Tapa That

820 Lomax Street, 32204
$

When looking for a place to eat, one of the top things on most people’s list is variety.  We want a place that allows us to sample food we have not yet tried, but do not want to be stuck with a plate full of food that we may dislike.  And without going to a top dollar fine dining restaurant, we are often left with whatever we meal we have chosen and sadly push it around the plate.  Enter tapas, the Spanish style of eating that involves a range of appetizers and dishes meant to be shared amongst the table.  Tapas range from fully composed dishes, such as a salad, to portioned dishes, such as a dumpling or fritter, allowing each diner the full experience of enjoying a taste.  Tapas bars are becoming not only more fashionable, but more available.

Menu Board, not from the day of dining.

I could think of no better place in Jacksonville for Tapa That to be situated other than Five Points. They use local ingredients, mainly produce, whenever possible and stick to a solid theme of Spanish inspired dishes with their own unique twist.  It is a cozy well-spaced bar with ample seating and yet had nothing overbearing about the dining area, an easy to read chalk board menu makes up a third of the wall, and a lounge area off in the corner with a few couches.  There is no community seating, an odd thing not to see in tapas bars considering the sharing inspired by such a cuisine, but they are more than happy to pull tables together for parties larger than four which still leaves ample room for any guest to get around the restaurant without bumping into another person’s chair.

Service starts out bad, my buddy, Morgan, went inside as a call came in which delayed my entrance.  Upon finishing, I head to the table and am brought only water and offered nothing further.  While discussing the menu, I find out that Morgan was asked if he wanted a beer, he replied he would wait.  Once I sat down no other offers were made for beverage choices, not even soda.
The menu is simple, eight to ten items rotating daily, each well described and simply priced.  A bright spot in the service was when we did ask about a particular menu item the wait staff had plenty of knowledge about them that they readily divulged the information to us.  The server recommended a few that we had been leaning towards which solidified out first two dishes.

Smoked Duck Salad, bacon shallot vinaigrette, $9.
This dish screamed Warm Spinach Salad redux.  And they a grand job of executing it.  The duck breast was smoked with China Mist Mango Tea imparting a slightly sweet and smoky flavor to it.  We felt they could have kept the duck a little more on the rare side, but it also would not have gotten as much of a flavor from the smoking process had they done so.  The dressing was perfect in multiple ways, it was the right temperature so it just barely wilted the spinach, the perfect amount of acid to fat, the sweetness from the shallot played well with the meaty bacon, it all came together like a well-orchestrated symphony.  Accompanying the salad were toasted walnuts and dried mission figs.  The figs were merely cut and nothing else was done to them so they were a bit chewy in the salad but still rounded out the salad nicely and the walnuts were perfectly toasted bringing a nice crunch texture to the dish.  Simply put; job well done.

They properly timed the dishes coming out from the kitchen so that we were not bombarded with 2 dishes at the same time which keeps the table from getting clustered and confused.  However, they did not reset flatware or plates, a very common practice at tapas bars so as to not muddle one dish into the next. 

Cuban Cakes, sour cream, spicy guacamole.  $7.
Being based on the classic dish of Congris Cakes explained the extremely traditional approach to this dish.  A white rice and black bean cake breaded and fried.  They get served with a black bean sauce of sorts; I am willing to bet it is their Black Bean Soup.  Small dollops of sour cream accent the dish and little drops of spicy guacamole are placed on top of each cake.  Yes, “drops”, there was not very much, not enough to have a small taste with each bite.  Overall this dish is really good.  The cakes are nice and light and come out golden brown.  After eating about half of one they begin to get lost in themselves.  The guacamole does not have very much heat and the sauce has the same flavor profile as the cake.  This dish could use a little tweaking to take it to that next level, and those tweaks are nothing major.

As the server is clearing the table from the second course, we ask about a few more items and decide to get another with a strong possibility of a fourth and fifth.

