Portillo's Tampa

I usually never see my boyfriend jump up and down when entering a restaurant, and certainly have never heard him use the word “phenomenal” up until now. But I have seen him widen his eyes and stare at me like I’m a ghost the first time he tastes a treat, and this was one of those times. The cake shake is to die for, and even though I’m not a chocolate fan, I can say this shake doesn’t count. We ordered the small, but if you look in the picture it’s right next to a large fountain drink. That’s one heck of a small size! The rest of the food is pretty good. We didn’t get the hotdogs this time, but the chicken soup and fries are really good. The burger was alright, but nothing special. The atmosphere here is amazing! They’ve nailed the theme in every way. It’s very welcoming, has fun neon lighting, wonderful decorations, and music to match the theme. Overall, it’s a must-visit location. Try the cake shake and hotdog for the full experience!

Originally being from the Chicago area, Portillo’s is a taste of home. My go to order is the garden dog, it is an awesome alternative to the hot dog made from meat. They also have the best fries! And don’t forget dessert, it’s all good but I like the chocolate eclair cake.

This place is not it. The food isnt great at all. No flavor. Just an odd place. Staff is great! Food and ambiance absolutely weird. Wont ever be back can do without this. It’s so basic and bland. Thank God it was cheap.

One of the malt milkshakes was chunky and I personally think the cake shakes are too overwhelming. The regular vanilla shakes are good. And I like the beef sandwiches and jumbo hotdogs.

A taste of Chicago in Tampa. Love the dogs, service and nostalgia. This is a well run crew full of polite competent staff and delicious food. Will be back this week!!

Had an absolute horrible experience after coming for a treat from moffitt. It took 20 minutes to order food, the manager saw someone making a huge order, then ran away instead of helping the line. After an additional ten minutes we were still waiting for a second server to take orders. When we asked for a second server misty came over very rude and unhelpful. Then leaves to find someone else to help. The line was wrapping around and she didn’t help. Then there’s yuly openly on her phone next to the condiment section. A iPhone to be specific. Please please don’t keep these employee if they’re going to be right in front of or communicating with costumers. I came here all the time and wanted a nice treat but I will never be back!! Not to mention there’s absolute no toilet paper and then instead of putting them in they just hand them to you and they were left behind the toilet instead of putting them in properly. So disgusting then the girl who was on her phone didn’t even finish the garbage can so trash was physically piling up. I can’t understand how there’s a manager on duty and all this horribleness happening

Chicago style sandwich shop. Great food & service. Nice atmosphere as well

It's fast food but better. The shakes are great. Go with a chocolate malt to satisfy the sweet tooth in you. The burgers are okay and can be had as a lettuce wrap which is a plus. Just nothing special about them other than the ingredients are fresh, but the burger itself just okay overall. The Chicago dog is good and can be hit or miss on being a true garden on the dog versus a wrapped up mess once you uncover it. The chili dog, skip that. It's a hot mess. And the polish, that is something nice. Great link and flavor, but could be just a hot mess once unwrapped sometimes. This was one of those times. Overall. It's a decent place with a fun vibe.

On our way to Busch Gardens, THIS IS THE PLACE for lunch or dinner. Today was dinner, and our meal was fantastic. I had the 4 chicken strips and honey mustard. It was so good. I had never tried them before! Husband and friend had the delicious hot dogs and fries. We were all VERY satisfied with tonight's pre- birthday celebration! Birthday is in 2 days. This was an all the more amazing place to spend my pre-birthday because of Toby. I hadn't received my code for a free cake. Toby took care of me. Lemon cake! It was so good that I had to share. But that just means buying another slice to take home!! Place was clean and bright, with good music and excellent staff. We love this place!!

