Tried out Bellwether for happy hour. I was excited to have a new spot downtown. Snacks: ARANCINI- crispy outside with a warm inside. Rice soubise was yummy. PIMIENTO CHEESE PLATE- Great twist on a cheese plate. Some many flavors between the chips, pickled jalapeños. Would order both snacks again. The daiquiri wasn't a frozen drink as expected but that was our fault for not reading the description. In my opinion, it needs a new name. Not frozen, not sweet. Tasted like a watered down Margarita. But strong! The margarita was nice and strong. Would love a jalapeño or some flare in it. Server was great. Friendly and knowledgeable. Overall great first experience. Can't wait to come back for dinner. read more

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Booked a reservation off Yelp recommendations. Understand this... I'm a meat & potatoes guy, and at first glance, the menu wasn't my taste. However, as I read through the choices, each had an appeal, and it was difficult to choose. 1) The chipotle tomato bisque was out of this world. Delicious. Rich. Tangy. Smokey. It would be a great sauce for other dishes too. Must have. 2) I tried the boiled peanuts. It's a Southern thing. I'm not Southern. I had the Chicken and Dumplings. Not your traditional soup or pie, but rather a broiled chicken. The sauce and flavors were amazing. The chicken was cooked just right. My wife had the braised short rib. YUM. cooked perfectly, and very tender. One of our friends had the shrimp and grits. Battered and fried shrimp, but still great flavors. Summary: Incredible service; knowledgable and friendly, and very attentive. Food cooked perfectly, with rich and vibrant flavors. This isn't a meal - it's an experience, and certainly worth having. TRY THIS PLACE! read more

Lame Drinks. Too trendy & pricey for my taste. More of a Millennial place, if you will. read more

Bellwether - Weak Pour on the Martinis (1/2 full)!! Lame AF!! - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

A diamond in the rough of Donwtown JAX. Sleek, modern design, remarkable staff, and even better food. Must try if you are in the area. Our waitress was one of the better I think I've ever had. Super friendly, incredibly knowledgeable of each dish, and amazingly attentive. Give her a raise! (I forget her name) The food was all incredible, as were the drinks. I had the Caesar salad, one of the meats (I forget), and a selection of deserts (key lime pie squares and the Orea macaroons. 5 stars all of it! Keep it up Bellwether! read more

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Great and friendly service; yummy choices and modern ambiance; tried multiple apps, dinner and desserts

I had lunch with a coworker - we ordered at the counter from their very gracious staff. They gave us a number and we took a seat ; the Korean broccoli came out quick and was delicious! I did not expect it to be breaded but that didn't stop us from trying it and loving it. I ordered the pulled pork sandwich and the potato salad. The sandwich was tasty; The bread it was on was lackluster but the pork itself was sweet and savory which I love. The potato salad was good. Neither of these items blew me away but they were tasty, the atmosphere was nice, and the staff very attentive. read more

Bellwether - Korean Fried Broccoli - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

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My wife and I came to Jacksonville for the Jazz fest and had dinner here on Friday night. The experience was so awesome we came back on Saturday as well. First, the service is excellent. When an establishment hires and retains such charming and knowledgeable staff you know their heart is in the right place. Servers both nights were smart, fun and helpful. Their team approach had our food and drink coming at a perfect pace and always nice and fresh. Next up, their cocktails and selection of spirits, WOW! Any place that stocks the great selection of rums and bourbons they have is aces in my book. Also, their cocktails are unique and brilliantly conceived. Saturday I had the best traditional bar mai tai ever, at least outside of Hawaii. My wifes cosmo and Diplomatica Exclusiva rum were awesome as well! Of course the food was spectacular as well. My wife had their fresh catch which was snapper over rice and baby bok choy with a delicious asian style broth and mushrooms, very tasty and perfectly prepared. My first dish on Friday was their riff on shrimp and grits. It was a good dish overall with an interesting slightly spicy sauce, but I would have preferred the shrimp had not been fried and the rice based congee/grits were just okay, very thick and starchy. On Saturday I tried their pimento cheese topped with pickked peppers and their cuban sandwich which was very good. My wife had the hanger steak which was tender and excellent. Overall a great experience, I would consider driving back here from Orlando for their mai tais. read more

Anything Insetta touches turns gold so this place is great One note- Bellweather salad It was dry (no green goddess) and there wasn't anything special to it. I def expected more. Everything was amazing and usual including staff read more

