I stayed at the Embassy Suites Hotel this week for a few days on a business trip. I was dealing with severe jet lag, so discovering the onsite restaurant was a lifesaver, especially since they also offer room service. I tried their Ropa Vieja plate, and it was solid. The rice was great, the beans were flavorful, and the beef was incredibly tender. The sweet plantains added a nice contrast in flavor and balanced the dish perfectly! While the menu prices are a bit on the high side, they're pretty typical for a hotel restaurant. Considering the quality of the food and service, though, it definitely feels worth it. Will I try their food again? Absolutely! read more

Mangroves Grille - New American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

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I really did not understand the negative reviews of this restaurant. The cream of mushroom soup was by far the best I have ever had. Tori, our first server was just so nice. She made us feel so welcome, and if you like cheeseburgers, this is a place to order one. They really know how to make French fries as well. It is freezing in the restaurant but the other waitress turned the music down which was very nice. After being diagnosed with cancer, this was definitely a great place to relax. read more

Some bad reviews but we found this food and service very good. Food was up to standards for a restaurant within a hotel. Everything we had tasted great. No complaints. read more

Wasn't sure after seeing the low stars. However we are staying at the Embassy hotel & decided to try it. Everything was great. Cuban Sandwich, Grilled Chicken Sandwich & Chicken Quesadilla. All Great !!!!! Would definitely eat here again Entire staff was great read more

I had the WORST experience ever at this restaurant!! I received the wrong order, when I asked for just a simple Cuban sandwich in its place; I received plantains. When the plantains were delivered the waitress was informed it was suppose to be a Cuban sandwich. Nothing was done. When I called back the staff argued with me and said you asked for plantains, I said there is ZERO chance I asked for plantains "I do not like plantains" The manager Angelina tried to blame my mom and said she asked for plantains. I again told her I asked for a CUBAN SANDWICH! For an Embassy suites hotel one would expect better restaurant service! And in; The end I went with out dinner. I CANNOT recommend this restaurant to anyone! read more

This restaurant in located inside Embassy Suites. Should be no stars. We had been flying all day from West coast didn't want to get in car to find a place to eat in University research area. The hostess sat us close to the open kitchen (which I enjoyed since I have a catering company & love to cook) with no menus & told us the waitress (who we soon discovered was the only one on duty) was very busy delivering room service & would take our order when she returned to dining room. The only other guests in dining room were 3 women seated at the same table. We sat for 15 minutes before the waitress came back. She gave us menus and water then stated she had another room service delivery & would be back to take our order. The poor girl ran to the kitchen counter picked up and delivered the meals that we could see sitting under heat lamps for the table with the 3 women. She ran back picked up several more room service meals put on a cart & headed to elevators. One of the only two elevators was not in use & filled with equipment during our 3 night stay. Mean while the hostess sat at a table near the entrance or stood by the open kitchen talking to the three cooks who were very busy. She was not doing a thing to help the waitress or us. Before our waitress returned the hostess sat an elderly couple. The waitress returned in 12 minutes gave them menus & water & took their order & turned it in. She then came to take our order. We felt bad for her, she was very pleasant & apologetic and exhausted. We didn't complain about how long we had been waiting or that she took care of the elderly couple first. She made several more room service deliveries. The elderly couple as well as our food sat under heat lamps. Our side salads were delivered the same time she brought our meals 25 minutes after we ordered. Our meal was not hot when it was delivered fish was dry and over cooked along with the veggies. Salads were warm. She delivered our bill when she set our meals down told us if we were staying @ hotel to charge it to our room. And ran back to pick up more room service orders. We had been in dining room an hour by the time our meal arrived. We finished what we could of the over cooked dried out meal & headed to our room. Our water was never refilled & we were not asked if we needed anything or how our meal was. We decided to we should have left the dining room went back to our room & ordered room service. We would have been eating sooner & food would have been hot. I'm not sure why the dining room pays for a useless hostess. Maybe no one has reported her. The poor waitress wasn't in dining room long enough to know hostess wasn't helping out. The next two nights we chose to eat out after site seeing before returning to hotel. read more

Stayed at Embassy Suites and enjoyed a surprisingly good dinner there. Kevin our server was delightful. The chicken and rice dish served with plantains and black beans was enormous and delicious. Equally tasty was an appetizer of crab cakes chuck full of crab meat. My husband raved about the chicken cheesesteak he ordered. read more

Mangroves Grille - Arroz con pollo relish! - New American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

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Was a little nervous but had to eat in house, so here I am very pleasantly surprised. The food is very good. My burger is perfectly cooked and delicious coleslaw side. My Mom says her smoked chicken quesadilla is the best she ever had. Gloria, our server, is a delight and very efficient. 4 stars folks, come on over. read more

Mangroves Grille - Smoked chicken quesadilla has my Mom swooning. Good salsa, too. - New American Near Me - Tampa, Florida