Wild Mushroom and Chevre Terrine, crostini.  $9
Wild mushrooms and goat cheese brought together in a classic preparation of a terrine?  What is not to like?  First off, it is not a terrine, though it does not neccesarily need to be made in a terrine to be called a terrine, it most definetly needs to be set with aspic or gelatin, "chaud froid", or the fats used in the cooking process, rilletes.  It is sauteed or roasted mushrooms placed in a ring mold and topped with whipped goat cheese.  The mushrooms were disappointing.  First, they did not appear to be properly cooked, as if they had overcrowded the pan when cooking them causing them to boil and steam as opposed to get a nice carmelization to them and develop tons of flavors.  Second, they appeared and tasted as if they were merely button mushrooms, nothing wild about these, and if they were a nice wild mushroom, you would never have known because they were sliced so thin they were unrecognizable in both appearance and texture.  The crostnis did not impress either.  They were sliced much like the mushrooms, wafer thin, so they barely stood up to the application they were meant for.  Sadly it was a flavorless piece of notebook paper thin bread.  The flavors were all there in the dish, they just did not come together the way they should have been.

This is where service really faltered.  We had already decided what we wanted to try next, the BLT Quesadilla, but instead of asking us how we were doing and trying to up sell another dish, he just drops the check off before asking us if we were done and without engaging us as he left it.  Not only is this bad for the restaurant for multiple reasons, but it leaves a bad taste in the patrons mouth as if they did not want us there in the first place, like we were inconveniencing them by asking them to provide the service we are willing to pay for and that they are striving to provide.  Though this is not necessarily a universal problem with all the servers or even a daily practice of the one who served us, it can quickly cause universal problems for the restaurant.  The food coming out of the kitchen is enough to keep this place around, but bad service can close a restaurant quicker than it opened.  I personally vote to give it a second shot.  Because the next time I go, I am sure they can "Tapa That".

Mango Mango's

700 A1A Beach Boulevard, St. Augustine, FL 32080

$$

It was a beautiful weekend in Northeast Florida so my buddy, Tom, and I decided to find a place to eat outside at.  He felt like taking a quick trip to down to Saint Augustine for this dinner, coincidentally his vehicle just so happened to be in the shop.  Nevertheless, we peruse some menus and I drive us to a place called Mango Mango's.

A cozy little family restaurant located a block from Saint Augustine Beach that gives that feel good, relaxing weekend vibe, Mango Mango's brings the Caribbean to the shores of north Florida offering a variety of sandwiches, burgers, salads and island favorites.  

The first step in relaxing is finding the right drink to fit the weekend.  At Mango Mango's they have a nice variety of everything from soda to flavored teas.  But being a tropically themed place they also offer "Island Oasis" drinks, a frozen concoction with various tropical fruit flavors that can be made for a kid or an adult.  They also have a nice variety of wine by the glass, half bottle and bottle.  Unfortunately, they do not carry San Sebastian Winery wines which are made within ten miles of the restaurant.  However, they do have A Street Amber Ale, a beer brewed specially for them by Florida Beer Company, a beer light enough to have a couple while enjoying some fun in the sun and yet full bodied enough to satisfy a dark beer drinker.  The kicker, $3.25 a pint.

A Street Amber Ale, so named for the cross street Mango Mango's resides on

Coconut Crunchy Shrimp, mango colada sauce, $10.

Tom got this just because he likes shrimp that have been coated with something, even better if that something has a sweet flavor and is plunged into scorching hot fat.  Little did he know he was going to be getting six huge butterflied shrimp, dredged in a coconut batter, fried to GBD (Golden Brown and Delicious) perfection and served with an awesome mango and coconut cream sauce.  So awesome, he saved it in hopes of it being good on anything he decided to dunk in it later.

Mango Mango's Famous Corn Cakes, avocado, salsa verde, Santa Fe sauce, $9.

I did not really now what to expect when ordering this, corn cakes can be prepared in so many variations just between Florida and the Caribbean alone.  I was truly drawn to this by the description more than the main component.  Mango Mango's preparation happened to be two huge Johnny Cake style fritters loaded with fresh pico de gallo, sour cream, Monterrey Jack cheese, a very unique and  well made salsa verde, fresh avocado and a spicy Santa Fe sauce.  The Santa Fe sauce, when mixed with the sour cream, is what brings this whole dish together, bringing the spicy and creamy together with the sweetness from the corn cake made for a wonderful starter.  My only complaint, it was not very hot when brought to the table.