As most of my Yelper friends know I am the 1999 Nathan's World Hotdog Eating Champ so, as you can imagine, hotdogs are my passion, I seek new places to try different ones out whether I am traveling on one of my many roadtrips throughout the United States, or in multiple countries that I visit. Since my Nathan's days I have a new favorite, Vienna brand with natural casings. Florida has many venues than sell Vienna's and I was excited to try P T, entering the building, you are overwhelmed by an incredible amount of Chicago photos, and memorabilia, but I came for the hot dogs so lets get to it. The first thing I asked the counter person was if the jumbo dogs had a natural casing, she said that she would check, the other people in my party were ordering other menu items so I then asked her again, no information yet, it then came my time to order, and I asked her again, I really don't think she checked, but gave me the answer "the jumbo dogs would have the same casing as the regular ones, so I ordered one of each. So this is what I found when we brought our order to the table, first of all both hot dog were barely tepid which was not a good start, I dove into the jumbo dog and was immediately disappointed to find the dog was without a casing... Our order was missing a fry which was rectified, as far as the Chicago dog it had the casing, and if was hot it would have been a winner... Chicken tenders, and fries were well received by young granddaughter, MDF enjoyed her plain dog, and after sharing some fries, and a couple of onion rings (breading tasted like panko) which I don't care for, she was to full to eat her chicken pecan salad with bacon, (it was eaten the following day and it was great). No. 1 Fla. Cuz, had her standard chili cheese dog, which she enjoyed... Chocolate cake, and the lemon cake were really good, and we would diffinitely order them again... The next day I called to talk to the manager to ask about the hotdog casings, and after going through their 10 different prompts, I was able to punch the one for customer service, it rang about 30 times, and then disconnected...

As a displaced Chicagoan, I like a taste from home now and again. Easy location with plenty of parking. Ordering is self service at a kiosk and was fairly straightforward except I wasn't able to check the box to join the rewards program. The interior is dark with lots of Chicago artifacts. Tables were dirty but I did see someone cleaning as I left. The Italian beef and sausage combo was nice and "wet" as ordered. Giardinara was excellent. Fries were crispy and there was plenty of cheese sauce. Don't expect this to rival Mr. Beef in Chicago but for Florida it's pretty good.

Delicious meal from Portillo's Tampa that really hit the spot. Did a pick up order and my goodies were handed to me with the upmost pleasure. The establishment is huge, make sure you bring your appetite! The salted caramel spice cake and the big Italian beef sandwich really hit the spot !

The food was good and the service is great. There was a giveback night to fundraise for pancreatic cancer. I grabbed my son and we drove the 35 minutes to get here for that. If it was closer, I could see myself coming here more regularly. There isn't a kids meal, so he got to order off the regular menu (he's 5), which he loved. He ordered chicken tenders, fries, a chicken sandwich and a sprite. I got a beef bowl, fries and cheese sauce and we got a chicken sandwich, fries and chocolate cake to bring home for my husband. Holy moly their fries with that cheese sauce is amazing. There's some sort of seasoning on the fries that make it delicious. And I love the cheese sauce. I should have gotten double the cheese sauce to put on everything. I thought the beef bowl was just ok. It was very wet, I actually enjoyed it more at home the next day when I could fish out just the beef and heat it up. That being said, I love the option of a beef bowl and would order it again. My son seemed to like his chicken tenders and chicken sandwich and the chocolate cake was moist. There was tons of seating and parking and all the people working there was really nice. My son loved looking at the cars on display. I found it to be very clean. Next time I'd probably try a hot dog, which they are known for. Overall it was pretty cheap (we were trying to buy a lot to support the fundraiser and only ended up at $45) and good so I would recommend it.

Pros: Clean interior and solid customer service. Chicago Dog - Great fresh pickle/tomato/peppers and bun. The dog was solid, but nothing extraordinary. 4/5 Maxwell Polish - The Dog was juicy and long (That's what she said) There was no mustard on it, but the grilled onions were good. 3/5 Chocolate Cake Shake- Lots of cake pieces and a very sweet thick shake. 4/5 Open Sundays! Cons The bun on the Polish is a bit short and the meat on the regular dog doesn't pop as much as I'd thought. I had Portillos in 2010 Chicago but it seems Tampa is not quite at that level. Overall: Solid, but not something to really relish multiple times.

Dine in today. 4:30pm. Not busy. Overall experience AWFUL. Music is soooo loud they can't hear each other talk and you can't hear if your order is ready. The jumbo dog was decent, but they didn't add the ketchup. Clearly on the order. Ordered 2 different dressings for the salad - that didn't happen. Fries were cold and under done. Tasted like freezer fries. Less than helpful staff. The facility is nice but this location is sloppy, sloppy staff, sloppy service, poor quality food. $22 for a salad, dog, small fry and water. Passs....

