New restaurant in Tampa: The Daily Dose doesn't shy away from bold flavors

Looking for a local restaurant serving quality breakfast, brunch, and coffee? Try The Daily Dose on Gandy Boulevard, where most of the menu -- from the bread to the fondue -- is made fresh.

Serving new American cuisine, The Daily Dose offers mostly subtle variations on breakfast classics, like bread bowls, avocado toast, and egg sandwiches. Bolder dishes appear on the menu as well, including a pastrami salmon galette; crab cake and eggs Benedict; and chicken and red velvet waffles.

Opened in South Tampa in mid-January by chef Antoine Ludcene and attorney Scott Jeeves, The Daily Dose strives to set its self apart from Tampa’s breakfast scene by focusing on freshness and breakfast.

“I love to cook breakfast,” Ludcene says. “The sauces we make fresh. The dressings we make fresh. We make fresh fondue. And we make most of the breads fresh in-house.” 

Besides the grub, The Daily Dose serves an array of coffees, from straight-up espresso to mint-flavored mocha. To give their coffee extra depth, Ludcene says they smoke their beans before grinding. 

Hailing from Nigeria, Ludcene has worked in the culinary industry for over two decades, earning a degree in culinary arts from the Johnson and Wales University in Miami and working under celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck during a stint at Disney. He’s also a player in the Tampa Bay culinary scene, where he serves as executive chef and a partner at South Tampa’s Cask Social Kitchen.

He hopes to infuse The Daily Dose with his experience in the kitchen. “We're chefs,” he says. “We're a chef-driven restaurant. We refresh the kitchen and refresh the menu seasonally, every three months. We change some stuff, add new stuff, and have daily chef special.”

In November, Ludcene plans to open another location in Downtown Tampa, and hopes to launch one more in Westchase the following year. 

“Our plan is to grow,” he says. “Our goal is to open one every year.”

Of course, he can’t do that alone and Ludcene is quick to acknowledge the support he gets when he’s away. 

“My other chefs are doing a great job,” he says. “I appreciate all the hard work my team puts through. When you take care of your team, they take care of you.”

The Daily Dose is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
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Read more articles by Dyllan Furness.

Dyllan Furness is a freelance writer and born-again Floridian based in Tampa. He covers the Tampa Bay Area’s development boom for 83 Degrees, with an eye out for sustainable and community-driven initiatives.