Maple Street Biscuit Company

2004 San Marco Blvd, 32207 $

“Do one thing and Do it well” has been used as a slogan and motivational tool for business and individuals of all industries.  All industries, that is, except for restaurants.  Doing only one thing well in a kitchen cannot provide the average eatery enough turn over and return business to keep the lights on.  But occasionally this model works, and Maple Street Biscuit Company is out to prove it can be done.  They have taken the beloved buttermilk biscuit of the Southern kitchen and created a menu unique and well-rounded enough to satisfy any palette.

In the former Moe’s of San Marco, owner/operators Gus Evans and Scott Moore have taken the southwest eatery and turned it upside down with a sturdy renovation.  And instead of the “WELCOME TO MOE’S!!!” upon entering, you are now greeted with the amazing smell of fresh baked biscuits that are made right behind the register.  The old hot line of beans and rice has been turned into a bar that ends with a specialty coffee station, which includes their house blend of Maple Coffee.  Along the other wall are several individual tables for two to four diners and at the very front a large community table.  It is a very casual place, much like the address’ predecessor, you review the large menu on the wall and walk up to order.  They get the customer more involved by using little questions to call your order as opposed to your name.  Today’s was “What is your favorite band?”, so instead of dining with Maren and Kelam, on this day I dined with Rascal Flats.  We sit at the community table and wait for the band names to be called more impatiently than not.

The biscuit is a difficult art, if not made with the right ratio of ingredients, it can go from the extreme of a hardtack style piece of bread to a mushy lump of school paste.  But at Maple Street, they know and understand the biscuit and what it takes to make a good one.  They would not tell me much about the biscuit’s ingredients, but I did get some insight on the technique.  I was told they do not use the Southern staple of White Lily Self-Rising Flour, but they trade it for their own made in house mixture.  And like any good mother or father in the kitchen making biscuits, they are sure the fat is nice and hard before cutting it into the dry ingredients.  Simply put, the biscuit is a biscuit, nothing to write home about, but nothing to shy away from, it is still one good piece of bread.  The major difference you will find between their biscuit and mom’s is in the texture, since they shred in the cold fat instead of cut or knead it in, it creates a more layered biscuit, but it does not affect the final product.

The Reinhold, all natural fried chicken breast, crunchy dill pickle, house made honey mustard, $6.

Not sure if named after the actor famed for Beverly Hills Cop and Fast Times at Ridgemont High, but if it is, I like his style.  For a place that focuses on the delivery vehicle, they do a damn good job making sure the accompaniments are just as good.  The chicken is juicy and well seasoned, could possibly give Beach Road Chicken a run for their money.  The pickles are thick cut and just right for the dish, nothing over powering coming from the brined cucumber.  It is finished off with simple honey mustard, not overly sweet or spicy from one of the ingredients overtaking the other.  A very well balanced dish.

Squawk on the Street, all natural fried chicken breast, house made pepper jelly, $6.

The biscuit.  Then the chicken.  Now the pepper jelly.  Sweet, tangy and spicy all rolled into one tasty treat most southerners eat by the gobs with cream cheese and crackers.  Though not made from the regional favorite of Datil peppers, and I personally felt it could have used a little more spiciness, it was still really tasty.

The Squawking Goat, all natural fried chicken breast, fried goat cheese medallion, $7.50.

Apparently we all thought the idea of chicken and biscuits for breakfast would be awesome this day.  The “Goat” portion is a simple breaded and fried medallion of Chevre. They add a little twist of herbs, nothing over powering.  We felt the portion of the goat’s cheese could have been a little heavier.

The Garden Bird, all natural fried chicken, collard greens, fried egg, hot sauce, $6.

One final chicken biscuit, then we get to the others.  Nothing special about the individual components on this one, standard southern greens, an egg, a dash of Tabasco, and it turns out they all work really well together.

The Blues Biscuit, pulled pork, slaw, honey bbq, $7.

Truthfully the only one we found lacking, though it may have been because we were enjoying all the others that it just got cold on us.  The pork was not over or under cooked, and the bbq sauce was not too sweet.  The slaw was a not as creamy as we liked either.  But, like I said, this one was one of the last tried and it was most likely our fault for it getting cold, which very well may have been perfect when we first got it.  I may give this one another shot, but honestly, the others are good enough to forget this one.