We had to cancel with Orsay due to work emergency. Decided to come back to Bellwether since our last visit was so enjoyable. Not this time. I ordered the fresh catch, since I assumed it was truly fresh. Instead, it was delivered with a strong fishy smell; our table neighbors complained. Embarrassed, I sent it back and ordered the McDonald's size cheeseburger. It was ok. The waiter never came back, instead the receptionist handled it. Really disappointed, We will not be back read more

Since I started working downtown this has been my new "go to" lunch spot. I highly recommend making a reservation so you don't have to order at the walk up counter. The menu is so different it takes a few minutes to decide, since there are so many tasty options. I've had the burger (amazing) and a couple of the other sandwiches. Most recently I tried the chicken salad sandwich. It was really fresh and tasty. The best part of all are the fries! read more

Bellwether - Chicken Salad Sandwich - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

This place is very inviting and has a upscale hipster vibe. I went on a Friday night and suprisingly it wasn't busy. I made a reservation to be safe, but when I got there it wasn't too busy. Decided to orders appetizers, because my boyfriend and I weren't that hungry. The things we ordered were the Poutine, Korean fried broccoli*** pork belly and Korean chicken & waffle. My favorite hands down was the Korean fried broccoli! Service was great and out servers would always check on us to see how we were doing. I'll be back here again to try more! read more

Bellwether - Poutine and Korean Fried Broccoli - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

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OK my first time at bellwether! It was pretty busy because one of the March madness games has just ended but we still received great service! We stuck with just a couple small plates and deserts. I started with the poutine, and being from Canada I have very high expectations for poutines. This one was great, the gravy was amazing but I found the pork to be a bit too salty. We also got the Fried broccoli and Mac and cheese which both also hit the spot. Lastly finished with the carrot cake. When this came out I thought they brought the wrong thing to my table because it looks nothing like your typical carrot cake but it tasted AMAZING! read more

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Went here for lunch with a buddy of mine. An extremely tasty burger and fries. They have a great bar and had a cocktail with lunch as well. Good place to visit when you are downtown. read more

Came here for lunch and has the most amazing experience ever. This place is so cute! You order at the cashiers and they bring the food to your table. It was super fast. The food was amazing. read more

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I used to come to Bellwether often and always had wonderful experiences. I came here last week for my birthday and from start to finish, it was terrible. First of all, the FOH person didn't even greet us. We just stood there waiting for her to acknowledge us, but she didn't. So I went up and told her our name for our reservation and again, not a single word was said as she walked us to our table and seated us. Our waitress was nice but never brought us one of our appetizers and we had to make her aware of it. Maybe your servers should write down orders instead of trying to memorize them? Perhaps this could have been avoided had she written it down. We were just a party of 2 and we noticed tables around us received their meals before we did. Everything was very very slow to get to us including one beer. We would have ordered dessert but by the time our waitress was done bussing a table next to us, while we waited for her to realize our empty plates were sitting in front of us for 10 minutes, we didn't feel like waiting even longer. The restaurant was not busy, there were other empty tables around us, and it was close to 8pm, so there was no rush to turn over tables. For the price we paid for our food and drinks here, I expect an excellent level of service. I doubt I'll be back based on the service we received, which is a shame because we used to love it here. I also was not happy sitting next to the kitchen as plates were constantly being loudly thrown around...it did not create a pleasant dining atmosphere for anyone who was sitting in that area. I hope this feedback will be taken into consideration to improve the dining experience for patrons going forward. read more

Very very disappointed was very hungry and looking for something new. Ordered on uber eats, so not sure if that's why it was so bad. I checked out these Yelp reviews and pictures so I went with the Dill Pickel Brined Fried Chicken Thigh sandwich which was so over cooked and dry I had to throw it away. In the pictures it looked so good and juicy and looked like a nice big piece of chicken. When I got it it looked like an over fried flattened chicken tender. I also got fries that were honestly nothing special as McDonalds has the same ones. I did order the boiled peanuts which is the only reason there are stars on this review. They were great! I MAY try to actually eat in here unfortunately my review is based solely off the flavor and presentation of my food not the service. read more

Bellwether - Dry overcooked flattened chicken tender a.k.a the dill pickle brined fried chicken thigh sandwich.. - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

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My daughter and I decided we wanted fries and ice cream last week and I figured what better place than Bellweather. I have been dying to try the soft serve of the week so this was perfect. The atmosphere and decor of Bellweather is very welcoming. We ordered the poutine and the soft serve of the week was apple jacks!!! Completely everything that I had imagined. I have visited before but now my daughter is hooked so I know this will be a weekly visit for us! Keep up the good work guys read more

