The café is already serving some of the most delicious lunches in the city. You can eat in the glass Conservatory or on the terrace with a spectacular view of the downtown waterfront.
The café is an ideal place to celebrate a special occasion, to meet friends, to set the right tone for a business appointment, or to take a break from the pressures of work. You can lunch in the café without paying Museum admission.
Olympia Catering & Events of Tampa is running the café. Lisa Schwartz-Green is the restaurant manager and James Canter is the executive chef. Mr. Canter is using local, seasonal ingredients to create classical Mediterranean cuisine with a modern twist.
Dishes include such highlights as the Italian aqua pazza (crazy water), which features locally harvested sturgeon lightly poached in a golden sherry saffron broth paired with leeks and tomatoes. A wide range of artisanal-crafted salads and paninis and many surprises is making the MFA Café a Mediterranean oasis in the heart of St. Petersburg.
Chef Canter was classically trained in the Tampa Bay area and went on to expand his culinary perspective with 18 years of professional experience. He has extensive knowledge of global cuisine and is a strong advocate of organic food and fresh, locally grown produce. He most recently worked in San Francisco.
Olympia Catering & Events is a third-generation family-owned business founded in 1924. It is one of the oldest and finest bakeries in the area and has been in the catering business for more than 40 years. In the last few years, Olympia has managed a 60-seat café at Mainsail Suites and a 500-seat facility at St. John Greek Orthodox Church and currently manages the 250-seat event facility of The Tampa Firefighters Museum.
The company is a preferred or approved vendor at every major event facility in the area and has a long list of regular clients, including PriceWaterhouse Coopers, Home Depot, Verizon, Jabil Circuit, Fowler & White, The Tampa Tribune, and many others. With Olympia and Chef Canter, the MFA has found the perfect partners to serve lunches that are, in themselves, works of art.
Hours are 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Members receive a 10% discount.