The Ralphie Deluxe, spicy sausage gravy, fried egg, $6.

Biscuit, sausage gravy, spiciness, a fried egg, I am pretty sure this is how a weekend southern breakfast is depicted in magazines.  I remember my mother making biscuits and gravy rather often, and it is always hard to stack up against Momma’s cooking.  They may not get the belt in this round, but they sure did give her a run for the money.  I mean after all, Mumsie Dearest never made fried chicken and pepper jelly to go with hers. Hint, hint.

A very pleasing visit to the Maple Street Biscuit Company left us wanting to just grab a quick nap in our chairs or go for a whiskey tasting at the Grape & Grain Exchange before we go for another round.  Needless to say, I will be back for more biscuits and I will be back soon.  I am hoping I can get them to let me build my own combination of flavors.  If they let me do that with their convenient breakfast and lunch hours, and even dinner hours on the weekends, I may be there often enough to get a biscuit named after me.

Green Erth Bistro

1520 Hendricks Avenue, 32207
$$

There has been a movement in the restaurant industry that has made its’ way into Jacksonville and beyond.  It is a movement that is loved by many: the chef, the farmer, the foodie.  It is the Farm to Fork movement.  A movement defined simply as food produced locally as natural or organic as possible without the use of GMOs or hormones.

Green Erth Bistro is making its push to be in that market under the Persian cuisine banner.  Not yet fully Farm to Fork, they utilize natural and organic ingredients whenever possible.  They even pride themselves on offering a plethora of vegan and vegetarian dishes, but they do not restrict themselves to these dietary restrictions alone.  The Bistro, as they like to refer to themselves as, is tucked into one of the many strips you see in the San Marco area of town.  There is not much to distinguish it from the surrounding areas as the façade on the whole strip has no definition between businesses.  What helps it to stand out is its maroon canvas overhang leading into the patio with the simple text of Green Erth Bistro in white.  It is a quant place with a large community table in the middle as well as several smaller tables skirting the main room for a more private dining experience.  My diner with me tonight is Shelly and we decide on the community table in hopes of discourse during the main course.

After a brief moment our server takes our drink order and gives us time to peruse the menu.  They offer a wide selection of organic and local beers, though Intuition People’s Pale Ale was the only local beer on tap.  They also offer a variety of specialty teas and waters as well as some unique drinks of the vegan/vegetarian and eastern Mediterranean variety.  An order of water and tea reveal drinks are served in a plastic cup, but it is a plastic cup made of recycled materials, fitting with the theme of the restaurant.

We decide to start off with the two daily special soups:  Vegan Tamarind and Coconut Soup and Vegetarian Barley Ash.

Vegan Tamarind and Coconut Soup, $?
It is a hearty soup with a scent not far off from the familiar sweet potato dishes of the South.  The flavor?  Flat.  It was a lentil based soup with hints of sweetness from the tamarind, but this soup offered nothing more than filler.  The texture was grainy, and the flavors barely reminded you of what you ordered.  This was completely different than the broth like soup we expected, but I am not sure that even that would have salvaged it.

Vegetarian Barley Ash, $? 
No this dish does not contain any amount of remnants of a burnt piece of wood.  Ash is a consistency between soup and stew, a “stoup” if you like that terminology.  Loaded with lentils, beans and peas of all sorts, this soup is heavily accented with cilantro and finished with a touch of yogurt.   It needed a little brightness - in all actuality, all it needed was to not sit in a steam well all day which allowed the flavors and brightness drop since it was finished being prepared before lunch.

Hummus Plate, diced tomato, olive, fresh basil, $4.50. 
Being a staple, it was a must to see how they perform on a basic such as hummus.  Overall a good dish, the hummus was smooth and not over powered by any one flavor.  The pita served with it was warm and slightly toasted and had the added health benefit of flax seed.  The downfall of this dish comes with the olives.  I mean we are talking about the eastern Mediterranean, an area of the world known for the harvesting of this fruit and its many varietals and curing procedures and The Bistro chooses to use canned sliced black olives.  Nothing short of the olive you would see from the cheap chain pizza delivery guys.

