Columbia Restaurant - Murals - Ybor City, Florida, USA. - Murals on Waymarking.com

The Columbia is the oldest & one of the largest Spanish restaurant in the World. It was opened as a cafe for cigarmakers by Casimiro Hernandez, Sr. in 1905 & has remained to this day under the management of the founding family. The entire building is surrounded, by stunning ceramic mosaic artworks, & topped by an artistic Neon sign.

Exterior Ceramic Mural;
The Columbia placed its first exterior hand-painted tile in 1973. When third generation owners Cesar and Adela Gonzmart vacationed in Seville, Spain they fell in love with colorful tiles there. In 1978, Cesar spent $160,000 to cover most of the restaurant’s exterior with tile from Seville.

The Mural features mostly colourful scrollwork, with the occasional Cherub, Roman soldiers, Greek urns with fruit overflowing, typical of Romance artworks, There are some individual pieces, such as the family tree showing six generations of the Hernandez family, & The Restaurant name & the Date 1905.

"The original Columbia Restaurant, located in the historic Ybor City neighborhood in Tampa, Florida, is the oldest continuously operated restaurant in Florida, the oldest Spanish restaurant in the United States and one of the largest Spanish restaurants in the world with 1,700 seats in 15 dining rooms taking up 52,000 ft² over an entire city block. Founded in 1905 in, the landmark is still owned by the Hernandez/Gonzmart family and serves Spanish and Cuban cuisine." Text Source; (visit link)


"TALLAHASSEE - State senators took several moments Wednesday to congratulate Ybor City's Columbia Restaurant on its 100th anniversary.
The landmark restaurant opened in 1905, founded by Cuban immigrant Casimiro Hernandez Sr., and has been owned and operated since by the next four generations of the family. It includes in its claims to fame the distinctions of being the oldest restaurant in Florida and, encompassing an entire city block, the largest Spanish restaurant in the world." Text Source; (visit link)

"The original Columbia Restaurant, located in the historic Ybor City neighborhood in Tampa, Florida, is the oldest continuously operated restaurant in Florida, the oldest Spanish restaurant in the United States and one of the largest Spanish restaurants in the world with 1,700 seats in 15 dining rooms taking up 52,000 ft² over an entire city block. Founded in 1905 in, the landmark is still owned by the Hernandez/Gonzmart family and serves Spanish and Cuban cuisine." Text Source; (visit link)

Physical Location:
2117 E. 7th Ave. Tampa, FL 33605

Web Address: (visit link)

City: Ybor City - Tampa. Location Name: Columbia Restaurant. Artist: unkown Date: 1973 to 1978 Media: Ceramic Tiles Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and description of your visit. One original photo of the mural must also be submitted. GPSr photo NOT required.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   02/01/2016 petendot visited it 12/28/2015 Lynx Humble visited it 12/01/2015 veritas vita visited it

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