Growing up, I had visited the dog tracks in Bonita Springs a few times but I had never been to a horse racing event. Lucky for me, Tampa Downs is only 90 minutes away. So when I saw they were having a legit seafood festival catered by a New Orleans company, I quickly purchased 2 tickets! At $35 a ticket, you received entry for a day at the races, a program, a spin on the prize wheel, all you can eat seafood boil (including authentic King Cake) and endless samples of beer and wine. Sounds like a magical afternoon at a very reasonable price. And let’s be honest, they had me at all I can eat crawfish!!
So the hubby and I put on our finest hats and headed out to experience our first horse track experience! When we arrived we were directed to a giant tent on one end of the track. Upon entering, we were given a wristband that entitled us to all the scrumptious seafood delights that we could handle. And I am not one to turn down a challenge! We also each got a ticket to spin a wheel for a prize. I won a rather snazzy umbrella whereas Nelson got a koozie. We are also given the golden ticket for endless drinks…. well not so much golden as a green ticket. But to me that ticket was golden!!
My priorities were out of whack as I spun that prize wheel before heading to the adult beverage station. What was I thinking?!?! Anywho, prizes in hand we make a beeline to the drinks. Two sangrias please! The drink ladies were super sweet and definitely had a heavy hand with the endless “samples”. But endless is endless and I could use the frequent walks to the wine table anyways! Health, people, health! There was a wide variety of white and red wines along with Cigar City beers.
With my thirst quenched, I raced to the table filled with treasures of seafood! I have arrived! It was a perfect spread of New Orleans’ delights. There was potato salad, authentic jambalaya, shrimp the size of small lobsters, crawfish that was to die for along with sausage, roasted garlic cloves, corn on the cob and potatoes. My mouth is watering as I am typing this. Now there was no jazz music in the background but my plate of goodness transported me right back to NOLA! Upon talking with the owner of the catering company, I found out that his business is located just a few miles outside New Orleans. So this was definitely the real deal!
With a full belly, it was time to get our bets on. Thankfully bets in horse racing are the same as dog racing. At least, the cheap bets that I play are. There is much more time between each race in horse racing than there is in dog racing. I’m not complaining as I like to make the most of my time so in between races, I had to do what I had to do. And that was eat and drink!
The horses were so beautiful! And it was fun to see all the creative names they had. We came out about even after the day of betting. So any dreams I had of becoming a professional horse bettor went out the window that Saturday! Regardless, it was such an enjoyable day. We will absolutely be returning to Tampa Downs again. It was very family friendly as we saw lots of kiddos. There were also opportunities to feed and pet the horses. In addition to indoor seating and the outdoor grandstand area, there was a large grassy area to bring your own chairs and cooler and just relax while watching the races. If packing your lunch does not interest you, there is also a sit down restaurant as well as a hot dog stand and pizza joint. If you find yourself with nothing to do on a sunny Saturday, give Tampa Downs a try for yourself! You will have an inexpensive and fun afternoon! Hey and you may even win big!
