Sal's Bodega — Local services in Tampa

Just extremely disappointed with the service. If I could rate 0 stars I would. We were the only people in the shop and it took 50 minutes for us to get a sandwich and lunch special. The girl at the front is very rude and was on her phone constantly, the cook said he didn’t have steak made or prepped and she told us he’s lazy and “lies” about not having certain products (extremely unprofessional to call your coworker lazy in front of customers) then lied to us saying it’s only going to take 15 minutes, which we were fine with. But after 30-40 minutes wouldn’t you apologize or mention that it’s going to take longer than expected ? We would’ve been fine picking something else but she insisted it wouldn’t take long. I understand she’s new but obviously needs some more training. Also the food was NOT good. The wait was not worth it. The steak was not seasoned, over cooked and chewy. The rice was dry and hard, we also got cookies that were super hard and inedible. This place has a lot of potential but overall was not what I was expecting. If I could get a refund I would, but I rather eat it than go back and have to deal with the girl at the front again. I heard the owner is much nicer so maybe we just got...

I just moved back to the area and the first time I just stopped by with my son to grab a drink after going to the playground and it had such a great vibe. The guy behind the counter even gave my son a treat (very appreciative,since I forgot snacks). But I just went in today to get lunch since I work from home nearby. I ordered a Cuban and got a slice of Oreo pie. The Cuban was fantastic and the pork was very good, whoever's recipe that is really knows their stuff. We're absolutely stuffed which is great because my son woke up from his nap before we got a chance to open the pie! I guess I'll have to wait till he goes to bed to...

Honestly Sal deserves every single 5 star review he has received here. I have never seen a place like this, from the vibe to the fresh home made food, the consistent hospitality. Always bringing in new things. There’s too many amazing things about this little hidden gem to even pinpoint one specific item. We live close by and everyone that works there is so kind, Sal treats us like family! I’ve been on a work assignment in AZ for four months and just came back to FL and the kids were most excited about being able to get food from Sal’s bodega lol seriously ONE OF A KIND establishment. Can’t stress enough how much I...