1 /5 Jason Lewis: Tampa Burgers and Pirates has a lot of potential, but our visit fell well short of expectations, especially given the pricing. With burgers costing close to $20, basic execution and service should not be this inconsistent.
The issues started upon arrival. No one was at the host stand, and while waiting, I could clearly see several employees behind the kitchen doors eating. The restaurant was not busy (the bar was roughly one-third full and the dining area maybe 15–20%). When someone finally noticed us, the bartender came out chewing food and went straight behind the bar to make drinks, followed by two servers and the person who eventually seated us.
After being seated and given menus, my wife noticed her menu was sticking to the table. We then realized the table had a large dried spill on it. We sat for about ten minutes without being greeted. When our waitress finally came over, she apologized and said she hadn’t been told her table had been seated. I pointed out the dirty table, which she cleaned promptly and apologized again, even acknowledging that things were “off to a bad start.”
We ordered dinner and drinks. My wife had a chicken quesadilla and water. I ordered a vodka soda, the pineapple jalapeño burger, and paid extra for the beer-battered fries.
The food arrived fairly quickly, which was appreciated, but my drink never came. The food was delivered by another server, and no one checked on us afterward. Upon inspection, several things were wrong: the burger came on a regular bun instead of the listed Kaiser roll, the cheese was American instead of cheddar, and the burger was cooked well done rather than medium. The fries were thin-sliced potato wedges and did not resemble beer-battered fries in appearance or taste.
The burger patty itself appeared to be a frozen, pre-formed patty, not what you would expect from a sit-down burger restaurant charging premium prices.
During the 15–20 minutes after the food arrived, no one checked on us. Most of the staff remained behind the kitchen doors, visible but not on the floor. I later noticed my cocktail sitting on the bar the entire time. Neither the bartender nor the waitress followed up on it.
When the waitress finally returned, my wife explained that my drink never came and the food was incorrect, and we were ready to leave. There were no follow-up questions, no attempt to correct the issues, and no manager involvement. The drink was removed from the bill, but I was initially still charged for the incorrect burger. When I questioned this, I was told the fries were “their version” of beer-battered fries, and there was no response regarding the bun, cheese, or cook temperature. Eventually, the check was adjusted, but without any apology or effort to make things right.
Overall, the food was subpar and the service was largely absent. Given the price point and the number of avoidable issues, I would not recommend this restaurant based on our experience.