Kabob Assortment: Tofu and Veggie, $5, Koobideh, $4, Jujeh, $5, saffron basmati rice. 
Large pieces of bright, fresh vegetables skewered and grilled over open flame.  The tofu is seasoned with sumac and nothing else, not even salt.  An ingredient that is essentially a blank canvas of the culinary world and they sprinkle it with a single spice, not very freshly ground, and nothing else.  The vegetables seasoned with nothing at all.  Very disappointed with these, textures are there but with no flavor it became a huge let down.  Koobideh, ground meat seasoned and skewered, can be very difficult to achieve.  Getting the meat to hang onto the skewer can turn into disaster if you do not know what you are doing.  Make the mince wrong and it can be too loose to keep on the skewer.  Not loose enough and you cannot spread it out evenly creating uneven cooking.  It is obvious these guys know what they are doing; it was a near perfect skewer of perfectly cooked and seasoned beef.  Jujeh, saffron marinated chicken, was beautifully cooked breast of chicken with a bright yellow hue from the chicken.  A little seasoning could have carried this to a whole other level, but was good eats none the less.  They prepare the saffron and basmati rice in a somewhat unique manner.  With saffron being the most expensive spice in the world, instead of making large batches and over utilizing or stretching out the saffron, they make plain basmati rice and a smaller batch of saffron rice.  It also allows for a nicer presentation instead of the bland display of nothing but rice on a plate.  Though plenty of these items were in need of seasoning, all the kebabs and rice were cooked perfectly.

At first, we debated dessert, and then we heard about Persian ice cream.  So we had to try it and, of course, Baklava.

Persian Ice Cream, pistachios, $4.50. 
Ice cream, the French concoction of frozen custard that has been bought into by many ethnicities has seen as many flavors, takes on a unique perspective in the Persian eye.  Saffron and lavender accent the dessert in a way that is a bit awkward.  With the first few bites I felt as if I was being attacked by the various scents found in the candle, lotion and perfume isles of the local department store all at once.  That taste of the musky aura associated with an elderly woman fills the mouth and mind.  After you make it past those first few bites it becomes something much more real, a light creamy floral custard whose scent gently floats into you sinuses.  The pistachio flavor is pretty much lost in the lavender but add a very nice regional texture to the dish.

Bakalava, $3. 
Very traditional, very familiar, well done.

When it comes to the food, Green Erth Bistro has more hits than misses, and this usually leads to a recommendation for dining here.  But, we received horrid service.  It was not that the server was rude or impatient; it was that she seemed to not care she had guests.  At multiple times throughout the meal, she would walk from the rear of the restaurant and see us sitting there and realize she had either not talked to us in a while to see if we needed anything, or our order taken, or that she had said she was going to bring us plates so that we could eat the entrée.  Though it seems she may have attempted to rectify her mistakes by giving us the soups on the house, they are still misses that turn any meal, even one of the best ones, into the one you do never want to experience again.

I still love the choice of food they choose to serve and their most of their techniques of serving it, but with the thought of getting the same service mean I am less likely to give them repeat business.

MShack

299 Atlantic Blvd, 32233
$

There is a meal commonly found throughout America that is, considered by many, a favorite past time.  A dish that can be pushed to the extremes and cost as much as $60, a veritable masterpiece with foie gras, black truffles, and Australian Waygu beef.  But the simplest ones take form as properly cooked meat on bread that used to sell for as little $0.05.  We are talking about the burger.  The hamburger, cheeseburger, sliders, minis, unnecessarily over sized party burgers.  We have seen them presented gloriously with a side of french fries or onion rings, speedily produced in the fast food chains, and destroyed by the inexperienced on an improperly prepared grill.  And because of all the Big Macs and Whoppers they have began to lose their allure.  Thankfully Five Guys, Smash Burger, and In-N-Out Burger have started a revival in this arena.  And as lovely as these places are, sadly, they are still corporate, non-local vendors.

Then MShack arrives on the shores of Jacksonville.  Like white sails on the horizon, the Medure brothers,  have brought the masterpiece known as burgers.  Not just meat on a bun with a little bit of ketchup, masterpieces designed by David and Matthew Medure.  The chef brothers who are responsible for bringing us Restaurant Medure and Matthew's have brought us a burger joint Jacksonville can be proud to have in its city, fusing the old fashioned burger joint with style and fresh ingredients. MShack burgers are made with all natural, hormone-free Black Angus beef ground fresh daily. Juicy, all beef hot dogs, hand-cut fries, mouth-watering milk shakes and more help complete their unique menu.  My friend Callie told me I needed to check it out and I had waited long enough.  She convinced me the drive from Riverside to Atlantic Beach was worth the trip.  I could only hope it was all true.

