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Must-Try Hole In The Wall Mexican Restaurant In Pinellas Park

Author Daniel Morabito
The Nuevo Vallarta The Authentic Mexican Food Sign.

Tampa Bay is full of Mexican restaurants to choose from, but are they all good? Nah. Don’t get me wrong, there are tons of great options, but some are better than others. There is a hole-in-the-wall, must-try Mexican restaurant in Pinellas Park you’ll want to know about and we’ve got the info.

Finding a reasonably priced place to grab a couple of tacos is hard to find these days. Over-commercialized and overpriced chains are popping up left and right to appeal to the hipster audience. Sure, the decor might be more “aesthetically pleasing” for the Instagrammers, but the drinks are $10 a piece and the taco portions couldn’t satisfy a hamster.

‘Nuevo Vallarta The Authentic Mexican Food’ is one of the best Mexican restaurants in Pinellas County and you probably didn’t even know it’s there. At first glance, it might just look like the lobby of a motel. Well, because it’s attached to a motel. But, the food is great.

Unlike the Sierra Motel, previously the Bayside Motel, Nuevo Vallarta sports a 4.4-star rating with over 1,000 reviews on Google. One customer wrote, “You know when the interior of a Mexican Restaurant looks like this the food is going to straight SLAP… I ordered the Chimichanga and it was fried to perfection and was still crispy even with all that delicious sauce on top … I must say that I would drive all the way down to Florida to taste it again.”

Not going to lie, that reviewer is spot on. When you walk into Nuevo Vallarta, you know its going to be good. The cuisine is authentic. The decorations are authentic. And, the staff is always friendly and helpful.

The Menu at Nuevo Vallarta

The menu at Nuevo Vallarta is stacked. You’ve got your enchiladas, tamales, burritos, chips and salsa, tacos, chimichangas, quesadillas, fajitas, chicken wings, and more. The Burrito Loco is an action-packed burrito stuffed with your choice of ground beef or shredded chicken. But, that’s not all. Its loaded with refried beans, rice, sour cream, guacamole, shredded cheese, and lettuce topped with cheese dip and burrito sauce. 

You can never go wrong with the tender and juicy shredded chicken quesadilla, a few steak tacos on the side, and warm chips to go with the salsa. The outside of the quesadilla has the perfect amount of crunch to it. Combo that with a lime Jarritos and you got the perfect meal.

For beverages, there are fountain drinks, Mexican Coca-Cola, Sangria, Jarittos, Juice, and Milk. Grab a churro, fried cheesecake, fried ice cream, Choco Flan, or Flan for dessert.

“Nuevo Vallarta The Authentic Mexican Food” is a must-try Mexcian Restaurant in Pinellas Park located within the Bayside Inn off HWY 19 at 9359 US Hwy 19 N. They are open Monday – Thursday from 11 AM to 9 PM. Friday – Saturday they are open from 11 AM – 10 PM and are closed on Sundays.

Originally from the Midwest and moved down to Tampa Bay after college. When Daniel is not working on Beasley Content, you can find him fishing or skateboarding. Daniel enjoys writing about local restaurants across the Tampa Bay area, Florida lottery stories, and concert reviews/photos.

Barstool President Dave Portnoy Pizza Tour Around Tampa Bay Official Rankings

Those who are passionate about their pizza know about Barstool’s Dave Portnoy. He’s the founder of Bartstool Sports and is known for his controversial pizza ratings from across the country on “One Bite Pizza“. Most know the rules, Dave judges pizza based on one bite. Well, he was in Florida this week and stopped in Sarasota and Tampa Bay. Keep scrolling to find out which pizza places Dave Portnoy visited in Tampa Bay. All of the ratings aren’t out yet, so we’ll update this post as soon as they drop.

The Barstool legend started his pizza tour in Sarasota at IL Panificio Pizzeria. After someone hyped up the mom-and-pop shop with mixed reviews, he decided to check it out himself. He ordered 1 large cheese pizza and after “one bite” he declared “Not bad at all”, but wished it was a little crispier. He gave the pizza a 7.4 rating, which is pretty good for Dave’s standards. This is a higher rating than Tampa staple Eddie & Sam’s. Dave gave them a 7.1 rating 5 years ago.

Related: 5 Tampa Bay Pizza Restaurants With Raving Reviews

The highest ranked spot on Dave’s list with a score of a perfect 10 is Monte’s Restaurant in Lynn, MA. So far his highest ranked pizza spot in Florida is Mister O1- South Beach in Miami with a ranking of 8.1. But let’s see how those rankings change after he posts his Tampa reviews.

Once the word was out that Barstool’s Dave Portnoy was looking for pizza in the Tampa Bay area, local pizza places hopped on social media to drive Dave to their spot. Here are the places he checked out during his pizza tour in Tampa. Dave had to split his pizza tour into 2 days, one day for St. Pete/Pinellas, and 1 day for the Tampa area. Dave posted these spots on his social media and has been slowly releasing the individual reviews. We’ve updated this list to reflect his official ratings and ranked them from best to worst.

  • The Nona Slice House

    Dave stopped in Safety Harbor for one of the best pizza’s in Tampa Bay. He tried all three styles of pizza (New York, Old-World, and Detroit). He started with a 7.9 rating with the New York style pizza, but after trying all 3 options, he rated this place an 8.1 (the highest we’ve heard of so far.) Check them out at 997 Main St, Safety Harbor.

