Con Amor, a modern Mexican restaurant in Tampa's Seminole Heights neighborhood, is drawing serious attention for doing something many spots skip: making its own masa in-house and turning that fresh dough into tortillas, tacos and hearty entrees. The husband-and-wife team behind the restaurant brought their pop-up chops into a full dining room and tequila-focused bar earlier this year. Diners say that house-made masa brings a deeper corn flavor than what they are used to finding at many taquerias nearby.
As reported by FOX 13 Tampa Bay, photojournalist Jason Wright stepped into Con Amor's kitchen and spotlighted the team’s practice of nixtamalizing corn and grinding masa on site, a step the report said "brings out great flavor." The short segment offers a fast walk-through of the masa work happening behind the line and the daily rhythm of a young restaurant settling into its stride.
Making masa the old way
According to the restaurant's website, Con Amor builds its menu around the ancient practice of nixtamalization, which it describes as soaking and cooking corn in an alkaline solution before grinding it into masa. The owners say this approach boosts both flavor and nutrition, and the site notes that the method is central to the tortillas and small plates that anchor the menu. That focus on technique connects everything coming out of the kitchen, from tacos to shareable dishes to larger entrees.
Soft opening and the menu
Local reporting traces the brick-and-mortar restaurant back to pop-ups and soft openings earlier this year, with one timeline pointing to a broader rollout in February. Business Debut noted soft openings in late January followed by a Feb. 6 grand opening, while Creative Loafing Tampa listed Con Amor among Tampa Bay’s new arrivals and pointed to items like Oaxacan-marinated steak, tetelas and chicken mole. The restaurant also pours draft beer and cocktails and keeps a tequila lineup meant to match that masa-centered cooking.
Neighborhood fit
Avenue Lofts owner Burdette told Tampa Bay Business & Wealth that Con Amor "is something the neighborhood really needs," a view echoed in other local coverage as North Florida Avenue steadily fills in with new dining rooms. The restaurant joins a cluster of recent openings in Seminole Heights as the area’s main dining strip continues to broaden its options.
For nuts-and-bolts details like hours and reservations, Con Amor shares updates on its Con Amor website, and the FOX 13 kitchen piece remains the clearest on-camera look at the masa process. Current menus and hours are listed online, while the short video gives a quick sense of just how much of the food starts with that house-made masa.