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the food was good but our table was scolded by the hostess?? for moving our chairs around. she said ," NEXT TIME YOU BETTER ASK BEFORE YOU GET AN EXTRA CHAIR". It was really awkward and uncalled for. all our group could talk about was how we will never go back. our drinks took a looooong time to come out and I don't think my drink actually had any alcohol. very sugary. ive had better food at places who are happy you are there. the staff at belwether is not happy you're there. read more

We had New Year's Eve dinner at Bellwether and everything was delicious. I had the steak and my husband had the duck. The duck was the best I've eaten outside of San Franciso's Chinatown, and I've eaten throughout the U.S. We have eaten here before and each time we go I think the food gets better. Highly recommend eating here. read more

This is my last week at my current job, so I planned my own "farewell" lunch and invited 7 other coworkers to attend with me. (Just kidding. I didn't plan my own lunch! That would be stupid! Someone else did.) We decided to try Bellwether, as we're all fans of Black Sheep already and love supporting local business, especially the ones downtown. A bonus of working in Brooklyn -- we aren't too far away. First thing's first -- the restaurant is very lovely. It's modern and fresh and inviting. You are greeted by a hostess that asks how many is in your party. We told her "8", then she said, "Is it OK that you have counter service?" We thought we'd have to sit at a counter and were worried, but she actually meant that we'd have to ORDER at the counter, then sit down. We were fine with that. She put a little metal tent card on our table that says "RESERVED" and we proceeded to order our food. We got there around 11:45 and there wasn't a line, so the ordering went smoothly. I can tell you that it was a bit pricey. I ordered the Wednesday Special which was a "Hot Korean Beef" Sandwich and I upgraded my side to Mac 'n Cheese. With a Coke it came out to about $18. Say whaaat? It's OK. It was payday. I deserve it. The food came out in a timely manner, on metal serving trays (which is all the rage nowadays!), and the food was hot. Not HOT HOT, but just hot. I let it sit for a few minutes because we wanted to wait until everyone got their food, and it got cold pretty fast. MY FAULT, I know. My sandwich was supposed to come with accoutrement like kimchi and radish, but I hardly saw any on my sandwich and didn't really taste it. I was expecting an explosion of flavor in my mouth (sounds kinky!), but honestly it was just "meh". The potato roll was fresh and the chicken was fine, but just didn't blow me away. Also, the size of it was very small for the price I paid. I've gotten larger portions at other establishments for much cheaper prices, but I guess that's how you have to cover the price of rent at a downtown restaurant. My side of Mac 'n Cheese was good. Crumbly topping, tiny shells, creamy. Nothing to write home about, but I didn't hate it. I ate all of it. Because mac' n cheese. Amiright? My friend ordered the Shrimp 'n Grits and it came out cold and she said the shrimp was "like rubber", so she sent it back to the kitchen and they brought out a fresh dish for her. She said it was better, but was also disappointed in the portion size to price ratio. Another friend ordered the "Tsukune" appetizer, which had togarashi, benne, kewpie, scallion. I don't know what those first 3 ingredients are, but they came out looking like meatballs on a stick so I wanted to try one. (I'm not one to turn away a meatball on a stick!) The flavor profile was delicious, but the entire thing was SO DRY I could hardly chew it. I still have no idea what was even in it. Chicken, maybe? No idea. All in all, I probably won't go here again for lunch. The place is really beautiful, though, and I recommend everyone try it at least once. Maybe we just went on an off-day. Or, we're just really, really picky. read more

My new lunch spot downtown! Food is inexpensive for such high quality dishes. My favorite is the kimchi fried broccoli and the smoked brisket sandwich that has kimchi radishes to accent the tender brisket that melts away in your mouth. I've also been here with a large group and everyone loved their dishes. Ambience is modern causal. Try it out. From the same owners as Blacksheep. read more

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not a typical place I would choose on my own, nothing against it I'm just not a fancy food kinda gal. I say fancy because I get an upscale, intimate kind of vibe. anyways, I'm so glad my friend took me here! It was delicious and the staff is so accommodating! They have a decent happy hour, $5 house wines (and I forget the rest) but one of the House wines was a South African Cabernet...uhm YES what a unique offer. On to the food, I'm vegetarian so there was a good selection to choose from. The vegan green curry was one of the best curry dishes I've ever had and this place isn't even Thai! It was as one of those plates that I was sad it was over. The desert menu was so so tempting although I passed the night I dined, so next visit it's a definite must. read more

Worst service I've ever had at a restaurant. Waitress forgot to bring simple ice tea and forgot to put in my wife's entree order. She proceeded to blame the kitchen being backed up - when no one else was in the restaurant.... No apology from the waitress for anything. Don't waste your time or money here - they clearly don't care. read more