  • The Violet Stone

    During his stop in St. Pete, Dave visited The Violet Stone for pizza and cheesesteak. You can find them at 2134 9th ave N, Saint Petersburg. He was impressed with their “Caution pizza is well done sign”. At first, he got a pie that was very dark on the bottom, which normally won’t be a problem for him. Dave did something he never does and took a remake pie. They explained that this was their first day with this brand new pizza oven, so he cut them some slack. The Violet Stone’s final score for pizza was 7.9. He also tried one of their cheesesteaks and gave it a strong 9.2

     

  • Forbici Modern Italian

    Dave finally found an area of Tampa he liked. He visited Forbici Modern Italian located in the heart of Hyde Park (1633 W Snow Ave, Tampa). By first look at his pizza, he thought it looked more like a Detroit style than Roman style. The crust was way lighter than he expected and rated them a high 7.9, which is the highest he’ll go for that style of pizza.  “If people want to argue that this is their favorite pizza in Tampa Bay, I wouldn’t say they’re crazy.”

  • Cristino's Coal Oven Pizza

    So happy Dave checked out one of our all time favorite pizza spots. You can try their pizza at 1101 S Ft Harrison Ave, Clearwater, FL. At first glance, he said this looks like a great coal-fired pizza. Good crust, 0 flop, but said it wasn’t “piping hot”. He gave them an awesome rating of 7.8

  • Pizza Box

    Dave has found some really great spots, he stopped here after The Violet Stone. It had a good undercarriage but he thought it would be crunchier. He noticed it tastes and looks like a Neapolitan pizza. The Pizza Box was his top 3 choices of pizza spots in St. Pete. The Pizza Box got an awesome score of 7.8

  • Santoro's Pizza

    Many locals were driving Dave to Santoro’s Pizza (1329 W Cass St, Tampa). While everyone was waiting to see if Dave would show up, the staff only cared about his pittie Ms. Peaches. Some are saying he gave the spot a 7.8 rating. The video Santoros posted on social bleeped out Dave’s score so we’ll have to wait and see for the official review. We do know it’s under 8.

  • Toby's Original Little Italy Pizza

    The first stop in Tampa Bay for Dave (according to his Instagram stories) was Toby’s Original Little Italy Pizza. Located at 3523 49th Street N, St. Petersburg, FL 33710. They’ve been in business since 1972. The One Bite app has its rating at 7.4 based on 54 local reviews. Dave’s review was finally dropped and after one bite he said “Straight out of New York” and “The best pizza he’s had in Tampa/St Pete so far”. He rated Toby’s 7.7. Really good stuff.

  • Madison Ave Pizza

    On his journey through Pinellas, Dave stopped by ANOTHER favorite of ours, Madison Ave Pizza. Although he probably didn’t try the biggest pizza in Tampa, he rated their pizza a 7.7! Not bad at all! Try them for yourself at 2660 Bayshore Boulevard, Dunedin, FL.

  • Piper's Scratch Pizza Shop

    Also during “Stool Presidente’s” stop in Palm Harbor included Piper’s Scratch Pizza Shop (US Hwy 19 N, Palm Harbor). After his first bite, Dave’s first word was “Wow”, which is a really good sign. He was really blown away by their homemade pizza sauce. Dave gave them a good score of 7.6

  • DiGiorgio's Pizzeria

    Dave stopped all the way in Palm Harbor (191 Orange St, Palm Harbor) for a slice from DiGiorgio’s Pizzeria. The rating on the One Bite app is 8.3, Dave gave them a rating of 7.5, which a great score for your typical New York style pizza.

  • Marina’s Pizza & Pasta

    Special guest Danny Boy Cane joined Dave at Marina’s Pizza & Pasta locate at 12121 W Linebaugh Ave. They got an extra cheese pizza this time and got an 8 rating from Danny Boy Cane. Dave gave them a 7.5. He said it was a good, quality, normal football pizza.

  • Brooklyn Pizza Company

    Dave stopped by this pizza spot in Seminole and left it with a 7.4 rating! Find them at 10785 Park Blvd, Seminole, FL.

  • DeLosa's Pizzeria

    Located at 12800 Village Blvd Madeira Beach, Fl. This was the second feature on Dave’s social media. He gave them a ranking of 7.1!

  • Britt’s Pizza

    Stoolpresidente made his way to Treasure Island while he was in the St. Pete area. It was very hilarious watching him try to figure out where he was in the Tampa Bay area. After one bite of Britt’s he said it’s “resort style” pizza (aka perfect for tourists). He gave them a 6.8 review.

  • Palazzo Pizza

    Day 2 of the Dave Portnoy pizza tour brought him to Palazzo Pizza located at 1818 W Platt St, Tampa. At first glance he described the pizza as “hockey rink pizza”. He sat and talked to the owner for a while and really enjoyed the pizza. Dave said he would tell the owner he’d rate it a 7.1, but for the official One Bite score, he gave it a 6.4.

  • Lee's Groceries

    Located at 2210 N. Central Ave, Tampa. Dave didn’t have too much to say about this place. Overall the pizza looked good but he gave it a 6.3 rating.

  • Sally O' Neal's Pizza Hotline

    Opened in 1985 Sally O’Neals is definitely a Tampa staple. This place does things a little differently. They are only available for full service on the weekends and do only take out and delivery Monday-Thursday. The slice was hot and floppy and not really Dave’s preferred style. After a nice conversation, he rated Sally a 9.6 (wonderful person) but rated the pizza 6.1. Dave did point out the rest of the menu looks fantastic and that sit-down service might be the way to go.

  • Joey Brooklyn's Famous Pizza

    It would not be a pizza tour in Tampa Bay without stopping at this legendary spot. While Joey’s is great after a night out or a show at Jannus, Dave’s rule is “if it’s open late, it ain’t that that great”. He rated Joey’s a harsh 5.9.

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Author Daniel Morabito
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