I love this restaurant for several reasons. First, the service is consistently superb -- the…read morewaitstaff are attentive without being intrusive and always seem genuinely invested in making sure I'm having a great experience. Second, the ambiance strikes the perfect balance: it feels elevated and polished, but never stuffy or overly formal. It's the kind of place where you feel comfortable whether you're dressed up or just coming in for a relaxed night out. Most importantly, the food is excellent -- and consistently so. That reliability matters. While I personally tend to prefer red sauces that are a little less acidic, I can absolutely get behind Poppy's marinara because the dish as a whole just works. Everything comes together beautifully. And the bread? Dangerous. I could happily eat it until I slip into a full carb coma.

First time at Poppy's. It was a busy Friday night but we found a spot at the bar to eat dinner!…read morePhil was our bartender and he has a big, bright personality and he doesn't let the dinner rush frazzle him. The restaurant is very popular. So much so that they really need a bigger place - one with a much larger bar area. My Penne Caprese was very good with a delicious pesto sauce. The portion was huge. The garlic bread comes just the way I love- drenched in garlic and oil! Nice size rolls. The side of meatballs was the star. Four large balls with a nice mild meat flavor in a really good tomato sauce. The portions here are large and the prices much lower than you'd expect. A nice surprise! This is a popular place so get there early.

We had another great dining experience at Catullo's. I love how the manager comes by and checks on…read moreevery table. They have a large staff that helps each other out. I peaked in the kitchen and they were working it in there. Our sauces were so tasty that had to be a secret sauce recipe. I had the pasta del ponente sausage very good. My wife had the shrimp rosato that she loved! They kept bringing us this delicious bread! Both dishes we dipped the bread into the remaining sauce in our dishes. We ordered a very good bottle of wine. Our waitress was top notch with great named Danielle. The place is very romantic for a date night. It was freezing when we got in but we were fine after a few minutes.

I've been wanting to come here for a while now and finally had dinner mid-week. Ordered the Shrimp…read moreRosato mid-spicy and my friend ordered the ravioli. The rosato had ample shrimp, fairly large and it had good sauce/pasta ratio. My friend enjoyed his ravioli as well. You can tell their ingredients are fresh. They also provided slices of bread to use to sop up the sauce. If the bread was warm, it would've made it a bit better. For dessert, we shared the seasonal pumpkin cannoli. I loved that it wasn't too sweet and had a strong pumpkin flavor. Service was attentive and very friendly. Restaurant was quaint, intimate and pretty quiet. Great for dates and conversations. Would go again to try other dishes!

This is a great place to get authentic Italian food in the area. I've been there several times in…read morethe food and the service never disappoints. I highly recommend this place genuine looking for a great Italian food in St. John's or St Augustine.

We walked in and waited for five minutes without anyone coming to greet us at the "wait to be…read moreseated" sign. Several bartenders saw us but nobody cared. We finally sought out a waitress and asked if we could seat ourselves. She said okay. We waited another five minutes at the table and nobody came so we just got up and walked out

We ordered the carbonara and the white pizza with shrimp. All of it was delicious! So good that we…read moreforgot to take photos! The perfect amount of garlic in both dishes, light and thin crust on the pizza and a perfect serving size. The service was great! Excited to go back another time to try something else on their menu!

Both our meals were outstanding! Penne à la Rosa, and chicken Marsala. We will return!!read more

On a housesitting trip to Jacksonville, food was needed. After searching and searching, Bala's…read morecaught my attention. I walked in and instantly I was greeted. She was patient and very helpful as well. I ordered a bacon and mushroom pizza. My go to pizza. The places is simple: ovens, slice station, and the prep counter. Exactly what's needed for a pizza place. The mural on the wall listed the 5 boroughs and had the Brooklyn Bridge, as well as the Statue of Liberty. I mean, New York is there. The pizza came out fast and I got back. Here's the thing: Florida is notorious for having lackluster pizza. There's no ways around it. The pizza was cooked perfectly, thin, and a thicker crust. Perfect for folding. The sauce: not too loose and not too thin. Good amount for pizza, regardless of location. Flavor wise, not bad. Cheese and toppings had the right amount so it could incorporate into every bite. Now going back to my statement on Florida pizza. It's better than other Floridian pizzas I've had. It scratched the itch and I definitely enjoyed it. They'll get my business when I come back to Jacksonville!

Favorite pizza place in St. John's. Finally real NY style pizza in NE Florida. This place is the…read morebest!

My husband first brought me here on Valentine's Day and it was nothing short of amazing. We learned…read morethat this a family owned/ family run business and the service could not be any better. You can taste the love in every dish. The appetizers are the perfect starter to the undoubtedly delicious pasta you will have. The bread and deserts are made in house and will transport you back to your grandma's house. This place is so special to us and we will come back any chance we get.