For a Hilton Hotel, the Embassy Suites really needs to check itself regarding the quality of the restaurants in its hotels. Case in point, I ordered what seemed like a tasty meal, grilled stuffed pork chops. What came out was two separate chops slapped together with bread stuffing slathered between them. Disgusting. My wife's cheeseburger was a disgraced example of hospital quality food. No, that's not right, I've had some great hospital food. This is incomparable. Just bad food, but the service staff and hostess were at least nice and courteous. What could have been a great experience at Embassy Suites USF was soured by their restaurant and their lobby food service. Hopefully they will take notice and mgmt. will covertly enjoy the offerings so they can see what exactly is being served to their guests. read more

This place is incredible. The food is delicious. The manager Leslie always has a big smile on her face and brightens my day. The Bull burger is the best burger in town. Definitely recommend dining there. read more

It's not bad, it's just ... not good. Mangroves serves as the hotel's in house restaurant as well so at breakfast its a buffet that's free for guests. The bar gets crowded at half five when well drinks and house wine are free for guests as well, but there are daily specials for everyone (martini Monday, tequila Tuesday, etc) and the food is edible. If you're staying here, sure, eat here; but don't go out of your way to make this a stop for a meal. read more

Poor food. Indifferent service. Lots of folks standing around. Very underwhelming meal. I would expect more from a college cafeteria

I would give this dining facility no stars if it were an option. The breakfast was cold & the dinner served sounded great on the menu; however it was tasteless & overpriced! Is never eat here again. It didn't make our stay worth while. Embassy suites needs to fix this area quickly read more

Disgusting restaurant. I should have read the reviews before i ate here. We had a steak and a burger. The steak was extremely over cooked and dry and the burger was raw. The manager was the only one there waiting tables. When we showed her the food she apologized and said "the cook doesn't know how to do temps" She advised us to come back later in the week because they will have a different cook. No thanks, at least she didn't charge us for the meal. read more

Had breakfast here on several occassions ; the hospitality staff makes and ordinary breakfast extraordinary... never seen people so eager to serve and just so nice...... read more

The Bartender in Mangroves Grill spends more time cleaning who knows what out of his teeth with his tongue than waiting on people. I had to go get a menu, go to the bar to place the order and stand at the register to pay - the only time he came to the table was to bring the over-cooked, bland food to us. Never came back to see if we needed anything else. Never delivered the ice tea that was ordered. He did spend quite a bit of time at a table with 4 20-something year old women - although I'm sure none were wanting him there with that tongue thing going on. Disgusting. Fish sandwich on Cuban bread - the fries were good, the fish was over-cooked and the cuban bread was toasted to hide the fact that it was stale. Served with aneamic looking tomato and okay lettuce. My daughter had the Buffalo Chicken wrap with fries - sandwich was decent. In addition to a mediocre lunch, the authorization on my credit card was put through for 30% higher than the total bill. I'm waiting for the actual charge to see if they are completely dishonest. Lousy service that didn't rate the 10% tip I left, he certainly is not getting 30%. read more

My family and i dined at the restaurant the other night as guests of the hotel and it was sadly disappointing, for a Hilton hotel.The food like many hotels is over priced, however worse it lacked taste and quality. Our server was the inly server for the 6 tables in the restaurant which being a server myslef I think should be fine but he seemed fazzled. Our water glasses were left empty and we had to ask if dinner rolls were provided. When dinner arrived my fettucine alfredo was al dente and tasteless. However, because the waiter barely checked on us and the hostess was busy helping him i had no one to tell. Toward the end of the meal when my compaipnions were finishing their meals I finally had a chance to tell the waiter that I didnt care for my meal. i had only had 4 or 5 bites out of it and was hoping to remove it from our bill. However, he stated when the bill arrived that because I waited till almost the end off the meal he would not be taking the meal off my bill. Well, that certainly wasnt acceptable. I asled him to please ask the manager. He came back 15 seconds later stating the manager said too much of the meal was missing and I had to pay for it. I really dont agree with tactic. The lady in the booth behind informed me on my way out that her fish hadnt been cooked all the way and when she requested a new meal the waiter told she still had to pay for what she had eaten off the fish. What a load of crap. What restaurant does this to good paying customers? The staff and management this restaurant need a looking at. As well as the menu. read more

I stay here from time to time on business. I like to sit at the bar and enjoy some jameson. The staff is very friendly. The manager Leslie comes over and says hello everytime. Also very impressed with the burgers and sandwiches. I wouldnt stay anywhere else in the USF area! read more

Great lunch spot if you work near or at USF. A buffet that is clean, plenty of seating, and you are done quick enough to run any mid day errands. read more

Thought the staff was very freindly and helpful, recomend the blackened shrimp cobb salad, was very good.

We have had several GREAT experiences at the Mangroves Grille. The lunch Buffett is always delicious with a wide variety of options which is changed daily. The restaurant staff is very helpful and super attentive and accommodating. Highly recommend checking it out both if you are staying at the hotel (or a nearby hotel) or if you work in the area! read more