The Bricks

Between a fun photoshoot with friends in a vintage shop involving large silly sunglasses and even larger and even sillier floppy hats, and finally watching Bridesmaids, some friends and I gathered together at The Bricks in Ybor. The Bricks is not a vegan restaurant, but we had all heard that they were vegan-friendly, and when we heard "peanut butter bar," it really piqued our interest.

Since we arrived during happy hour, we decided to settle in with a drink. Along with plenty of water, I ordered their Rooftop Razz - sun tea with raspberry Stoli. Simple and delicious. What a great summer drink!

We decided to kick things off with the Taste of the Bricks: house-made hummus, house-made salsa, and house-made white bean curry dip. It sounded like a good place to start, but it ended up being kind of disappointing.

My friend Amber described it accurately when she said the hummus was "sparkling." To me, 'sparkling' meant 'vinegary.' It was a shock to the tongue on the first taste. The white bean curry dip was missing something, too. The consistency was more paste-like, and I prefer my hummus and hummus-like dips to be more on the creamy side.

And then there was the salsa, which is best described as watered down. Ho hum.

Pressing on, I ordered the Portabelly off the sandwich menu, minus the bread and cheese. (FYI - our server told us the only bread that's vegan on the menu is the pita. This made the "peanut butter bar" less accessible to vegans AND those who are wheat-sensitive.)

Not a bad 'shroom.

It wasn't long before we got rowdier and my pictures got blurrier. For the grand finale, we split the Brickin' Nuggets -- I HAD to get SOMETHING with peanut butter on it!

Sliced apple & sliced banana, dipped in peanut butter, topped with granola and some kind of strawberry drizzle. Kind of like a good breakfast! Very simple.

Watch out -- toothpicks can become weapons!

So, the food at The Bricks was mediocre, but the atmosphere is cozy, my drinks were great, and my company was even better.