Fast casual. It seems like the hottest trend sweeping the restaurant industry these days. From Chipotle to Jimmy John's, Panera, and more, eateries where you place and pick up your order at the counter are more popular than ever before.
While many of these national chain restaurants are nice, and pretty tasty at that, there's something much more admirable about a fast casual restaurant concept born and bred right in the heart of your community. That's the name of the game at PDQ in South Tampa.
Opened just over a month ago on South Dale Mabry, PDQ (Pretty Darn Quick or, People Dedicated to Quality) is a contemporary, fast casual eatery serving up chicken tenders, sandwiches, salads, fresh cut fries, hand spun milkshakes, and more.
Walking up to PDQ, you're greeted by a colorful behemoth of modern architecture accented by plumes of faux-smoke emanating from the storefront. Once inside, the first thing that strikes your attention is their huge, open (and we mean wide open) kitchen as the focal point of the restaurant. Watching all the cooks hustle and bustle throughout the kitchen is pretty cool and this open format definitely speaks to PDQs sense of honesty and openness when it comes to the food they craft.
The chicken tenders are the crowning achievement of PDQ's small, but ample menu. A combo comes with three of them and a ginormous helping of hand-cut fries rings in at $6.75. Well battered and golden-fried, PDQ's chicken tenders are hardly the pre-frozen, super breaded tenders of the fast food world. They're breaded, but juicy and well portioned for the price. Choose from one, or all of their homemade sauces including honey mustard, ranch, sweet heat, chipotle bbq, and creamy garlic. Pick the creamy garlic if you're looking for something a little outside the box and pretty addicting.
Their shoestring, hand cut fries, fried to a greasy brown, were the stuff of legend. Well salted, not too crispy or limp, the fries at PDQ come in hulking quantities that still don't feel like enough once they're all gone.
Other menu items at PDQ include chicken and turkey sandwiches which you can get fried or grilled, a variety of hand-tossed chicken salads, and hand-spun shakes with flavors like vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, Oreo, and more.
PDQ will do you solid if you're looking for a heart, affordable, and super-fast meal in Tampa. Check 'em out and be sure to give a rate and review on the PDQ 813area.com business listing.