So--I'm from Chicago and know Portillo quite well back there! In Tampa and stopped at Portillo on Fowler. Order a Cheeseburger And it was just the greasiest Burger EVER! Sad!

Gotta love Portillo's. I got some food for take out and I had a chili hot dog and onion rings. The food here is just so comforting. The staff was pleasant.

Came here today to try this location. We used to live close to Brandon and had visited that location several times. I always get the Maxwell street polish dog and the wife always gets the Chicago dog. This location looks exactly like the Brandon location. The food was exactly what we were wanting and hit the spot. The service was reasonable and we had our food quickly. The restaurant was clean and had plenty of room including inside and outside seating. They also had a beer pick up space. No matter how you like to enjoy your dog they have you covered. Great place to bring the family for a quick and easy meal.

I have generally always been happy here with the sausage, burgers and salads. Today's visit was no exception ! The story goes like this. Today is my food/cheat day. While at Disney there wasn't anything I wanted so after we got back home, I realized I had to go to sprouts and go shopping. "To Portillo's we shall go!" Todays cheat meal was shared with my dining buddy: 1 double bacon cheeseburger 1 sausage sandwich with sweet peppers, dry 1 side of gravy Two drinks. Marvelous! The cheeseburger was perfectly executed, with that great charbroiled flavor portillos is famous for. As usual the sausage sandwich was spot on with a a fresh roll. My doing buddy also got some fries afterward, they came out fast, fresh and super hot. Mmmmm Recommended! What a great meal !

Finally got a chance to visit this location. It was set up exactly like the one in Brandon, FL, so I immediately felt at home. There happened to be no line and we were able to just walk up and order. The cashier was very friendly. I had to get their Chicago style hotdog. It was SO good! I don't normally eat hotdogs, so this is the one place I will splurge and get one. I look forward to coming back again the next time I'm craving a Chicago style hotdog.

We had a great first experience. My husband has been told time and again by his Tampa friends to try this place. When you walk in you are immediately transported to another time me place by the decor. The vibe is definitely from vintage days of the past and done with taste. This place reminds me of the Varsity in Atlanta with the giant prep counter and its staff working fast to make your food. It is fun seeing the food made before your eyes. Neither of us have eaten anything on the menu before. I lived on the edge and tried the traditional Chi town hot dog. I am glad I did it because it was good. We were both surprised to find the buns are poppyseed. As a New Englander I love my buns buttered and grilled before placing the dog. The P way is a un-heated bun. The result is like a submarine sandwich vibe to the hot dog. If you don't eat your traditional dog quickly -it gets soggy fast due to the wet toppings. The fries were perfection and we ate every single one. My hubby said it it was a really good burger, was as good as he expected it to be. Nothing to ate about it he said. Juicy burger . We didn't have dessert but it did look yummy.

Place is filthy dirty . Came in at 10:50 pm , went to order and the cashier told us they were out of burgers . Went to order sausage, she said they don't make sausage at midnight ( mind you it wasn't 11pm yet) then said they were out . We asked what they DID HAVE ... she said hot dogs and " some other stuff and whatever " ... WHAT KIND OF ANSWER IS " some other stuff and whatever"??? Husband got two hot dogs , I got a breaded chicken sandwich. The chicken tasted like pure grease.It was not a good dining experience at all here . So Gross . Had to give a star to post this when they didn't deserve any at all . SMH

Wonderful and delicious and worth any trip distances to eat here. Had a delicious beef sandwich which was mouth watering and delicious Friendly customer service and very clean restaurant Military discounts offered and generous portions

Ordered a dbl cheeseburger. Received a sloppy moist bun. A big sloppy mess. Wife ordered two hotdogs. Buns soggy there too.

