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Digital Commons @ USF > USF Libraries > USF Digital Collections > Tampa Digital Collections > Tampa Special Collections > Florida Studies > THC > Columbia Gonzmart Collection

Columbia Restaurant / Gonzmart Family Collections, 1903-​

Columbia Restaurant / Gonzmart Family Collections, 1903-​

 

Operated by the same family since 1905, the Columbia Restaurant is the oldest restaurant in Florida and one of the largest Spanish restaurants in the nation. With humble beginnings as a café and saloon in Ybor City, the Hernandez and Gonzmart families expanded the business, first into adjacent space on its city block, and later opened restaurants around the state. The Columbia is most notable for how it evolved and adapted with the changing developments in Ybor City. Acquired by Casimiro Hernandez Sr. in 1905 from a Mr. Vasquez, Hernandez cultivated a solid business and bought the property in 1912. The Saloon Columbia quickly became the expanded Columbia Restaurant with the help of new partners (the Garcias of neighboring La Fonda Restaurant) at the onset of state and federal Prohibition laws.

During the 1930s, the Columbia’s Don Quixote dining room cashed in on the popularity of entertainment for dating couples, especially dancing to the accompaniment of orchestras and big bands. The dining room was the brainchild of Casimiro Hernandez Jr., who took over operations in the 1930s. During the 1950s and 60s, the Columbia became a regular stop on the Latin American entertainment circuit with the help of violinist Cesar Gonzmart, who joined the Hernandez family with his marriage to Adela Hernandez, daughter of Casimiro Jr. Cesar’s focus on entertainment, publicity, and tourism helped maintain business while Ybor City slid into decline. Breakfast and lunch service fell by the wayside in favor of more glamorous dinner shows. Middle American favorites such as hamburgers, pork chops, and steaks were added to the Spanish/Cuban menu, and Italian specialties were gradually phased out.

Expansion began with a Sarasota Columbia in the 1950s, and expansion began in earnest during the 1980s. After the death of Cesar Gonzmart in 1992, his sons Richard and Casey took over the operations of the Columbia Restaurant Group, salvaging the company’s finances and improving the quality of the food and service. They continued to expand locations and renovated the Ybor City location’s kitchen, finishing the multimillion dollar project as the 21st century began. Adela Gonzmart and Ferdie Pacheco’s Columbia Restaurant Spanish Cookbook (University Press of Florida, 1995) brought acclaim in the mid 1990s. The restaurant celebrated its centennial anniversary in 2005. The Columbia Restaurant Centennial Museum opened in a nearby property in 2004, showcasing the Gonzmart family’s extensive antique collection until 2006. In 2009, the comprehensive history of the restaurant was published (University Press of Florida), authored by USF Special Collections Archivist Andrew Huse. Richard Gonzmart has gone on to develop his own restaurant concept, Ulele, for Tampa’s old Water Works building, projected to open in summer 2014.

