Twenty years ago, downtown Tampa turned into a ghost town at 5 p.m. Office workers fled to the highways and an eerie quiet settled over the streets. Downtown was a place to work, not to linger.
The transformation began with SkyPoint in 2007, followed by Element in 2009. Now, in 2025, with AER Tampa complete and construction underway on ONE Tampa and Pendry Tampa, downtown has evolved into a thriving residential destination.
With new, sophisticated residents come new expectations. They are not looking for another casual eatery. They want dining that matches their elevated lifestyle.
Enter Che Vita
Opened in July 2025 at the Hilton Tampa Downtown at 211 N. Tampa St., Che Vita means “What a life.” The name captures both the exclamation of joy and the philosophy behind every dish.
Che Vita came to life through a collaboration between Hilton and StiR Creative Collective. The team shaped a Southern Italian identity inspired by the warmth, traditions and culinary spirit of the Mezzogiorno, Italy’s sun-soaked southern region.
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MatchLine Design Group led the renovation and design, creating a space that feels both transported and rooted — European in sensibility yet unmistakably Tampa in confidence.
The chefs behind the vision
Chef James King, the complex executive chef for both Hilton Tampa Downtown and Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Downtown Convention Center, brings over 20 years of culinary experience.
His journey reads like a culinary pilgrimage.
He trained at Le Cordon Bleu in London, earned a degree from Central Connecticut University, and spent years leading kitchens across Massachusetts and Connecticut. But it was in Italy that King embarked on what he calls his true Italian education, completing intensive training at Academia Italiana Chef and Scuola Italiana Pizzaiolo.
He emerged as a certified professional pizzaiolo with mastery of pasta and sauces that goes beyond technique into art.
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Among 150 candidates, King found Chef de Cuisine Fabio Zaniboni. The two chefs share a vision for creating innovative food that transcends tradition without losing respect for it.
They both wake at night to jot down ideas and live by what Italians hold sacred: family, food and football. Within two hours of Zaniboni accepting the position, they had sketched the foundation of the menu.
The menu
Every dish at Che Vita tells a story of calculated rebellion and reverent tradition.
The arancini reimagines Sicilian rice balls as Cacio e Pepe risotto croquettes with lemon-pesto aioli instead of marinara. The citrus lift plays against crisp pecorino.
The ahi tuna crudo responds to Tampa’s sushi saturation with chili aioli, saba and soy glaze, caperberries and bottarga — the prized Mediterranean delicacy of cured fish roe that brings umami like an ocean breeze.
The Margherita pizza — San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella di bufala, basil — represents tradition perfected. But the Fratelli pizza embodies the kitchen’s brotherhood: garlic fennel sausage, soppressata Calabrese, pepperoni, arrabbiata sauce, sweet onion, mozzarella and jalapeño hot honey sourced from Embassy Suites’ rooftop beehives.
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King created it for his kitchen crew, achieving a balance of sweet and spicy on a crust marked by coveted leopard spots.
That crust deserves recognition. Made with Caputo double zero flour, the finest grind available, it creates dough that is soft and rises quickly, meant for knife and fork. Mixed with semolina, it achieves the perfect cornicione, the puffy outer rim that defines authentic Neapolitan pizza.
The shrimp scampi pairs jumbo Gulf shrimp with squid ink pasta, bottarga, white wine, garlic-lemon butter, herbs and pepperoncini — a taste that feels like waves breaking on the palate. The Agnolotti Blue Crab combines local Tampa crab with lemon-basil ricotta, crispy Parmesan and Tampa citrus gremolata, both of this place and of the Mezzogiorno.
Dining for Tampa’s professionals
For power lunches, Che Vita offers combinations of half salad, half panini and soup. It is a break from rushed midday meals, offering food that energizes in an atmosphere where deals are made.
The restaurant’s versatility extends far beyond lunch. The Wine Room accommodates up to 10 guests for executive dinners. The Che Vita Patio seats 30 outdoors, while the Hyde Park Room offers an elegant interior option for the same number. Full buyouts can host up to 150 guests.
Guests spending $100 or more receive complimentary valet service, a small gesture that solves one of downtown’s most persistent frustrations.
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This is the restaurant that downtown Tampa has been building toward, with every new tower and every professional choosing to make the urban core their home. The ghost town that once materialized at 5 p.m. is gone, replaced by a vibrant center where people live, dine and build community.
Where Chef James King and Chef Fabio Zaniboni honor tradition while fearlessly innovating.
Where Southern Italian soul meets Tampa sophistication.
Where, at last, you can look around at the energy, the cuisine and the possibilities and say with genuine satisfaction: Che vita — what a life, indeed.
