TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Healthful Eating Is Easy At Crispers

ADVERTISEMENT

By JOHN W. ALLMAN, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 26, 2007

TAMPA - The wife and I are on a diet.

Scratch that. We're on a life-changing journey of discovery that runs the gamut from counting calories to controlling portions.

It's actually not too bad. Some days, I want to cheat and make sweet whoopee with an entire bag of Cheetos. Other days, I can eat a pita with hummus and a handful of nuts and I'm as full as a tick on the back of a yard dog.

We're adapting to eating in most nights, but we still allow one dining-out trip a week.

Our normal spot is Sweet Tomatoes, the salad bar restaurant. But in the interest of keeping the life change from growing stale, we decided to try something similar, but different: Crispers Fresh Salads and Such, which is next door to Publix on South Dale Mabry.

The grocery chain has become a major investor in Crispers with plans to open more restaurants statewide, and possibly beyond Florida's border.

Crispers is completely different from its main competitor. The menu is rich with variety and you don't serve yourself. I actually like to serve myself, but that was the old, 13-trips-to-the-Shoney's-breakfast-bar me. That me is no more.

Crispers' menu is a study in contrasts, and a lesson about trying more than one item before passing judgment.

Take the gourmet salads, for example.

The Thai Salad - fresh summer greens tossed in a spicy peanut dressing with cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, sliced Jamaican jerk chicken, soy beans, tortilla strips and peanuts - sounds great.

In reality, the Jamaican jerk isn't distinct enough and, when mixed with the spicy peanut dressing, creates a muddy bog from which no flavor can escape.

But then there's the Harvest Cobb salad - an amazingly generous helping of fresh fruits (pears, grapes, raisins, cranberries), pumpkin seeds, Gorgonzola cheese and mixed greens. You can add ham or turkey, but I think that might be too much. This is my new favorite salad, by far.

The sandwiches and flatbreads fared much the same.

The Asiago Beef sandwich comes off nondescript and bland with the 'sensational' red pepper pesto sauce nearly nonexistent.

But the Grilled Veggie with smoked turkey on a pesto ciabatta roll is hot, delicious and just the right size to complement a dinner salad.

Crispers serves its flatbreads - think thin pizza - either in-store or as a take-and-bake item. I like this option because it's something easy to pick up when entertaining friends. The flatbreads are generously portioned and heat up nicely at home.

The wife liked the Parmesan Crisp with its garlic spread and - duh! - Parmesan cheese. I really dug the Caribbean Chicken, the jerk chicken right at home amid grilled onions, cilantro, diced tomatoes and homemade barbecue sauce.

We both enjoyed the loaded baked potato. Served with light sour cream, bacon, fresh chives and mixed cheese, it's big, tasty and filling.

While we really liked Crispers' variety, pricing everything individually can quickly add up. Whereas Sweet Tomatoes offers a buffet for just under $10, you'd be lucky to choose two items for that amount here.

Maybe the answer is to offer more combination plates, allowing diners to pick three or four smaller-portioned items instead of just two.

DINING REVIEW

Crispers Fresh Salads and Such

BOTTOM LINE: Healthful salads, soups, sandwiches and flatbreads.

WHERE: 1203 S. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa (consult telephone directory for other locations)

HOURS: 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday

CREDIT CARDS: All major

RESERVATIONS: No

CHILDREN'S MENU: Yes

ALCOHOL: No

WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: Yes

PRICE RANGE: $3.50 to $7.99

CALL: (813) 514-4594

Tribune reviewers eat anonymously. John W. Allman can be reached at (813) 259-7915 or jallman@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT