Lucky Tigre — Restaurant in Tampa

It totally gives off sari-sari store vibes as you walk up to the counter. It's so cool how they decorated the walls with vintage Filipino magazine advertisements of products and tourism. It's an interesting spot because it seems out of the way, and near a crosstown overpass. You'd never know it was there unless you keep heading south on Howard. It's next door to Sweet Soul, and across the street from Water + Flour. Parking can be a little tricky in the evening when all the SoHo restaurants are in full swing. During the weekday, it's not so bad.

It's a mostly shaded outdoor restaurant. You order at the counter, and they bring your food & drinks out to your table. Many people order their meals to-go, so be mindful of that when ordering. Everything is made to order, so the food kind of trickles out to your table. I was happy that the Buko-Pandan mylk tea was the first item to arrive to the table on this warm summer day. I love the pandan & coconut flavor of this drink. It was so cool & refreshing! There were even a few young coconut slices in the drink. It was my favorite drink of that day (and I had many). Loved it! The Shiitake & Tokwa dumplings arrived shortly after the drink. It was filled with a mixture of finely chopped braised mushrooms, tofu, and tausi (black bean). The topping was toasted sesame seeds and their housemade umami chili sauce. It had a very nice kick of spice. Everything I ordered was plant based, and very well presented. They do have other dumplings with meat that I'll eventually try. I did sample what my friend ordered. The sampling of the BBQ Pork Bao Bun and the Pulled Chicken Adobo were both very good. The Halo Halo was also very good. This one has more of a lychee/coconut base with a scoop of ube ice cream. I love these flavors together. However, I did miss the leche flan. The Ube Tres Leches was a miss for me. But then again, I'm not into soaked cakes. It just had more of an extract taste than an ube taste. Other than that, everything was very good. I think the best thing of all is that my meal (other than what I sampled) was purely plant-based and dairy-free. It's a refreshing & healthy twist to Filipino food.

The serving of the food items were understandably a bit slow, but the owners and staff were so friendly and welcoming that none of it mattered. Honestly, I can't wait to go back. I want to go back when it's cooler outside so that I can try their Beef Pares. It looks amazing! I also want to try more dumplings, and the Pork Adobo. Maybe I'll get my own Halo Halo. The toppings looked so good (especially the star shaped jellies). Lucky Tigre deserves many...

Definitely a "new-school" Filipino food spot that transcends culture - yet it has the ability to stick to the roots and foundations of Filipino cuisine while merging the best of local flavors and other Asian influences.

I was fortunate enough to stop at Lucky Tigre during my lunch break. Hopping on my Triumph scoot, I was able to navigate through the quaint West Tampa neighborhood. Sitting between the Hillsborough River and the airport, Lucky Tigre makes itself home on a lot off North Albany, right before W Main Street.

There appeared to be parking at an empty lot in front of some commercial property that has yet to be leased (there didn't seem to be street parking on the historic two-way street).

Tucked behind some wooden fences, you will find the caravan along with some cozy seating areas that sits upon a bed of seashells. I was warmly welcomed by the owners. As I looked through the menu, they were more than happy to make suggestions and explain the eaches of their offerings.

Ultimately, I settled for the Longgsilog rice plate (essentially longganisa with freshly fried egg). It was plated very nicely in the box that it came in, coming with fried rice and other fresh and great tasting garnishes/sides. I was surprised to hear the owner explain that they can essentially make any of their meals a -silog since I originally wanted the spamsilog, but it wasn't available. I paired the meal with the salted ube caramel mylk tea.

It was fire! I would highly recommend the combination that I chose, but I have no doubt that the rest of their menu selections are also amazing based on the quality and flavor of the longgsilog and the beverage.

I am definitely coming back here again, and suggest it anyone wanting experience the future of...

Let me start of by saying by how great the vibe is here. Staff is so welcoming and friendly great music ambience completely set the mood for me to get my grub on ( when things are too good to be true I become a bit apprehensive so I was skeptical )

You order at a window and then pickup from an adjacent window so you’re not waiting super long for your meal which is a nice plus

Okay wait here is the best part of the review, the food…. I have lived in Tampa for pretty much my whole life and when I tell you I was so pleasantly surprised / blown away it’s almost an understatement. I ordered an assortment of things a couple different types of dumplings, bao buns and lumpia. The food comes out piping hot and when we open the dishes an assortment of aromatic spices and flavors make me start salivating at the table ( embarrassing ) the food looks so beautiful I have to wait for my friends to take ig pics before I can take a bite but when I do yummmmm !

The flavors of each dish are so unique and curated I was worried because I had ordered so much I thought maybe i was going to get the same array of flavor profiles but boy was I wrong.

Summary; Eating here is like eating art, you can tell that the food is made with love & I enjoyed the dishes so much I even went back and ordered a second round because I wanted to try more. Also mind you a single person could eat here for less than the cost of chipotle (no shade to chipotle) and leave feeling full and happy without compromising on QUALITY !!! I have a sensitive stomach and felt good throughout the rest of the day and following as I’m writing this review a day later. Do yourself a favor and pleaseeeee come here I implore you, you will not be...