The first time I've come here for an actual meal (rather than just a seat at the bar with maybe a…read moresnack) and I enjoyed it! We came for a birthday dinner. I had the very simple rigatoni bolognese. Pasta was cooked to a perfect al dente and the sauce was really good. It was a little on the sweet side for me, but tasted pretty fresh! They also brought us out an "on the house" mushroom appetizer that was delicious. If you like mushrooms, get it! I also sampled the lobster ravioli (on special) and enjoyed it. I am not a huge lobster anything fan, but even I thought it was pretty good! I also had a glass of the house red wine blend they have and that was one of the best house wines I've had in a long time! Super smooth. Teeniest bit sweet. No aftertaste at all. The service was wonderful. Our waitress was attentive and very knowledgeable and just generally great. I had only sat in the bar area previously and thought it could get a little loud but I felt less so about the restaurant itself. The tables are nicely spaced from each other so you have your privacy. My only complaint (and not really a complaint a just a warning so no one is surprised if it comes up... ) is that they charge a $30 cake fee if you bring your own cake. It's just a little bit of a bummer, but I totally understand why. They were super polite about it when I called. Anyhow... food and service was great. Would go again!

Just picked up another AMAZING PIZZA from Bronx House in St John's!!!…read moreThe staff is extremely courteous and the restaurant was busy , busy!!! I love it, this restaurant is really going places and I've never had pizza from anywhere else since they opened!! Keep up the great job!!!

Ordered a pizza and an Italian sandwhich…read more Good- very freshly prepared. Looked super good. Pizza was really good and had lots of toppings. The Sandwhich had nice fresh ingredients and looked good. But the bread was so big and thick that the ingredients didn't sit in it. And the dressing was on the side. But it made it hard to eat because everything fell off and bread was dry. Price was a little high in my opinion.

Being a Southern boy, I was filled with new and exciting experiences. I wish I had the experience…read moreto make comparisons between this and that but I don't. Every piece of food I got was outstanding but couldn't be compared because I never had food that tasted like that before. Words cannot describe the dining experience I had. To make it even better, the staff as well as the owner made a point to make the "New Guy" feel special. If you want an outstanding meal and a new friendship get over there ASAP.

Best pizza place I have been to in the area. Fast service and friendly staff. If you are looking…read morefor fresh ingredients on homemade dough cooked to perfection, this is your spot. Will definitely be back!

Another amazing meal at Rustica!! Once again, Chef Jean-Marie & staff did not disappoint. We…read moresampled some incredible appetizers like Argentinian shrimp & Ahi Tuna nigiri, HOMEMADE brioche toast with brown buttered Shitake mushrooms, Crab cakes & mussels steamed in a Vietnamese curry (sublime!). For main courses we opted for the braised beef cheeks & the Berkshire pork chop. Both wonderful, served with an array of farm fresh vegetables. Not sure what more you need except a nice wine & some fabulous house-made desserts: Raspberry Yuzu cheesecake & Molten Lava cake. WOW!!!

We had been wanting to check out Rustica since we walked by them a few months ago and we decided to…read morefinally come check them out for our anniversary. We made an early reservation since we saw they do Happy Hour 4PM to 5:00PM everyday so we had to get in on that. We walked and and were seated at our table. They made sure to let us know you can sit anywhere during Happy Hour and still get the specials where many restaurants limit it to a bar area. Rustica does a great job of Happy Hour. They have appetizers, cocktails, beer, Sake, wine, and even main course happy hour entrees too. I started off with a cocktail going for the Liliko Martini which I really enjoyed. I have really been into my Passion Fruit drinks lately. We of course had to get some of the Happy Hour appetizers too and we might have gone a little overboard but for sure worth it. We got: The Naan Bread Yellow Beet Salad Crispy Tofu Roasted Pork Belly Bao Crispy Pork and Shrimp Lumpia Japanese Style Fried Chicken These were a great way to start off dinner and not one of them were $8 or less. If I had to pick favorites the best was for sure the Roasted Pork Belly Bao. I think it might have been the best Pork Belly Bao I had ever had. I was a large thick piece of Pork Belly but it just melted you your mouth and had so much flavor. We also very much enjoyed the Crispy Pork and Shrimp Lumpia which were much bigger then expected. The Japanese Style Fried Chicken was great too and the BBQ Ranch took it to the next level. For my entree I went with the Basil Crusted Roasted Monkfish which came with Vietnamese Yellow Curry, Crispy Shrimp and veggies. The Monkfish was cooked perfectly. I had a great sear on it too which gave it a bit of a crunch. I know Monkfish can sometimes be intimidated people because it was pretty ugly looking but let me tell you if it's prepared like this you're going to love it. Some of the best fish I have had. The Vietnamese Yellow Curry paired very well with it too. Wasn't too heavy and didn't over power the fish but just added an extra boost of flavor. I know what you're thinking who could was possibly be hungry for dessert but it sounded good so we ordered the Thai Milk Tea Creme Brulee and the Yuzu Cheesecake. Both were light enough that we could still really enjoy them after all we had eaten. We really like that the Thai Milk Tea Creme Brulee also had bubble boba in it which we didn't expect. We had an amazing meal and for sure be coming back sooner rather then later.

Perfect day for a nice lunch at this hidden gem inside Cimarrone Golf Club. Had the fresh catch,…read morewhich was fresh and filleted by the chef with a Cimarrone Salad. Perfect combo. The newly added Reuben sandwich was enjoyed as well as their seasoned fries and we completed it with a side order of sweet potato fries as well. Crispy and delicious. Great time!

Stone and Barrel is my fav spot to go for beer, pizza, burgers and featured entrees. Perfect for a…read moreweekend or week night. They have a wood fired oven and the pizza comes out fresh and tasty. Service is amazing and they aim to please. It is located at the Cimarrone golf course .. just say you are going to golf course at the gate. Perfect sunset as it faces west.