Waitress was wonderful. Food terrible. Could have been the chef that day. Not sure how people write food has flavor. Ordered fish, no taste or seasoning. Pork shoulder appetizer... over cooked. So... a mundane item, shoe string fries. mcDonalds is better. Fries came out greasy and luke warm. Not sure what to say, we make better dishes at home. read more

A new lunch spot has come to downtown Jacksonville! I am a fan of Black Sheep, so I have been following closely the building and opening of this new concept from the Black Sheep family. When I walked in the doors, the first thing I noticed was all the people gathered to try the place as well. There are several options for seating, including outside on the patio, inside, and the bar. You can ask for a table from the host stand or go up to the ready-to-order kiosks for quick service. After placing your order, you receive a number to take to your table with you. My choices for this visit were the Korean fried broccoli, recommended by a friend, and the fried chicken thigh sandwich. My Korean fried broccoli came out quickly, but it was a little cold. However, I blame that on how busy the restaurant was and the new factor as well. The dish had a spicy gochujang sauce drizzled over the pieces, and I ended up with about 5 pieces. I really liked the breading that covered the broccoli, since it was lighter than most batters. The chicken sandwich comes with a side, so I chose the couscous. The couscous came with pearl couscous, a different route from the normal Mediterranean dish that we are used to. The mayonnaise on the sandwich was light, and the pickles were extra crispy! I was pleased with how full I was after the meal. The service is great, with servers coming by and checking on you periodically. I look forward to coming back when they start serving daily specials to try new dishes. They also are open for dinner and happy hour, and from what I hear, the drinks should be amazing. read more

Bellwether - Korean fried broccoli - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

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Had dinner at Bellwether with my wife and it was excellent! Nice minimalist layout. Full service bar, with an adequate wine selection. Nice menu with many choices. Parking on the street and in garages. Vegan and Gluten Free options are available. Tailyn was our server. She was very attentive, really knew the menu, answered our questions and even made suggestions. We like that. The manager even came by and asked how our dining experience was and asked if we needed anything. We like that too. The food was great. Very fresh, quality ingredients, obviously made in house. As an appetizer I had a very tasty cup of Shrimp and Andouille Gumbo. The roue was flavorful. My wife had the Marinated Shrimp. It is really a ceviche. Kaffir Lime Leaf Oil adds a concentrated, fresh citrus flavor. It was served with Lotus chips as a garnish and some microgreens. Very tasty and vibrant. For her entree my wife had the Dill Pickle Brined Chicken Thigh on a Potato Bread Roll. She loved it and the pickled flavor was not strong. The mayonaise was smoked and added a dimension of flavor to the sandwich. It just worked. For my entree I had the Catch of the Day. The fish was a fresh from Mayport, perfectly cooked and seasoned, piece of Snapper served in a bowl with coconut jasmine rice, baby bok choy, oyster mushrooms, house kimchi and a flavorful thai broth. The broth was flavorful and not fishy in taste. Umami comes to mind. It takes time to make a good broth and this dish was well thought out. It could not have been better. For dessert we shared a graham and torched marshmallow ice cream sundae. It was tasty and whimsically garnished with mini graham cookies and toasted marsmallow. We really had a perfect dining experience. read more

Bellwether - Marinated Shrimp - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

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In town for a business trip and looking for a decent dinner and a cocktail, I stopped into Bellwether. Friendly responsive bartender. Delicious soup du jour - mushroom bisque. A perfectly dressed, delicIous strawberry and goal cheese salad with interesting little nut clusters in it. And a very well made old fashioned. Good atmosphere and friendly fellow patrons at the bar. I highly recommend it! read more

This is a nice place to stop by for a quick happy hour with coworkers. They do not have a dinner menu, so you will only get drinks and small appetizers here. However, they do have a lunch menu that may be worth a try. It looked good! Poutine - It was good, but it was not anything special. I would probably not order it again. Tsukune - these are meatballs with an asian flavored sauce. They were a bit too salty and nothing out of the rodinary Arancine - The best appetizer that we tried at the restaurant. I would definitely order this plate again! It is a rice ball with cheese - delicious! The interior is very nice and modern. There is a gym on the 2nd floor, so be startled by the loud bangs. They have amble seating both inside and outside of the restaurant. read more

Loved it! We came during the lunch rush, but easily found a table. Everyone who served us was super nice. The one note is that it took a while to get our food (almost 25 minutes), but the server acknowledged that and apologized (even though I didn't say anything about it). I had the smoked brisket sandwich which has mayo and kimchi radishes on it. It was DELICIOUS. Some of the best brisket I've had from a restaurant. The kimchi added the perfect amount of heat and crunch. It was awesome. My husband had the harissa chicken burger. I tried a bite, and it was delicious also! This is a great lunch spot downtown. The decor looks a lot like Black Sheep, so you can see the cohesion with the two restaurants. I have to say I prefer Bellwether for lunch. read more

