Ulele: A Tampa Legend in the Making #Unlocktampabay

Greetings, Great Beer Now fans and followers! This is the second in a multi- part series of blog posts relating to the Great Beer Now Cigars and Sunsets Beer Tour, which took place in Tampa, Florida. I explored Tampa’s exploding craft beer scene and made many discoveries along the way while also getting reacquainted with breweries and beers I have grown to love.  Open a can or bottle of your favorite beer, light up a good Cuban cigar, and follow along on my journey through this Gulf Coast paradise.  Cheers!

America’s craft beer scene is a diverse lot of independent businesses, each competing for consumer loyalty through a combination of flavorful suds, memorable atmosphere or theme, and distinct foods, if any are served. Food is often a side note, but there are brewing establishments that master the food as well as the beer and a perfect example is Ulele, located at 1810 N. Highland Ave. in Tampa.

Native Charms

Ulele celebrates the area’s Native American Heritage and takes its name from Princess Ulele, the legendary princess of the Tocobaga Tribe, who is credited for saving the life of Spanish sailor Juan Ortiz, a man who had been sentenced to death by Ulele’s own father, the chief of the tribe.

Ulele features a large size restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating. The inside of the restaurant is quite attractive, with statues, paintings, stained glass, and a large amount of natural light thanks to the abundance of glass windows on the front of the building.  The front of the restaurant faces the water and there is an adjacent marketplace for added enjoyment and entertainment.

This restaurant has a separate lunch and dinner menu and an extensive wine list. Beer is brewed in the on- site brewhouse, which utilizes a 15 barrel system.

Native Brew

Ulele Brewing serves a good number of beers with a surprisingly large number of lagers compared to the average brewery. Here is a listing of the beers I tried, listed alphabetically by name, followed by the style and my Untappd rating on a five point scale:

• Buckhorn Stout, American Stout, 4
• Hydration Station, American Light Lager, 3.25
• Magabee’s Honey Lager, American Red Lager, 4
• Penguin P.I. British Ale, Golden Ale, 4.25
• Richard’s Rockin’ Birthday Starfruit, Lambic, 4.25
• Rusty’s Red, American Amber, 3.5
• Ulele Light, American Light, 3.25
• Water Works, Pale Lager, 4
• Wedding Beer, Fruit Beer, 3.75

Overall Average Rating: 3.81

Ulele has a well- rounded beer selection with no runaway standout in the bunch. They are all good in their own way and several are brewed specifically to match with the food, which they do quite well.

Native Heart and Soul

Ulele was one of several places I visited during my tour of Tampa, Florida and among them, Ulele ranks first in terms of food. When I knew that Ulele was going to be on my visitation list, I was anxious to learn more and I did something uncharacteristic for me: I pre-examined the food and beer menus and even read a few reviews and opinion pieces. As most of my readers know, I don’t normally do this because I like to experience each place I visit without any pre- conceived notions or biases. I like to walk inside a new brewery with a clean slate, free from any attempts by outsiders to sway my opinion in any direction.

With Ulele, the situation was a little different and the reason is because I had already heard of this establishment and was told that served some of the best food in the area. It got to the point where I just had to give in and take a look beforehand. I had to find out more about the food options and while I was at it, I ended up learning more about Princess Ulele and her significance to Florida’s Native American history.

Now that I have dined at Ulele Restaurant, I can see why people rave the way they do about the food. I was there for lunch and had a difficult time deciding what to order, but since I was in the mood for beef, I decided to go with the Water Works Meatloaf. It was made using ground strip loin and was served with vegetables, white cheddar popcorn mashed potatoes, and tobacco onions. It was an amazing (and filling!) midday meal and it matched up quite well with several of the beers. My only regret with the food is that I couldn’t have ordered more, since so many items sounding so extremely tempting.

While I visited Ulele, I also go to spend time talking with head brewer Tim Shackton. Chatting with Tim and getting to know more about the brewery and restaurant added even more to my depth of understanding about Ulele and the locals’ unyielding affections. Tim is extremely passionate about his role and he genuinely loves brewing delicious beer and serving it with so many fine foods. Any person who loves their job this much is a tremendous asset to any business. Tim’s devotion to being the best and serving only the best is undoubtedly a major reason for Ulele’s success.

Ulele is a well- rounded establishment. The food is just as important to the Ulele experience as the beer- perhaps even more so- and the clean and inviting interior, open views of the water, passion of the personnel, convenient location, and so many other factors make it one of the Tampa area’s finest places for food, beer, and legend. The folks behind the scenes truly put their heart and soul into the food they prepare and the beer they brew and like the Native Americans of the past, they take great pride in who they are and what they do. It’s a place you don’t want to miss for countless reasons, so be sure to visit Ulele Brewing the next time you’re in the Tampa, Florida area. And tell them Great Beer Now sent you.