Chicago inspired chain restaurant serving hot dogs, burgers, salads. They have 70 locations throughout the country. I wasn't in the mood for a hot dog although they are very good, I've had them before, I had the Greek salad with chicken: chopped romaine topped with grilled chicken breast, Feta cheese, sliced tomatoes, red onions, Kalamata olives, and cucumber. Greek vinaigrette dressing served on the side. It was very tasty, the dressing was delicious. I would have liked a larger salad and portion of chicken but otherwise nice and fresh. It's right in front of university mall so there's plenty of parking available. Staff was very friendly and they have things working very efficiently.

Portillo's has really great menu selection. Lots of different items. They have a great system. You never seem to be waiting long. I love the food. I love that they have beer. Even though it seems crowded from the parking lot, there's always plenty of seating inside and outside and I love looking at all the decor they have all over the place. The decor they have all over the place.

The food was good and the atmosphere was nice but the service was horrid. Another customer took our food after they failed to call out our number using the PA system. Watch out for this place! They do have cute plushies tho!

Good beef sandwiches reminding me of my hometown Chicago! Cheese fries and assorted desserts all were tasty treats!

First off, I love Portillos! I have been going since they did the soft opening! Everything they have to offer from the classic italian beef to the sausage to the cheese fries! Their staff is always so polite and we just can't get enough of the classic Chicago decor!!

First time at this location, and the set up is similar to the Brandon location. The decor is cute, and the menu is varied enough. I settled on a double cheeseburger because my husband thought the singles were too small. I had ordered the combo, which included fries and a drink. I waited about 5 minutes and they called my number. While you are waiting, you can get ketchup, napkins, etc at a station. It doesn't matter if you are getting food to go, or eat in, everything comes in a bag and then placed on a tray. Seems like an unnecessary expense and a waste for our environment. After I took a bite of my burger, I realized it wasn't a double burger. I was just going to eat it, as it was large enough for me, but my husband insisted on alerting them that we got the wrong burger. When I went back to the pick up area, she looked, and agreed it wasn't a double cheeseburger and took my slip to the employee making up the sandwiches. He pointed to a bag sitting there. Sure enough, there was my sandwich. She said he realized afterward that he made it wrong. We never heard them calling our number again as we were in a side room. The double is huge, and way more than I wanted or needed. It's very grilled, but very greasy. The large piece of lettuce on it, was that piece with the big vein in the middle, so I ended up removing it. It was really way too greasy a burger for me. The fries are just crinkle cut frozen fries that they deep fried. Sadly, not impressed or interested in returning.

When I first entered I had high hopes, because the ambiance is great. I really liked all the decorations and the layout was convenient. I had no problem with the service, in fact the service was very friendly and I liked how you can see the kitchen area and all the cooks. I ordered the Beef Dip and I was very disappointed. My bread was soaking wet, it was mushy and falling apart. I understand that's how it's supposed to be but personally I don't like wet bread. Not to mention, I saw a roach in the bathroom. Immediately, I was turned off and just left. If there are roaches in the bathroom I don't want to know what's in the kitchen.

As always, Portillo's didn't disappoint!! We were in town and happened to check and to our surprise, we found an Illinois treasure (Chicago to be exact)). The customer service was great, the food was consistently excellent and the restaurant was clean & nicely decorated. This was my first time in Tampa, so should I return, I'll most certainly be back.

Ja Yawna we specifically repeated our order 3 time and still messed up our order. Why is it so hard to understand ketch and no dip?

I visited on Monday around 9:20 pm. For the first time I used the drive-thru window because I was on my way to the airport. I drove an hour and 20 minutes to get to Portillo's first. I ordered the pound of beef with the gravy, two Italian sausage with just cheese, and one hot dog with just onions. I paid cash and the lady left to get change because they didn't have a cash drawer there. Eventually she came back and gave me my change. Then eventually told me to move up to the front window to get my order. I Moved up to the front window. There was a bag sitting in the window. I assumed it was my order so I'm honking the horn to try and get someone on the other side of the window to hand me the bag. She finally comes back and hands me the bag and I'm anticipating her giving me the bag in her hand as well since I was left waiting. She said no that's all. She had put my hot food in with the cold frozen food and left it sitting there while I sat outside in my car. One person manning both windows while two people are mopping at those windows. I will never use drive thru again. I will say this was the first time I had a bad experience though.

