Jul 17, 2023 - Food and Drink

Last Meal with Café Clementine's Paulina Gervasi

Photo illustration: Axios Visuals. Photo: Courtesy of Paulina Gervasi

Even if you haven't had the chance to try the pastries at Café Clementine, you've probably seen them on Instagram.

  • The beautiful and delicious treats are the work of Paulina Gervasi, who opened the shop last year in the Museum of Fine Arts St. Petersburg with her husband, Vince.
  • Here's Gervasi's perfect last meal, in her own words:

I love breakfast so much, so I couldn't choose between breakfast and dinner. I went with both for a full day of eating featuring lots of seafood. I grew up always in connection with the ocean and still very much am as a St. Pete resident.

To start: Fresh passionfruit and mango from my abuela's tree in Puerto Rico.

  • Soft scrambled eggs — pasture raised — made perfectly by Vince and a zesty side salad of Brick Street Farms baby greens with Pecorino Romano shaved over top and some toasted buckwheat for crunch.
  • A properly burnished, freshly baked pain au chocolat, still shatteringly crisp and warm from the oven. I am partial to my own.

As an early dinner: A fresh margarita made simply with fresh lime juice and Mezcal. A salty rim is a must, plus chili for bonus points.

  • A half dozen cold water oysters, freshly shucked. You can never go wrong with the assortment at The Walrus and the Carpenter in Seattle.
  • A couple empanadas de langosta from El Gatito in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. Always freshly fried and piping hot.
  • Boiled crab legs with garlic butter plus a big fresh salad. I love the kale salad at On Swann, I could eat it daily, with a side.

Finish with a slice of chocolate cake from Papa Haydn in Portland, Oregon. It is truly divine.

avatar

Get more local stories in your inbox with Axios Tampa Bay.

🌱

Support local journalism by becoming a member.

Learn more

More Tampa Bay stories

No stories could be found

Tampa Baypostcard

Get a free daily digest of the most important news in your backyard with Axios Tampa Bay.

🌱

Support local journalism by becoming a member.

Learn more