West Tampa is known for its strong Cuban influence. Now, a restaurant is bringing flavor from south of the border that’s giving more reasons for people to say, “Vamos Tampa Bay.”
Chiles restaurant is owned by a local couple who makes sure hungry customers leave happy.
“Getting better every time. We doing better every day,” says Carlos Macias who owns the restaurant located at 3247 W. Columbus Dr. in Tampa.
Although Spanish is spoken by Carlos, it’s different from many of the other businesses in West Tampa.
“I’m from Aguascalientes, Mexico,” says Macias.
Not Cuban or Puerto Rican in nature, Macias opened his Mexican restaurant two years ago.
“I was looking all over to open up a business and we found this,” says Macias.
In the back, his wife helps chop, slice, and dice what’s needed for the day. The beans are stewed and ready to serve. The corn tortillas are delivered fresh daily and wait to be filled with savory meats.
The tacos are delicious, and yes a lot of people order them. Carlos tells me one of the more popular dishes is the molcajete.
“El molcajete me gusta. Ese trai un fajita mix y una salsita verde muy rica, picosita. Ese nos gusta a mi esposa y mi. Seguido lo comemos,” says Macias in Spanish.
In Spanish he explains the dish starts with a heated stone bowl (the molcajete), green salsa is added along with grilled onions, cactus and mozzarella cheese. Then comes the fajita-style chicken, steak, shrimp, and chorizo. Topped with more onions and grilled jalapenos, el molcajete is ready to be devoured.
“Como que mezcla bien porque tenemos de toda typo de clientes. De todos estos que menzionas,” says Macias.
Although surrounded by Cuban restaurants and businesses, Macias says in Spanish that Chiles helps make West Tampa more like his clientele, who come from various backgrounds.