Hawaiian Chicken Sandwich, Hawaiian bread, provolone cheese, honey ham, grilled pineapple, $10.

A simple yet exotic sandwich.  The chicken is grilled and basted with pineapple, papaya, and mango juices, then it is all assembled and pressed.  For what is basically a Caribbean style chicken cordon bleu panini, it misses the mark with poor execution.  Though the flavors of the sandwich were very nice and worked well together, the bottom of the it was soggy which can only mean one of two things happened: 1) they prepared it to early and let it sit in the window long enough to let the pineapple and chicken seep juices onto the plate only to get soaked up by the bread or 2) they used canned pineapple which is notorious for never really drying out. Almost every entree on the menu is served with your choice of side item from fries to side salad. Tom ordered the fried plantains, a simple side dish that is hard to mess up, luckily they were golden and piping hot.  This is also where Tom found a something else that goes great with the aforementioned mango colada sauce.

The Ultimate Island Burger!, brown sugar Caribbean rub, apricot honey mustard, beer battered onion ring, seasoned bacon, pepper Jack cheese, $9.

As you can see from the description, this burger obviously has some other influences on it.  Apricots are not a Caribbean crop.  Beer battered onion rings, bacon, even mustard really give no reference to the islands.  Until you realize there was heavy colonization of the islands by many different nationalities, and colonization can easily leave its mark on the cuisine of a region.  This burger was a representation of just that.  It was moist, the onion ring and bacon crisp, the mustard sweet and spicy, and all perfectly seasoned.  When all the these ingredients were brought together, I am pretty sure I heard the bread sing with joy for being able to house such a palate pleaser.  My side dish was Mango's slaw, a fresh coleslaw with oranges, pineapple and papaya, not a bad dish.  The set back was it was tossed in a mayonnaise based dressing, which when mixed with all the fruits, became a wet bowl of coleslaw.

So the next time you go for a day out at the beach, instead of going through the pains of lugging coolers and grills, eating sandy food, and worrying about disposing of all your trash properly, look into the local places that are in the are.  Not only are the decisions of who should bring this and who forgot that gone; You just might find your own Mango Mango's.

Taverna

1986 San Marco Boulevard, 32207

$$$ - $$$$

There are many local favorites in the San Marco area of Jacksonville: San Marco Theatre, Pizza Palace, Peterbrooke, Square One.  So it is easy for the frequent turnover of tenants in the local shops of the square to go unnoticed.  

Since 2009, Taverna has occupied a section of the local shops and is further establishing its foot hold with its extensive wine list and compelling Spanish and Italian influenced menu.  Even though they are both western European countries, most people do not think of these two cuisines fusing, but when you compare tapas to antipastos, you start to see extreme similarities between the culinary ethnicities. Sam Efron, head chef, has helped draw these lines more distinctly.  His preferred tactic of choice?  Local and seasonal, exactly what you would see in these countries both urban and rural.

Situated in the former spot of Café Carmon, they have renovated the inside to give it a more rustic look.  A worn, almost driftwood looking, wooden wall separates the two levels of seating.  On the higher level a high back banquette stretches the whole length on the dining room.  They use the same wood for the wall to accent the dining room in a multiple room without over doing it.  The lighting was a little dark, but not unpleasantly dim.  Taverna gives white linen service without being pretentious; it can be visited as a special occasion out on the town or a casual night out with friends.

We told our server that we would like a few minutes to peruse the menu and she checked back on us with what seemed to be perfect timing, even though we did ask for more time twice, but she did not get frustrated with us for taking our time, nor did she let it affect her service level in the slightest.  We even ordered with an awkward progression and she did not let it faze her.  First off, tapas.

Herbed Ricotta, fig compote, grilled peasant bread, $9.  Ricotta is a beautiful cheese that often gets over looked by the grandeur of other cheeses , especially in Italian and Spanish cuisines with such monster names as Manchego, Pecorino Romano and the infamous Parmigiano Reggiano.  But in a chefs hands it can be lifted up and transformed into a dish such as the one served at Taverna.  Fresh, bright and vibrant, they used the simplicity of the cheese show by flavoring it simply with a few herbs, salt and pepper, and then brighten the whole dish up with just enough orange zest.  Serve it with simple grilled artisan bread and a super simple fig compote and you have a near perfect antipasti by any Italians standards.