Having a beach locale, the feel of the restaurant follows suit.   Large windows that open at the front to give access to a small patio and allow a gently sea breeze in to remind you that you are a mere seconds away from the sand.  A small bar where the offer a few local brews and long community table running down the middle of the room all bring focus to the large chalkboard upon which they hand write the menu.  The concept was, and is, to provide a great burger that is affordable.  The basics all ring up under $5.  And just like any good restaurant, you get to watch all your food made in the open kitchen.

The Sunrise Burger, bacon, farm egg, American cheese, shack sauce, $5.50.
Anybody who has truly enjoyed a good burger knows that one of the best ways to improve upon it is by frying an egg and throwing it on top.  And that is the angle this burger takes.  The burger is ground in house, if you get there early enough you can actually watch them grind it through a window in the rear of the kitchen.  The bacon is not cooked until you order it and the Shack sauce is made in the style of Louis Dressing, a flavor that is familiar to most and pairs well with almost anything you would like to put it on.  It all comes on a toasted Martin's potato roll, one that is made specifically for MShack.

Italian Sausage, sauteed mushrooms, peppers and onions, melted provolone, $5.95.
This sandwich is not what you may expect, it is not a tube of meat shoved into a hoagie and topped with soggy vegetables.  It is a fresh ground, completely made in house Italian style sausage formed into a burger style patty and cooked fresh, just like all the other burgers at the joint.  Then top with veggies and cheese and put it all on a fresh ciabatta roll made by local bakers, Village Bread.  Old fashioned meets new school, and I have nothing to complain about.

Sweet Potato Tots, $1.95.
Almost simple and straight forward.  I know, they are just tater tots made out of sweet potato, right?  Not at MShack.  I never got confirmation, but I am almost positive, and Callie agrees, that they are not a frozen, bought out product.  To many irregular sizes and in no way a manufactured look to speak of, these awesome little nuggets had to be made in house.  Then to finish it off, a special seasoning, salt, sweet, a little spice and a hint of heat, a perfect pairing for the golden sweet potatoes.  Such a perfect pairing, we did not need anything to dip them in.

Queso Cheddar Fries, $2.95.
Nothing fancy, just potatoes, cut, blanched, and fried, then topped with a white cheddar chile sauce.  The fries stay crisp, are well seasoned.  The sauce, Oh!, the sauce is a dream of white velvet with just enough heat to keep the fries from becoming monotonous and keep you happy.

There is one spot I feel a place like Five Guys falls flat and that is not offering shakes.  I cannot blame them for not attacking it, creating a great shake is not an easy task.  And it allows them to focus on creating create burgers and fries and not worry about anything else.  However, at MShack the Medure brothers took on the challenge and excelled greatly.

Pecan Pie Shake, $5.25
I saw this and had to try it.  I easily saw the way for them to incorporate pecans, that one is a no brainer.  Even incorporating the texture and flavor of a pie crust can be done with a little effort.  The tricky part, the one that made me curious enough to have to order this shake, was incorporating that unique and ubiquitous flavor of the syrup style custard that makes a pecan pie a pecan pie.  Simply put. . .Nailed it.

Peanut Butter Shake, $4.50.
Blue Bell Ice Cream and Skippy Peanut Butter come together in a luxuriously thick emulsion of dairy and legume.  If it had strawberries in it, it would take you back to tour childhood days of PB&Js with a cold glass of milk.

So it turns out a drive to the beach was worth it.  Most of the time I can see myself driving out to the beaches just to get one of these burgers instead of going to Five Guys.  The good news, we will not have to be doing that by the end of summer. 

The Medure brothers have decided to open one up in San Marco at their former Take Away Gourmet location, and I have nothing but thanks for this decision.  With the talent that drives the restaurant and the concept behind the menu it can be successful anywhere they decide to set up.  They have the basics that will be mainstays on the menu, burger, cheeseburger, M Burger, shakes, and sides, but the others, such as Sunrise Burger or Fish Sandwich, are rotatable and can form the menu around the location it is at and the clientele they serve.  I feel that with this concept, MShack will be around for a while, which I could not be happier about.  Which gives plenty of time to try the The Medurable .

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.