A rough week at work and the reunion of friends landed me in this restaurant/bar/lounge. Here are some of my thoughts after a Saturday night party!
Aesthetic:
Gaspar’s Grotto is deceptively huge. From the outside it appears to be a typical dive bar with an outside patio for smokers. But inside I was surprised to find a giant U-shaped bar with plenty of seating, and enough room on all sides to maneuver throughout and not feel cramped.
It also hosts a medium sized restaurant. I was hungry for some wings, and ordered the ranch dry rub wings. They were good enough to make me want to try other things on the menu.
There are actually two outside patios. One side was doing trivia and karaoke, and the other had a live DJ play hip hop and RnB jams. Both patios had a fully stocked bars and also plenty of wiggle room.
The bathroom was clean and spacious.
Overall the setup of Gaspar’s Grotto is one of the best I’ve found in the Tampa Bay area for a fun and casual bar-hopping type outing.
Price:
Entry was free when i arrived, which was at about 8PM, and as a passer-by on other days, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them charge anyone, even in the later hours of the night.
Drink prices were typical for a Tampa Bar in a good location. My go-to (Henny-Sprite) cost about 15 dollars each, and when eventually i switched to Crown Peach on the rocks, they ran me 11 dollars.
Atmosphere:
The crowd was very diverse. The people I interacted with had ages ranging from 27-50. There was a good 50/50 split of blacks and whites on the outside patio bars. On the inside bar I saw mostly middle aged white people chillin and chatting.
VERDICT
I give Gaspar’s Grotto on a Saturday night: 9 stars out of 10.
You could easily spend four or five hours here and not even realize it. It has everything you need.