Patatas Bravas, fried fingerling potatoes, spicy paprika, aioli, $5.  Traditional, straight forward and perfectly executed.  The tapa of generations past that will not let any diner down.  The potatoes were perfectly cooked and perfectly seasoned.  Not to hard or soft, not over or lacking in salt, no throat closing amount of paprika.  And the aioli was simple and delicate and delivered the final flavor and texture profiles to the palate.

Wood Fired Pizza

Fungi, wild mushroom, truffle, fontina, $16.  They call these wood fired pizzas, but I have insider sources telling me that they just use the gas to power their brick oven.  None the less, the pizza was cooked nicely.  The toppings not overly heavy, the crust a perfect crisp with a slight char.  The down fall in this pizza is the mushroom side.  They say “wild mushroom”, our pizza was lucky if it had a full shiitakes worth of mushroom on it, the rest of the mushrooms appeared to be just buttons, no cremini, oyster, trumpets, porcini, you name it, we didn’t see it.  And then “truffle”, I am told the truffle is brought into play by truffle oil being brushed onto the whole pizza just before being serviced to the guest.  But if you ask me, it was left off.  There was no flavor, or visible presence, of truffle or truffle oil on this pizza at all.  Not to say this pizza wasn’t bad, the flavors were still good.  Just with the lack of fungi on this pizza, I do not see it being worth $16.

Entrees

New York Strip Steak, roasted fingerling potatoes, roasted shallot and garlic, balsamic reduction, $33.  The special for the evening was a huge steak, easily 14 ounces, if not more.  Perfectly cooked to the requested medium-rare.  The rest of the accompaniment, though simply prepared, complimented the steak well.  Dry roasted whole shallot, a whole head of roasted garlic, and beautifully roasted fingerling potatoes simply prepared with salt, pepper and olive oil.

Salmon, potato puree, leeks, mushrooms, eden farms bacon, bordelaise, truffle, $24.  Not being a fan of most farm raised fish, I was cautious ordering this dish, but the combination of the ingredients listed intrigued me enough to push me into the decision.  And it paid off.   A perfectly medium cooked piece of salmon with crispy skin, and yes the skin was the first thing I ate and it was superb.  The salmon sat atop the silky smooth, ultra buttery potato puree with the leeks, bacon and mushrooms nestled delicately between them.  The bordelaise garnished the plate with vibrant green basil oil and brought the visual of the plate to a stunning level.  Top the whole thing off with a nest of truffle and you get a sensational dish.  Fish cookery at this level is not the easiest thing to execute, especially when there are so many elements to this dish.  Taverna pulled it off, and gave me what may be my new favorite dish in the city.

Coffee and Dessert

One of the items that are so often pushed aside in any restaurant not dedicated to it is the coffee.  I failed at finding out what brand or grind they use.  But I did manage to find out it was a Costa Rican and Sumatra blend.  And it was a well brewed cup.  Taverna did not even let the coffee service fall to wayside.

Chocolate Brioche Bread Pudding, peanut butter and caramel vanilla swirl ice cream, $10.  A simple and close to traditional dessert, this is the one dessert I thought did not belong on this Spanish/Italian menu.  Hoping this was a dish to blow our minds being the odd one out, we ordered it.  The peanut butter was mainly incorporated via a beautiful infused crème Anglaise.  The ice cream was smooth and the caramel was spot on, but nothing inspiring.  Finally to the bread pudding, but alas, I was still left wanting.  There was a definite flatness to this dish.  Something was missing.  No matter how good the crème Anglaise was, it could not bring up the rest of the dish.  Being pushed to the brink of being stuffed with tapas and dinner we settled on one dessert and it was a hard choice.  Unfortunately, we made the wrong one.

The few down spots in the meal did not over shadow the whole experience though.  Taverna looks to be joining the others who have been a mainstay of San Marco Square.  And I hope it does.  A beautifully composed wine list as well as delicious and cheap tapas make Taverna a place that can easily be visited weekly without breaking the budget.  And when you are looking to celebrate that anniversary, graduation, birthday, or other special occasion, Taverna has the ability to give you the perfect meal to top it all off.