Ordered the Italian beef sandwich, it was just a regular size, I should have ordered the larger size. Also ordered the large fries. Good enough for 1 person meal. The line to order wasn't long and it took less than 10 minutes to get in and out to get my order.

This seems to be about right, poor service but good food . How do you have a line of 14 people waiting and only one register open with many people behind working. It is not a week day except busy. And this time even food was lacking fries undercooked hot dog crushed and sandwhich no hot peppers salad thing even though asked twice sometimes it's better to cut your loss and throw the towel in

We were so fortunate to have Akeena take our order. We love Portillo's and have never been dissatisfied or had a less than great experience. On this occasion, we had the good fortune to have Akeena take our order. We were greeted with a big smile by this darling young lady. Akeena clearly loves people and is a wonderful ambassador for Portillo's. She has such a great personality! She is funny without being silly and was so helpful and sweet. Akeena has guaranteed that we will be in much more often. Thanks for making a good experience a great experience!

The staff was very friendly, and quick...and the food was excellent! The Italian beef sandwich with hot peppers, cheese and the gravy was amazing, as was their classic Chicago-style hot dog.

This evening I placed a DoorDash order. Three dashers were sent to pick it up. Supposedly it was no longer there. After an hour of waiting for the store supposedly preparing the order and the dasher waiting for it, I had to cancel the order. I've re-ordered from the Brandon store.

I stopped by the Fowler Avenue Tampa location and was extremely disappointed. I am from the Chicago area and know Chicago hotdogs, onion rings, and fries and pizza. This location is an embarrassment to the brand. The hotdogs were cold and sloppy. The French fries were cold. The onion rings were burnt to a crisp. We ended up throwing the food out. Unfortunately, we went through the drive threw or I would have returned the food talked to the manager. I won't be back and I would not recommend it.

I was tasked to eat as many hotdogs as possible during the 4th of July holiday weekend. What better place to get glizzies than Chicago's own Portillo's?! Getting hotdogs to go isn't ideal and getting hotdogs at Portillo's NOT in Chicago is definitely not ideal. Yet, this was a great way to spend the 4th of the July. I ordered the two hotdog meal; hold the onions and tomatoes. Was cooked well and a perfect combination of toppings. Thank you for the meal Portillo's

As a Chicago, I appreciate the efforts here of beef and dogs Chicago style. I will say since new ownership/management, the quality has taken a dip for sure. The beef is inconsistent at best; most of the time, it dried out, it seems. But it is the only game in town, basically, so I hit it once a month out of nostalgia.

Like plenty of others have mentioned, I am not sure all the hype about Portillos. Luckily when we went on an early Thursday evening, it was empty so we ordered and ate immediately. I would have been disappointed had we waited in a long line. I had the Portobella Mushroom Sandwich which was good. The fries, meh. The signature chocolate cake did not look at appealing. I didn't want to waste the high calories based on the lackluster cake appearance. Again, no complaints, but nothing at all stood out.

Had the Italian beef sandwich. Excellent flavor and taste. Would definitely come again.

Food is always good, we had a cheese burger, hot dog & fries. I was disappointed with the burger because there is no char broil taste. It looks good but the taste was bland. the hotdog along with the fries were very good. Service is excellent. Just need to ask for what you want and I'll give it to you. Ambience of the restaurant is clean and air-conditioned. I would recommend this restaurant.

Food: beef sandwich (with sweet and hot peppers), French fries and onion rings. The french fries taste like they were fried with everything they had cooked for the day. They were oily, salty, and tasteless. The bread from the sandwich was so soggy that was falling apart immediately as I opened it . There is a lot of me to the sandwich, but it was tasteless , dry, thick, and gross. The onion rings were crispy and hard hard Not worth 19 dollars. The sweet tea...tasted like water

The food is always good and friendly service and clean establishment. Fries are always hot & fresh!! Plus love the free birthday cake but wish we could select your own cake cause I'm not a chocolate lover.