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  • Extended Gonzmart family gathers around Cesar Gonzmart's bust in from of the Columbia Restaurant
  • Casey and Richard Gonzmart
  • Casey and Richard Gonzmart.
  • Casey and Richard Gonzmart receive the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award
  • Casey Gonzmart holds the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award
  • Lauren, Melanie, Richard, Cassandra, and Andrea Gonzmart
  • Richard Gonzmart holds the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award
  • Standing room only in the Siboney Room
  • Cesar Gonzmart's bust watches over the Columbia Restaurant
  • Adela Gonzmart with Clarita Garcia and E.J. Salcines
  • Adela Gonzmart with future Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn
  • Adela Gonzmart with Tony Pizzo
  • Andrew, Richard, Melanie, and Lauren Gonzmart
  • Flamenco dancers in the Columbia Restaurant's Don Quixote room
  • Portrait of Adela Gonzmart
  • Portrait of Adela Gonzmart
  • Tony Pizzo and Adela Gonzmart
  • Tony Pizzo and Adela Gonzmart
  • Casey, Adela, and Richard Gonzmart ride in the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago's Gasparilla night parade in Ybor City
  • Richard and Adela Gonzmart
  • Cesar and Richard Gonzmart in harmony
  • Andrea Gonzmart appears with the Columbia Restaurant's dancers
  • Andrea Gonzmart appears with the Columbia's dancers
  • Ballet Folklorico of Ybor City, with Andrea Gonzmart at far right
  • Cesar, Adela, Casey, Mary, Melanie, and Richard Gonzmart after the Columbia Restaurant was entered into U.S. Business News' Restaurat Hall of Fame
  • Cesar and Adela Gonzmart
  • Cesar Gonzmart in his later years
  • Cesar Gonzmart with astronaut John Glenn
  • Cesar Gonzmart with Frank Borkowski, president of the University of South Florida
  • Cesar Gonzmart with Frank Borkowski, president of the University of South Florida
  • Gonzmart family at a celebration; from left: unidentified priest, Melanie, Richard, Adela, Cesar, and Casey Gonzmart
  • Prized painted vase in the lobby of the Columbia Restaurant
  • Publicity photograph with Cesar, Adela, Richard, and Casey Gonzmart
  • Cesar Gonzmart with Governor Bob Martinez
  • Adela and Cesar Gonzmart, possibly in Spain
  • Adela Gonzmart
  • Adela Gonzmart (left) and Joe Testa-Secca (right) with friends at the Little Spanish Theatre
  • Cesar and Adela Gonzmart dancing
  • Cesar and Adela with a group, possibly from the Krewe of St. Yago in St. Augustine
  • Cesar Gonzmart performing with his "magic violin"
  • Cesar Gonzmart portrait
  • Cesar Gonzmart, possible in Spain
  • Publicity photograph with Cesar, Adela, Richard, and Casey Gonzmart
  • Serving paella to Spanish dignitaries at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Cesar Gonzmart acts as Ponce de Leon at a reenactment of his landing
  • Cesar Gonzmart as Ponce de Leon
  • Menu for opening of Columbia Restaurant in St. Augustine
  • Cesar Gonzmart beside a pottery kiln in Guadalajara, Mexico
  • Adela Gonzmart standing next to a replica of the Patio room's sculpture, "Love and the Dolphin"
  • Adela Gonzmart with Leonard and Morya Kesher
  • Cesar and Richard Gonzmart pour for a large group
  • Cesar Gonzmart admires the framed publicity articles in the Columbia Restaurant's Cafe
  • Cesar Gonzmart plays tableside at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Cesar Gonzmart raises his magic violin
  • Cesar Gonzmart serves churros on the streets of Ybor City, probably for Fiesta Day
  • Cesar Gonzmart with his mother
  • Columbia Restaurant facing 7th Avenue
  • Crowd of customers outside the Columbia on the restaurant's 75th anniversary
  • Crowd seated outside of the Columbia Restaurant for 75th anniversary events
  • Formal living room, possibly at the Gonzmart home
  • Kiln in Spain with some of it wares
  • Replica of the Patio room's sculpture, "Love and the Dolphin"
  • Richard Gonzmart doing some heavy lifting in the Columbia Restaurant's kitchen
  • Richard Gonzmart makes a massive 1905 Salad at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Unidentified chef at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Unidentified chef serving paella at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Michael Roby pours a drink at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Publicity photograph for the Columbia cafe
  • Publicity photograph of the Columbia cafe
  • Adela Gonzmart
  • Cesar and Adela Gonzmart at a costume party, probably held by the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago
  • Cesar and Adela Gonzmart with a member of the Orden del Yago in Spain
  • Cesar Gonzmart is knighted into the Orden del Yago in Spain
  • Chef Vincenzo "Sarapico" Perez prepares to carve tableside at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Flamenco performers at the Columbia Restaurant
  • Henny Youngman with Cesar Gonzmart
  • Liberace with Adela Gonzmart and unidentified friend.
  • Richard, Adela, and Casey Gonzmart
  • Adela Gonzmart publicity photograph
  • Adela Gonzmart with Roland Mantiega, publisher of La Gaceta
  • Autographed photograph of Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona.
  • Carmen Hernandez
  • Carmen Hernandez
  • Casey, Cesar, and Richard Gonzmart, after Cesar was crowned king of the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago
  • Casimiro Hernandez Jr.
  • Cesar and Adela Gonzmart's Christmas party invitation
  • Cesar Gonzmart and his band play for television
  • Cesar Gonzmart is knighted into the Orden del Yago
  • Cesar Gonzmart, King of the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago
  • Cesar Gonzmart publicity photograph
  • Employees stand ready at the Holiday Magazine Awards Dinner
  • King and Queen of the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago
  • Kitchen at the Columbia Restaurant before the mid-century upgrade
  • Rare photograph of Cesar Gonzmart resting
  • Sancho room at the Columbia Restaurant, later known as the King's dining room
  • Cesar Gonzmart and Henry Fernandez, founders of the Krewer of the Knights of St. Yago, Tampa's first Latino Gasarilla Krewe
  • Adela Gonzmart poses with antique furniture
  • Adela's hideaway
  • Autographed photo from "Trisha," a performer at the Columbia Restaurant, likely a flamenco dancer
 
