History may take the spotlight, but great dining is the icing on the cake in Northeast Florida. Here in the land of pre-Columbian, Colonial and Confederate heritage sites—including the centuries-old monuments of St. Augustine—a developing food scene is gaining popularity for everything from haute cuisine to hot wings, with farm-to-fork freshness a priority at many eateries and culinary creativity the order of the day.
“Dining in this area has grown by leaps and bounds,” says Brian Howell, general manager of Aunt Kate’s, serving up fresh seafood from a casual location on the banks of the Tolomoto River in St. Augustine. “We’ve been ranked among the state’s top dining spots, and a lot of places, including us, have jumped onboard with renovations and improved menus.”
Among the enhancements at Aunt Kate’s is expanded space for private group dining.
“We’ve bumped our number from 100 to 120,” Howell says.
Aunt Kate’s isn’t alone. In fact, tasty settings for group dining abound in Northeast Florida, while the world of food and drink expands into tours and tastings at local chocolate factories, breweries and wineries.
Dining Getaways
On Amelia Island, for one, a trio of new or newly renovated restaurants is making group events a priority. Offering a private upstairs dining area that can seat up to 50, Joe’s 2nd Street Bistro refreshed its interior space and revamped outdoor landscaping, all the better to accent a tantalizing banquet menu that features such selections as grilled salmon and prime rib.
Recently opened on Amelia Island is the elegant David’s Restaurant & Lounge, where fresh local fish, Cornish hen, braised bison and New York strip steak are among the choices on extensive group menus.
“We have two separate dining areas that are great for groups,” notes Blane Dickerson, manager at David’s. “One seats 12 and the other 50.”
On the more casual side, Sliders Seaside Grill unveiled new banquet menus and new event space, including an ocean-view room that can accommodate 200 for sit-down dinners and 300 for cocktails. PageBreak
Culinary Classics
Back on the mainland, St. Augustine’s Old World charms are complemented by the New World flavors of 95 Cordova, where a menu of seasonally inspired specialties is enjoyed among lavish antiques, exotic silks and hand-painted gold ceilings. The restaurant, also showcasing Middle Eastern and Asian cuisine, is housed in the historic Casa Monica Hotel, which can accommodate private dining for groups of up to 50.
“We often offer a prix fixe menu with customized menu cards. Our private dining manager will make all arrangements in advance,” says Veronica Peterson, the hotel’s executive assistant.
Also in St. Augustine, the flavors and dining traditions of Barcelona are celebrated in the Tasting Room, where savory tapas and entradas such as cod-and-potato fritters and sweet potato gnocchi are created with locally sourced items, then paired with selections from the restaurant’s award-winning wine list. Planners are free to customize their own menus or the chefs can help design an original dining experience.
In nearby Ponte Vedra Beach, Ponte Vedra Inn and Club offers a range of options for groups, from alfresco relaxation at the Surf Club Patio to the continental favorites and fresh seafood of the Seafoam Dining Room, an oceanfront classic for more than a half-century that recently emerged from an elegant makeover.
South of St. Augustine in Palm Coast, “original” is the word that may come to mind at Captain’s BBQ, boasting a location on the Intracoastal Waterway next to a fishing pier and the Mala Compra Plantation archaeological site. Groups can delve into local history or embark on a fishing charter before they belly up to a five-napkin feast of ribs, pulled pork, smoked brisket and sloppy basa—kielbasa topped with baked beans, coleslaw and shredded cheddar cheese.
As filling as that sounds, you’ll want to save room for one of the specialty desserts created by owner and former pastry chef Michael “Cheesecake Mike” Goodman.
“We’ve done parties for up to 125 people. We have endless possibilities,” he says. PageBreak
Tasty Tours
North of St. Augustine, the tables are set for special events in Jacksonville, where places like Bistro AIX and Marker 32 cater to groups with custom menus and private spaces. You’ll need something to wash down all that food, though, so it’s lucky Jacksonville is also an up-and-coming town for breweries, both major and micro.
“Jacksonville has certainly come into its own as a brewery hub,” says Cari Sanchez-Potter, general manager of Intuition Ale Works craft brewery, which specializes in small-batch handcrafted ales, with a tap room featuring 20 beers and enough space for private events of up to 60. Tours of the brewery include tastings and a souvenir pint glass.
“We also can coordinate a private tour with our founder or one of our brewers if arranged in advance,” Sanchez-Potter says.
In the major brewery realm is Anheuser-Busch on Busch Drive, spanning about 1 million square feet and producing 10 million barrels of beer in 2012, according to Charles Olden, supervisor of brewery experiences. Groups can view the entire process, from hops to suds, on 30- to 45-minute tours that highlight the company’s history, take in the packaging area and end in a hospitality room where everyone hoists a free beer (or soda) with pretzels.
The brewery also runs a “beer school” for up to 25 that reviews terminology, food pairings, tips on beer storage and other beer-related topics, and a two-hour beermaster tour that goes behind the scenes of the Budweiser process.
If your preferred fermented beverage is wine, complimentary tours and tastings are offered daily at San Sebastian Winery in St. Augustine, featuring vintage varietals as well as blended and sparkling wines that are international award-winners. Groups of 25 or more are charged a nominal fee for the tour, which lasts about an hour, notes Wendy Brooks, director of marketing.
Right down the block from San Sebastian, tastings take a turn toward the rich and creamy at family-owned Whetstone Chocolates, where visitors taste freshly made confections while learning about the factory’s history and meeting the chocolate chefs on hour-long tours.
“They’ll taste at least four pieces of chocolate and fudge,” says Corry Connors, manager of the factory’s onsite store.
In Jacksonville, the sweet story of Peterbrooke Chocolatier’s chocolate-drizzled popcorn is told on tours running Tuesday through Friday, and everyone gets a goody bag of the gooey treat.
Meanwhile, food glorious food (and drink) are celebrated regularly in Northeast Florida thanks to a number of irresistible gastronomic events. Among the delicious standouts are Jacksonville’s annual Beer Week in April, the Amelia Island Wine Festival in October and St. Augustine’s Flavors of Florida’s Historic Coast in October, a prix fixe dining program showcasing more than 20 local restaurants.