I enjoyed the Cauliflower sandwich with a side of the potato salad. Food was great, a perfect amount of flavor. They have a daily kombucha on tap which, peach was the flavor of the day. Nice and clean outdoor seating area. go try it. read more

The food is passable but the service is in the toilet. Sad to say but service is weak at most restaurants here in JAX but on my recent visit they hit new levels of bad read more

Bellwether-the next endeavor by Black Sheep. I really enjoy Black Sheep so we thought we'd make it a girls night and go there for happy hour. This place is located downtown and because of this I'm assuming that's why they don't have a dinner service and just happy hour, I'm sure their focus is the lunch crowd. The happy hour menu has a lot to choose from. I ordered a burger and paid extra for fries. The menu says shoestring fries but they were not shoe string. The burger was small but filling. I was never asked how I wanted it cooked so it came out medium well. I really wanted some aioli to dip my fries in but sadly they do not have it. One of my friends ordered the Little Gem salad which was a Caesar salad but at Black Sheep they have the same named salad but it's something totally different. Could be confusing for someone who loves that salad. My other friend ordered the beet burger and that was delicious! If we go back, I'm ordering that beet burger. They're quickly getting known for their soft serve ice cream flavors but they were out when we went. The place is gorgeous! It does look like Black Sheep. We sat in a large room that looked like it could easily be turned into a conference room. It was absolutely gorgeous. I want to have a meeting in there!! As for going back.. I currently would rather just go to Black Sheep but I'll go back to try something different on the menu. read more

Great service and nice aesthetics a great place to impress someone! The food was phenomenal and had a diverse menu!! read more

Bellwether - House Boiled Peanuts, Bellwether Burger, and the Medianoche with a fried egg. - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Jacksonville, Florida

Beautiful restaurant downtown. Great menu with something for everyone. For appetizers we had the tsukune and Korean fried Broccoli they were both delicious but served cold.... not sure if that was on purpose. The arancinis were delicious. We had the amazingly creamy mac n cheese and a tasty goat cheese salad. We also had the short ribs but they were a little dry. Lastly soft serve OMG YUM!!! We had a goats milk and honey almond, so tasty, creamy, and not too heavy. read more

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This was a great find. I ordered the duck risotto, it tasted so rich and full of flavor.

Great environment and server was very attentive and called us by name. Willing to accommodate special diet requests! I will be back!

Great spot for a nice dinner that isn't crazy expensive. Ideal date spot in the downtown business area of JAX.

My wife and I went to Bellwether for lunch today. The atmosphere was modern and pleasant with three distinct seating areas--each with a slightly different feel. It was lively, but not too loud. The menu had a variety of salads and sandwiches for lunch; as well as a few entrees. I had the brisket sandwich with kimchi. It had great flavor and I enjoyed the East meets West vibe. The sandwich and side were filling. My wife had the burger and you could taste that the ground beef was higher quality then most burgers around town. We finished the meal with the soft serve of the day--cinnamon toast crunch and buttermilk. They were the highlight of the meal. Ultimately I will definitely go back. The prices are around $9-12 per meal and they come with a side. The price is appropriate for the quality of food. The portions aren't huge, but they were satisfactory. I left full, but not stuffed. read more

Do not be mistaken, this place is low key BOMB! The bestie and I stumbled upon Bellwether during Art Walk one night and I have been hooked ever since. The burgers are out of this world! read more

The first trip to Bellwether left me very pleased with the quality of the food but a little disappointed in the service. First the food - I had the grilled chicken sandwich with pimento cheese and bacon on toast and I must say I enjoyed every bite. The pimento cheese was such an excellent addition and one that I've never had before on a grilled chicken sandwich. The fries on the side were cooked well and tasty. The service wasn't terrible but rather simply inattentive. First, I gave the cashier extra coins to try and avoid having change and apparently it confused her and I got the wrong change back. It's not a big deal and I didn't say anything because I didn't want to call her out. Lesson learned, don't make it overly complicated on the cashier or just simply pay with a credit card. The second service blunder was asking for a certain change to the dish and then receiving the dish without the requested change. I realize that some restaurants do not offer changes but the cashier told me the change would be no problem. I expect when you tell me something you actually follow through. So there's another lesson, don't ask for anything special on your order. The interior is tastefully decorated and even with the mistakes the staff was very friendly. I will be back but will heed the lessons I learned from the first trip. read more