Café Quiquiriqui
We found ourselves in Tampa’s historic Ybor City district on a beautiful Saturday morning. More specifically, at the base of Ybor’s newest high-end boutique hotel, Hotel Haya. Only a short 10-minute drive from us, we strolled into the Café and quickly made our way to the counter. Surrounding us were groups of travelers with their suitcases in hand and faces glued to their phones.
The property itself acts as an oasis within the jungle that is Ybor City. Its style infuses the rich roots of Ybor with contemporary touches without losing its Latin essence. The shop is brought to life with living plants hung all throughout the establishment and huge floor-to-ceiling windows blanketing the entire space with natural light.
To complement the shop’s uniqueness is its name, Quiquiriqui (kee-kee-ri-kee), which is Spanish for cock-a-doodle-doo. Pretty fitting for a place that aims to wake you up!
The Experience
I was pleased to find that the staff was super laid back and relaxed which definitely helped in quickly selecting what my wife and I wanted to order. We were a bit flustered initially as we stood in front of the pastry display with all the various delicious options it presented. Oddly enough, we chose to forgo these delicacies and opted for some overnight oats that were made with Cafe con Leche and bananas. Delicious.
Our coffee order was brief and they cranked out our order within minutes. At that time, my Frenchie, Jax, was getting all the attention of the staff who couldn’t get enough of him. Nothing new, Jax was always getting all the attention, rightfully so.
While Jax distracted the staff, I walked over to their coffee bags and debated on buying a bag. Like most places, they offered coffee from all over. I ultimately decided to hold off since I already had a couple of bags on the way from Black Rifle Coffee (a friend’s recommendation).
Cortado
Couldn’t be in a “Latin” coffee shop and not order a Latin named drink.
The Coffee
Through all the commotion of trying to place or order and Jax receiving his needed attention, I had forgotten to get my Cortado with oat milk (first-world problems). Nevertheless, I enjoyed my cup of coffee and actually welcomed the change of pace. Being that I asked for an extra shot, the coffee really stood out and gave me confidence in what I was drinking.
This time around I wasn’t able to get my side of espresso to really taste the notes in the coffee but this was mostly my fault. Again, in all the ruckus the barista must have forgotten to make my solo shot but I also didn’t want to bother them during their morning rush. A mistake on my part. Through my tasting of the Cortado, I couldn’t help but taste a bit of bitterness that left me wondering, if the espresso didn’t have the aid of the milk, “would it be overly bitter?”. I’ll have to go back and see for myself.
My wife settled on a decaf cappuccino and thoroughly enjoyed it. There was plenty of froth and again the taste of the coffee was noticeably at the forefront of each sip. Overall, we were pleased with what we were handed.
Summary
Looking to spend a day in Ybor City? Somewhere to start your day and immediately be in the middle of a ton of activities? Maybe just somewhere out of the norm? Then this would be the place to be. You can simply start your day with a good cup of coffee, in a nice setting, and then walk outside and explore all that Ybor City has to offer. Not really interested in exploring Ybor City? Not a problem, just 5 minutes down the road is the energetic district of Channelside and its neighbor, Water Street. Either way, you can’t really go wrong.
Where should I go next? Comment below or send me a message!