First timers!!!!!!!**** & we loved it! I realized the hype was real!! I took the whole fam including my dad and we had our Sunday lunch there. When we arrived at 12 no one except maybe two people were there and by the time we left every seat was pretty much filled. We must have arrived in the nick of time. My dad got the signature dog but the rest of us got 2 chili cheese dogs and fries and I thought I'd never say this in all my 29YEARS of living but they might be better than Mels. The service at the counter wasn't that great and the college kid seemed too tired or just didn't want to be there that worked the counter. Luckily she got the order right. I will say the older gentleman who walked around and helped clean tables he was super nice and super helpful with all our questions when we arrived. The esthetic of the place is awesome and the music was great. I will definitely be back! I need to try the shakes next! I wish they would open one in the heart of Tampa so it's easier for me to travel to.

It's great to have a taste of home close to where we now live. The food is good and the staff is friendly.

Tried the Italian beef sandwich, which looks awesome on the Portillo's website... not so much in real life! It was ok... I have had much better. . I was not asked if I wanted Giardiniera on the sandwich, I just assumed it came that way... or at least with the peppers that the website says it comes with. Not anything to make we want to go to Portillo's again. Service was ok... nothing special there either

This was my first time trying portillo's and the cake shake was to die for. The service was pretty good and the sandwich was 7/10. Loved the atmosphere.

Portillo's has a really good Italian beef. I know it's not better than what you get in Chicago, but it's consistently a good beef sandwich. If you get a side I recommend the fries because the onion rings aren't really good at all. They also have a good burger. Even though it's a little on the pricey side of $12, it's a big burger. And after all that food if you have room for dessert I like the strawberry shortcake. It's always a hit!!!

Tasted like I was in Chicago. I'm in Savannah, Ga and there's no beef places here. Miss my Portillo and Buona Beef spots.

So come over and lay on my pillows Or we'll clean my gross kitchen with Brill-Os And then after we're done With our house-cleaning fun I'll take you for hot dogs at Portillo's. I prefer Rich Tillo's to Poor Tillo's, but in a pinch, this will do. It's delightfully shocking that Chicago has come to town, so many former Chicagoans are down here, and now the food is starting to reflect that - and it actually tasted pretty good, although only the drive thru was open. They're incredibly friendly, I'd give the service a 5, the hot dog a high 4 star rating, lowered to 4 because it's a chain. When in Chicago I do not go to Portillo's ever because there are like 100 other places serving different versions of authentic Chicago dogs and Polish sausages and they're often good and occasionally spectacular, whereas Portillo's are never more than good. However for my early days in Chicago, as a kid, I used to love Portillo's, and I remember it being a lot better than it seems now, but this one wasn't bad at all. I've just had so many much better Chicago Dogs since then, but I have to say that despite friendly service, the long drive-thru line and closing their Lobby down early when I needed the bathroom were not very helpful - but it's a legendary Chicago import which is hardly everywhere in the country and it's very rare to find outside Chicagoland, and even though I really appreciate it being here, and wanted to give it a 5, I'll stick with 4.

I have had OG Portillo's in Chicago and was so excited to have it in Tampa. Sadly, the girl who took my order did not ask if I wanted peppers or giardinara on my sandwich. I assumed it came with it since this is how a hot beef is served. The sandwich was good but not the same without the accoutrements. I think the server should have asked. Im taking stars away for that.

I had heard about this place and their "World Famous" hotdogs for a while. So when I was in Tampa, I took the opportunity to visit their place. What a let down. I ordered two chili dogs and was shocked. I guess folks just do not have much expectation and are buying the name alone. First, the dogs were almost cold, not warm but not cold exactly. The chili "sauce" was disappointingly flavorless and the dog itself lacked any character whatsoever. The fries were old and it all took about 10 minutes to get when I was the only person in line. They were also wrapped so tightly that they were pressed into the wrapper. The only decent part of the meal was the fountain drink which the staff had nothing to do with. Overall a really poor dining experience.

The building of this location has a very similar look and décor to the one I visited in Chicago a few year ago. I have had their famous items: Italian Beef and the polish hot dog. I like the Italian Beef more and you can ask for how dry/wet the sandwich to be prepared. The big beef is good size for 2 to share. I have heard their chocolate cake is really good but still haven't gotten to try it as I was full.