  • Bust of Adela Gonzmart in front of the Columbia Restaurant

    Bust of Adela Gonzmart in front of the Columbia Restaurant

  • Extended Gonzmart family gathers around Cesar Gonzmart's bust in from of the Columbia Restaurant

    Extended Gonzmart family gathers around Cesar Gonzmart's bust in from of the Columbia Restaurant

  • Casey and Richard Gonzmart

    Casey and Richard Gonzmart

  • Casey and Richard Gonzmart.

    Casey and Richard Gonzmart.

  • Casey and Richard Gonzmart receive the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award

    Casey and Richard Gonzmart receive the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award

  • Casey Gonzmart holds the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award

    Casey Gonzmart holds the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award

  • Lauren, Melanie, Richard, Cassandra, and Andrea Gonzmart

    Lauren, Melanie, Richard, Cassandra, and Andrea Gonzmart

  • Richard Gonzmart holds the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award

    Richard Gonzmart holds the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame Award

  • Standing room only in the Siboney Room

    Standing room only in the Siboney Room

  • Cesar Gonzmart's bust watches over the Columbia Restaurant

    Cesar Gonzmart's bust watches over the Columbia Restaurant

  • Adela Gonzmart with Clarita Garcia and E.J. Salcines

    Adela Gonzmart with Clarita Garcia and E.J. Salcines

  • Adela Gonzmart with future Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn

    Adela Gonzmart with future Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn

  • Adela Gonzmart with Tony Pizzo

    Adela Gonzmart with Tony Pizzo

  • Andrew, Richard, Melanie, and Lauren Gonzmart

    Andrew, Richard, Melanie, and Lauren Gonzmart

  • Flamenco dancers in the Columbia Restaurant's Don Quixote room

    Flamenco dancers in the Columbia Restaurant's Don Quixote room

  • Portrait of Adela Gonzmart

    Portrait of Adela Gonzmart

  • Portrait of Adela Gonzmart

    Portrait of Adela Gonzmart

  • Tony Pizzo and Adela Gonzmart

    Tony Pizzo and Adela Gonzmart

  • Tony Pizzo and Adela Gonzmart

    Tony Pizzo and Adela Gonzmart

  • Casey, Adela, and Richard Gonzmart ride in the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago's Gasparilla night parade in Ybor City

    Casey, Adela, and Richard Gonzmart ride in the Krewe of the Knights of St. Yago's Gasparilla night parade in Ybor City

  • Richard and Adela Gonzmart

    Richard and Adela Gonzmart

  • Cesar and Richard Gonzmart in harmony

    Cesar and Richard Gonzmart in harmony

  • Andrea Gonzmart appears with the Columbia Restaurant's dancers

    Andrea Gonzmart appears with the Columbia Restaurant's dancers

  • Andrea Gonzmart appears with the Columbia's dancers

    Andrea Gonzmart appears with the Columbia's dancers

  • Ballet Folklorico of Ybor City, with Andrea Gonzmart at far right

    Ballet Folklorico of Ybor City, with Andrea Gonzmart at far right

 

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