el cap
mattAfter enjoying my first dripping-good Chattaburger at The Chattaway last week, this past Saturday night my fiancee Traci and I headed to El Cap which, like The Chattaway, is well-known for its burgers. El Cap, which is on 4th St. in St. Pete, also regularly makes the list of best burger joints in Tampa Bay. I had eaten at the well-loved neighborhood sports pub once before for lunch and came away happy, but hadn’t put one of their burgers to the test.
So naturally this time I went all out and ordered a cheeseburger with bacon and a side order of fries to share. Traci went with a bowl of chili and crackers and the friends we were with ordered a burger, chili and a grouper sandwich.
Like The Chattaway, my El Cap burger wasn’t huge, but it was tasty and the fries were respectable. The chili, though, which apparently is a favorite of a lot of El Cap regulars, was bland and didn’t do anything for me. We’ve made better chili at home. I did get a kick out of the 8oz draft beers in their “mini-glasses” for just $1.20 a piece. Can’t beat that.
While our service was decent, we watched two other groups sit down at tables in the back near us, only to walk out a few minutes later after no one cleared their table or took their order. Granted, the place was busy and there seemed to be only one server assigned to the room we were in, but this wasn’t the “treat you like family” attitude that I expected.
On an unrelated side note, El Cap looks like a cool place to watch a ball game (the Rays-Yankees was on) with its worn baseball memorabilia covering the walls (try as they might, most new sports bars just can’t recreate this authenticity).
Bottom-line: My Chattaburger last week was tastier, but my El Cap burger was still a winner- the same can’t be said for the chili and the mediocre service. I’m sure I’ll be back, but won’t be in a rush.
Inspection Scorecard: Last inspection: March 2006 violations - Critical (2), Non-Critical (4).
Tags: restaurant, review, tampa
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July 12th, 2006 at 2:30 pm
now yr starting to cook with gas: like a lot of bay area eateries, the cap provides almost no incentive to return. the burgers and fries are a cut above, say, wendy’s best, but whats that saying? to be sure, theyre pretty cheap, so you get what you pay for. there are plenty of better burgers - for $8-10. el cap is best for beer, but, again, beer is not exactly a rare commodity around here. like hollywood, the el cap is better in theory than reality.
July 12th, 2006 at 6:48 pm
It’s 8 blocks from me and I make it there twice a year or so. That’s pretty telling.
July 12th, 2006 at 8:05 pm
I am a fan of El Cap, but if you want a good burger in St. Pete, I highly recommend Ted Peter’s on Pasadena Ave. They are known for their smoked fish but the burgers and the German potato salad is to die for.
July 13th, 2006 at 11:05 pm
dreaming: Now how did I know you’d dig me not “being so nice”
j/k What’s your favorite burger joint? Re: Wendy’s- I’d take an El Cap burger over Wendy’s any day of week, although I do think I’ve had better chili at Wendy’s before lol
Maureen: Agreed- Ted Peter’s has good cheeseburgers, better than El Cap in my opinion and on par with the burger I had a few weeks ago at The Chattaway. My fiancee, then girlfriend, used to live in the condos right behind Ted Peters so we went there allot. My favorite is the fish spread sandwich, not a big smoked fish person. We had to take all the change out of my car to have enough to pay the bill since it’s cash only ha
matt
TasteTampaBay
http://tastetampabay.blogspot.com
July 14th, 2006 at 9:38 am
i sd the cap’s burger were ‘a cut above wendys,’ so we agree.
i have long found the green iguana’s burgers to be the bay’s best deal in price/taste for barfood. bar louie at international plaza isnt too bad either, but pricier. recently, i have found a new contender for burger kingdom, though, at jack willy’s on the bay in oldsmar. not only is the grub surprisingly good, its on the water, and there is live music, day and night, seven days a week. check it out.
March 3rd, 2008 at 10:27 pm
You guys are nuts and obviously have no clue as to what is a truly great hamburger. I remember my dad taking me to El Cap back in the 70’s and its still one of the best burgers I’ve had anywhere. Maybe you all are too “gourmet” and fancy for El Cap.
March 20th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
best burgers….j. alexanders, hands down!!!!!!