best salads I’ve had – I would definitely order it again.  My friend Alex had a side of the fried Brussels sprouts and they were huge!  

I love all of TeBella’s teas – I’ve tried a different kind each time I’ve gone there.  With my lunch today I had the carrot cake rooibos tea which was sweet and cinnamon-y.  They bring you a little silver teapot so you can enjoy several cups. 

My only complaint is that the prices are pretty high.  Although the food is incredible, I spent $30 on a salad and tea, which is a lot more than I’d normally spend on lunch.  And their gift shop is outrageously priced – I played a game with my friend James once where we had to guess the price of different items in the shop.  They do have some really beautiful gifts and it’s nice to browse. 

I’ve actually been to two wedding receptions at Oxford Exchange – my friend Leslie’s in June of 2013 and my cousin Chris’s in March of 2014.  It is the perfect backdrop to celebrate and since the Oxford Exchange does the catering, the food at both weddings was delicious. 

Photos below of Leslie & Greg’s wedding are by Anna Kirby Photography

And these pictures from Chris & Marty’s wedding are by Jason Angelini Photography (who is our photographer for our wedding next April!)

The Oxford is located at 420 W Kennedy Blvd, Tampa, FL 33602 and is open 7:30am – 5:30pm Monday – Friday and 9am – 5:30pm Saturday – Sunday.  

Mount Dora Restaurants

Since I started a new job, Lance and I haven’t had days off together (I have Saturday/Sundays off and he has Tuesday/Wednesdays).  But a few weekends ago, he took a couple days off so we could spend some time together.  We wanted to find a town we hadn’t been to before, so we took a mini-vacation to Mount Dora. 

It’s a really little town north of Orlando – very laid back and quaint.  We headed up on Friday night and started off with dinner at Mount Dora Brewing/Rocking Rabbit Brewery (it seemed to go by two names…) True to their name, there is a giant rocking horse-style rabbit in the main dining area.  

It was crowded, so we sat out in their beer garden.  It was pretty with hanging lights and flowers, but we actually had to move into their screened in porch after a few minutes because the mosquitoes like me too much – I must have gotten 20 bug bites in the 5 minutes we sat out there, even with the citronella candles and fan on the patio. 

The patio was filled with unusual junk art and found objects – and they had a projector screen showing the live music & dancing in the bar area next door.

We ordered a flight of beers – their beer list was a little unusual because it appeared that they brew only 3 different beers, then blend them together to create their 3 other beers.  For instance, the “Dirty Blonde” was a blend of their porter and blonde ales, and their “Rabbit Pellet Porter” was a blend of their red and porter.  I think the red/porter blend was my favorite. 

For dinner, I enjoyed the coconut & panko crusted salmon filet and Lance had the prime rib salad with crispy onions.  Both tasty – unfortunately the dim lighting didn’t do my photos justice.  I think the crowd was a bit out of our age range – we were half the age of the rest of the diners, but it seems to be a popular local hangout. 

We stayed at the Lakeside Inn, a historic Victorian hotel that’s been around for over 130 years.  The room was very small, but the inn property was beautiful and they had a nice big porch lined with rocking chairs.  Pretty much everything in Mount Dora is within walking distance, so we just kept the car parked at the hotel and wandered the town.  

We headed to the Windsor Rose Tea Room & Restaurant for breakfast.  I think this was my favorite part of Mount Dora – such a charming little restaurant and incredibly welcoming.  It is very British – with artwork and trinkets depicting the royal family throughout.  We started off with tea and coffee – their tea is served in mismatching bone china cups & saucers made in England and they even brought out a tea cozy to keep my teapot warm. 

I ordered the Benedict Arnold eggs & hash browns and Lance had their Billy Bunter breakfast - two strips of bacon, Banger sausage, eggs, baked beans, and sautéed mushrooms.  I would come back to this place in a heartbeat…the whole experience was wonderful.  

The rest of the day we spent meandering through local shops – I found a cool adult coloring book that I’m pretty excited about at a store called Barrels of Books and Games.  

Then we drove to Renninger’s, a huge flea market and antique center.  It’s so enormous that we could have spent the whole day there.  Part of it was outdoors, so we cooled off from the August heat with snow cones.  There were plenty of really cool vintage furniture pieces, but we don’t really have space for anything in our little condo. 

Mount Dora is a great getaway for a day or weekend trip – we probably couldn’t have found much to do if we were there a whole week, but we really enjoyed our stay. 

Mount Dora Brewing/Rocking Rabbit Brewery is 405 S. Highland Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757 and is open 11am – 11pm Mondays and Fridays, 11am – 3pm Tuesdays – Thursdays, and 8am – 11pm on Saturdays - Sundays. 

