Tallo Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Wesley Chapel

My wife and I had the pleasure of dining at Tallo twice this week, and it has quickly become one of our favorite spots in the Tampa Bay area. The food is consistently excellent, the flavors are bold yet refined, and the experience—from appetizers to dessert—was memorable both times.

On our first visit, I started with the Cod Croquettes, which had a perfect light crunch and sat on a creamy, savory sauce that elevated the dish. On our return visit, I opted for the Short Rib Dumplings, and let me tell you—the shallot cream sauce they’re served with is next level. The dumplings were delicious on their own, but that sauce brought it all together in an unforgettable way.

My wife tried the Tallo Caesar Salad and enjoyed every bite. On our second visit, she started with the Pumpkin Cream Soup, which she described as absolutely amazing—rich, flavorful, and comforting.

For drinks, I had the Island Old Fashioned, which restored my faith in the cocktail after several disappointing versions at other places. Tallo’s take was smooth, balanced, and really well done.

Our main courses were equally impressive. I had the Pork Porterhouse, which was perfectly grilled with a nice char and seasoning. It was served with crispy Brussels sprouts and mashed potatoes, and everything on the plate was working in harmony. My wife ordered the Surf & Turf on both visits—a 7 oz filet topped with lobster/lobster broth. The steak cuts like butter and is easily one of the best we’ve had locally. The lobster broth adds a luxurious, creamy finish to an already exceptional dish.

For dessert, we tried Quesitos, and Caribbean Rum Cake. Each was fantastic. The Quesitos were buttery, flaky, and perfectly paired with a guava sauce that hit all the right notes. The Rum Cake was just the right consistency—not too moist, not too dry—and the rum glaze was so good it should be studied!

There were only a couple of minor misses. The Pepperoni Flatbread had great flavor—the pepperoni was spicy and the sauce had a nice sweetness—but it was a bit too watery, which caused the cheese to slide off and made it messy to eat. The Pina Colada was also a bit more acidic than I prefer; I usually expect a creamier, more mellow version.

Still, these small critiques are far outweighed by the outstanding dishes we enjoyed. Tallo has quickly become a go-to for us, and we’re already looking forward to our next visit....

If you go to the bar, you will be guaranteed a five star service. Ask for Michaela or Jess and they will make your night. Sit anywhere else in the restaurant and the service is not guaranteed. If it was not for Jess or Michaela, I would definitely be giving a one star. This restaurant opened up about a month ago and it looks beautiful inside. However, front of house management needs to change already. Unfortunately, there are some hiccups that were had during our visit. We were unable to make reservations because they did not block off walk-in tables as they usually do for this particular night and the restaurant was fully "booked". We were told to enjoy the bar as we waited for a table to open up, and once a table got up, we would be able to be seated. We waited at the bar for about 30-45 minutes and watched the entire restaurant still remain empty. Once the particular table got up that we were told to wait on was cleaned we were greeted by the general manager, who had promised us that we could sit down And she then told us that unfortunately we cannot sit at the table that we were guaranteed any longer, and we needed to remain at the bar. I already had a conversation with the host and the manager that unfortunately I've been having and experiencing really bad back pain, and their bar is not the most comfortable to sit at as their chairs are very low and their bar stands very high. I was very upset and we wanted to check out and pay for our drinks that we have ordered after waiting for 45 minutes. I'm so grateful that Makayla, the bar manager came to greet us and talked to the general manager behind our back so we were able to get a table near the bar and Michaela was able to continue to serve us. Michaela really went out of her way to make sure that we had a grand time, we're comfortable, and service was spectacular! The calamari was awesome! I definitely recommend This. The risotto was a bit bland, but they were able to give me crushed red pepper on the side to spice things up a bit. And their homemade fries are phenomenal! They have a really good selection on drinks. Once again, if you're looking for service, please ask for one of the bartenders and sit near the bar. If you're looking for accommodations in anyway, or to be greeted as a guest and feel welcomed with open arms, stay away from...

We were excited to have a new spot to in Wesley chapel that wasn’t a fast food chain and something with different flavors. We were absolutely delighted to arrive to such a stunning interior, we were impressed as we were looking around but noticed multiple tables seemingly looking for servers/ sitting with nothing on the table. We chalked it up to the fact that they may have just sat down as the restaurant was slightly busy. We waited in line for approximately 5 minutes while the young ladies sat the group in front of us and the returned at the front somewhat frantically and tried to find us seating. Again, we were understanding as opening a new restaurant can be challenging. The manager approached and almost immediately started laying into the hostesses about over booking. This was disheartening as that they were clearly trying their best. After finally getting sat after the uncomfortable entrance, we waited just like the tables we observed earlier for even a shred of acknowledgement, the servers avoided our eyes. It took about 15 minutes to have a server at the table then an additional 6 minutes to get our water, when the waitress finally returned and took our appetizer and drink order, we considered entrees. As gazing at the semi damp paper menu we were given , we noticed one of our water glasses was chipped on the rim. After the wait we didn’t want to ask for another so we just drank around it. After about 25 minutes the appetizer arrived, the wontons were so hard they made eating them uncomfortable. We had completely finished our appetizer by the time our bar drinks came, and they came watered down. We persevered and waited to place our entree, we got the churrasco medium and the veruda pasta. We were surprised after waiting an additional 45 minutes that the over $30 steak we ordered was a skirt steak ( probably worth $7) and at that burnt. ( oh no what a surprise) the veruda pasta was too oily. Half of the pasta was room temperature and the other half was hot as hell and dry....