Dang Dude Showcases Asian Street Food at Sparkman Wharf in Tampa
If you haven’t stopped by Sparkman Wharf recently, let the newly opened Dang Dude be your reason to. This latest concept from Chef Ferrell Alvarez and Proper House Group (known for their award-winning restaurant Rooster and the Till) features delicious takes on Asian street fare, including dumplings, double-fried chicken wings and rou jia mo (Chinese hamburgers).
My sister and I stopped by shortly after its official opening and started off our food adventure with the Thai Milk Tea with boba pearls and Mango Fruit Tea with lychee jelly. Both were perfect in regards to their level of sweetness, and I was really impressed by the Mango Fruit Tea—the lychee jelly was especially yummy and paired wonderfully with the drink!
We ordered a variety of items on their menu, including the Fried Pork Gyoza, Steamed Pork Dumplings, Fried Spring Roll Lettuce Wraps and Fried Grouper Bites. If you’re a fan of Rooster and the Till’s Cobia Collar dish, you’ll be delighted by Dang Dude’s Grouper Bites—it’s all the flavor and goodness of the cobia collar, without the fish bones. If you absolutely cannot order both the fried gyoza and steamed dumplings and have to choose one or the other, I recommend going with the latter—the fried garlic chili crunch on top of the dumplings really make it shine bright. And, of course, my Vietnamese self loves any dish that features fried food wrapped in lettuce and paired with fresh herbs, but outside of that factor, the fried spring rolls were crispy and savory—absolutely delicious on its own or wrapped and dipped in its accompanying sauce.
Dang Dude has officially become a favorite of ours, and is the first spot I head to when visiting Sparkman Wharf. I ended up taking pH to check it out a couple of weeks later, and he loved it, too!
Dang Dude is located at Sparkman Wharf, 615 Channelside Drive in Tampa. The restaurant is open Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. For the latest updates from Dang Dude, follow along on Facebook and Instagram.