Windsor Rose Tea Room & Restaurant is located at 142 W. 4^th Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757 and is open 9am – 4pm Monday – Tuesday and Thursday – Friday, and 9am – 4:30pm on Saturdays - Sundays (they are closed on Wednesdays).  

Bamboozle Tea Lounge Takeout

I’m helping write a healthy living blog for the restaurant Bamboozle (we just started, but you can check it out here).  So you may see a lot of their food on my blog! 

 

I called ahead a few nights ago so I could pick up dinner on the way home from work.  You can order online for pickup if you want – this is actually the first time I did carryout (I love their atmosphere, so usually I dine in). 

I normally order the fresh rolls, but I thought I’d try something different this time.  I got the Tiger Shrimp Baby Noodle Salad, a Beef Pho soup, and Pork Banh Mi – lots of different types of meats!

 

The food was ready just as I walked in so it was super convenient.  I carefully drove home with the blue bag in my passenger seat and we enjoyed the meal very much.  Lance was especially a fan of the Banh Mi sandwich (he didn’t want to share!)

Bamboozle Tea Lounge is located at 109 N 12th St #101, Tampa, FL 33602 and open from 10:30am – 9pm Mondays through Fridays, 11am – 9pm on Saturdays, and 11:30am – 4pm for brunch on Sundays.

Brunch at Bamboozle Tea Lounge - Tampa, FL

 

One of my favorite restaurants, Bamboozle Tea Lounge, invited me to preview their new brunch menu, which debuts later this month on Sunday, October 26^th.  You can read more about Bamboozle on this blog post from August. 

 

 

Up until now, they have been closed Sundays.  The owner, Lynn Pham, tells me that they’ll start off with brunch on just Sundays, then if it is popular, it may expand to other days of the week. 

 

 

We sampled a bit of everything from their new brunch menu this morning, and I can tell you it’s all incredible!  Just like their lunch and dinner items, the brunch selection was all carefully crafted with fresh ingredients.  It was filling, yet light enough that we didn’t feel guilty afterwards. 

 

 

We started off with the mini beignets – French doughnuts coated with powdered sugar and cinnamon.  There were several drizzles to choose from – including honey, condensed milk, and chocolate syrup – and then roasted coconut, almonds, and crushed peanuts to garnish.  Lance loaded our beignets with a bit of everything!  They were perfectly light and flaky, just as if they were bought in New Orleans. 

 

 

 

 

Next we split one of the exotic fresh fruit parfaits.  The Greek yogurt was layered with tropical fruits, roasted coconut, local honey, and organic artisan granola from local Bake’n Babes.  I’d say it’s the best parfait I’ve ever eaten. 

 

 

Next we tried the pate chaud – a Vietnamese French chicken puff pastry.  Lance had skipped it at first since he thought it was just bread, but when he saw it had chicken inside, he grabbed one for himself.  It ended up being his favorite item this morning – I think if we didn’t fill up on other foods he would have eaten a half dozen more. 

 

There are several mini dessert options on the brunch menu as well – including Nutella cheesecake bites, mini pear cupcakes, mini Vietnamese coffee cupcakes, and mini 5-spiced carrot cupcakes.  I don’t think the carrot was there this morning, but the rest we sampled were wonderful.  The pear cupcakes were made again by Bake’n Babes – they were topped with a caramel miso glaze and ginger candy.  Wow!  The caramel on top almost tasted a bit like flan.  Then the ginger added a nice Asian twist. 

 

 

 

The fresh rolls from their normal menu were also included in the brunch.  We sampled a chicken one served with peanut dressing, and a fresh fruit roll with citrus dressing.  My personal favorite roll of theirs is the Coco – Tiger shrimp, shredded coconut, pineapple, jicama, and mint with the citrus dressing. 

 

Lynn served us each pineapple lychee mimosas with mint syrup – they were sweet and refreshing.  We also tried the Vietnamese slow drip coffee – made with Monde-French Chicory coffee and sweetened with condensed milk.  It tasted more like a dessert drink – very yummy. 

 

 

 

 

Behind the counter they had 4 flavors of their seasonal fresh fruit infused sake that will be made into spritzers – those will available starting this Friday for their Open Mic Night. 

 

I noticed that they have a Pumpkin Spice tea on the shelf, so once it cools off a bit more, I’ll be back for that! 

 

We feel so privileged to have been included in this preview brunch – I have only good things to say about Bamboozle!  Everyone who works there is so inviting, and the food won’t disappoint.  If you haven’t been – go check them out immediately.  They have a downtown café as well, but I tend to go to the Tea Lounge since it’s close to my work and has a laid-back atmosphere. 

Bamboozle Tea Lounge is located at 109 N 12th St #101, Tampa, FL 33602 and open from 10:30am – 9pm Mondays through Fridays, 11am – 9pm on Saturdays, and 11:30am – 4pm for brunch on Sundays starting October 26^th.