Top restaurant openings in Jacksonville in 2023
Upscale dining with a view could define 2023 for new restaurant openings in the Jacksonville area.
Whether on the coast or inland, the dining destinations spanned from the Beaches to downtown and St. Johns County.
The restaurants offer inspired chef-driven fusion cuisine featuring flavors from around the globe as well as comfort food rooted in family recipes.
Distinctive craft cocktails along with a diverse selection of beers on tap and wines by the bottle or glass complement the appetizers, entrees and desserts.
Here's a look at some of the biggest openings from 2023.
Farewell to favorites: In 2023, some longtime Jacksonville restaurants have closed. Here's a list.
Dinner with a view: 10 of our favorite rooftop dining restaurants in Jacksonville
City Grille & Raw Bar
1314 Prudential Drive, Jacksonville, (904) 398-8989, citygrillerawbar.com
Caviar, prime steak and decadent desserts top the menu of fine dining destination City Grille & Raw Bar which opened in July on the Southbank of downtown Jacksonville. Shaded by the broad, Spanish moss-draped limbs of a 300-plus-year-old oak tree, the restaurant replaces the landmark Wine Cellar, which closed permanently after 47 years in 2021. City Grille & Raw Bar is the third Northeast Florida restaurant from John Nagy and Karen Belloit Thomas — veteran husband-and-wife restaurateurs. It showcases a sophisticated dinner, lunch and brunch menu. Signature offerings include Iberico Pork Secreto, a six-ounce cut with Spanish olive oil, Maldon salt, cracked pepper and piquillo chimichurri on the side, and a 32-ounce cut tomahawk ribeye with Maldon salt, cracked pepper and a choice of compound butter. Equally unique is the restaurant's multiple dining spaces, raw bar and the Velvet Room — a speakeasy-style lounge.
Gemma Fish + Oyster
2039 Hendricks Ave., Unit 111, Jacksonville, (904) 593-7030, gemmafishandoyster.com
Much-anticipated, Gemma Fish + Oyster is an upscale casual restaurant and raw bar offering fresh seafood, Wagyu steak and more as well as rooftop seating opened right before Christmas in December. The two-story restaurant is the new venture from Northeast Florida restaurateurs chef Mike and Brittany Cooney, the founders and owners of popular Ember & Iron in northern St. Johns County. Signature offerings include a half-ounce of caviar with pommes rosti and champagne cream, seafood towers, a roasted half Moroccan chicken with harissa yogurt and chermoula potatoes and grilled Wagyu flank steak served with beef fat fries, bone marrow butter and bordelaise. The 12-foot raw bar offers a large selection of fresh oysters, salmon tartare, three seafood towers, caviar and ceviche.
Taverna Oceana
1988 San Marco Blvd., Jacksonville. (904) 398-3005, tavernaoceana.com
Making a splash on historic San Marco square, Taverna Oceana puts fresh seafood towers, caviar, a selection of oysters and a champagne bar center stage amid elegant yet welcoming ambiance. The restaurant from husband-and-wife restaurateurs Chef Sam Efron and Kiley Wynne Efron, opened in May next door to their original restaurant, Taverna, which focuses on Mediterranean and Italian flavors. Oceana offers appetizers and entrees that resonate with Asian and Latin flavors. Although seafood-centric, Oceana also offers options such as a smoked filet mignon, beef carpaccio and pasta primavera as well as vegan and gluten-free dishes. Featured entrees include lobster Thermidor served with a cognac cream sauce, Parmesan cheese, lemon and herbs, as well as miso-glazed Chilean sea bass with shrimp and pork gyoza, baby bok choy and shiitake dashi.
Pesca Vilano
117 Vilano Road, St. Augustine, (904) 267-0185, pescavilano.com
Award-winning St. Augustine chef Michael Lugo opened his second fine-dining restaurant — Pesca Vilano — featuring inspired coastal cuisine and rooftop dining in Vilano Beach in October. Pesca Vilano showcases fresh seafood, including lobster paella as well as smoked Wagyu beef and more at the restaurant at the new three-story, 120-room Hyatt Place St. Augustine/Vilano Beach hotel. Pesca is the first restaurant with a rooftop bar and grill in Vilano Beach. Reflecting Miami's Art Deco architecture, the main indoor dining area boasts a bar, a curated wine library, a private dining room and a chef’s experience table.
Mandola's Italian Kitchen
11112 San Jose Blvd, Jacksonville, (904) 344-8019, mandolas.com
The first of as many as six Mandola's Italian Kitchen restaurants planned for the Jacksonville area opened in July at Claire Lane Center in Mandarin. Mandola's is known for its antipasti, chicken, salmon and beef entrees, pizza, panini and especially its homemade desserts: Italian cookies, cakes and gelato, all made on-site in the restaurant's bakery and gelateria. Based in Austin, Texas, the restaurant is from Carrabba's Italian Grill co-founder Damian Mandola.
Chancho King
1120 Edgewood Ave. S., (904) 984-5510, chanchoking.com
Offering big flavors on a small menu, Chancho King in the Murray Hill neighborhood is the first Ecuadorian restaurant in Northeast Florida. Evolving from a popular food truck, Chancho King, which opened its brick-and-mortar restaurant in August, offers authentic Ecuadorian home cooking from family recipes. The restaurant is best known for its pork sandwich, with is slow-roasted pork, hot pepper aji, mild tomato aji, lime pickled red onions and pork cracklings. Also topping the menu is Llapingacho, which is a choice of pork, chorizo, chicken or mushroom served with cheese potato cakes, rice, fried egg and peanut sauce.
1912 Ocean Bar & Rooftop
619 Ponte Vedra Blvd, Ponte Vedra Beach, (904) 373-2063, 1912oceanbarandrooftop.com
Featuring an inspired menu highlighted by a sweeping scenic view of the Atlantic Ocean, 1912 Ocean Bar & Rooftop is at the Cabana Beach Club of Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa in Ponte Vedra Beach. It's the first rooftop restaurant in Ponte Vedra. The restaurant, which opened in June, focuses on fresh seafood, hand-cut beef filet and small-bite offerings accentuated by craft cocktails as well as fine wines and craft beers. Nestled amid 26 miles of pristine beach, 1912 Ocean Bar & Rooftop occupies the second and third floors of the Cabana Beach Club. It features an interior dining room with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over the Atlantic Ocean and beach.
Salumeria 104
60 Ocean Blvd., Atlantic Beach, (904) 372-0285, salumeria104.com
Salumeria 104 brings the rustic flavors of Northern Italian cuisine to the Beaches. The trattoria-style restaurant, which opened in March, specializes in salumis, antipasti, fresh-from-scratch pasta, meats, fish and hand-crafted desserts. Recipes include those handed down by the 96-year-old grandmother of executive chef and co-owner Angelo Masarin. The restaurant replaces Ocean 60 which closed in May 2022 after a 20-year run. Salumeria 104 is known for its Ravioli Del Salumiere, which is prosciutto ravioli with brown butter and sage sauce, Spaghetti Alla Bottarga, which is Gragnano spaghetti with cherry tomatoes, garlic, chili oil, and bottarga, and its charcuterie boards.
Abstrakt Filipino Essence
1500 Beach Blvd., Jacksonville Beach, (904) 595-5048, abstraktfilipinoessence.com
Opening in late February, Abstrakt Filipino Essence is a contemporary Filipino brick-and-mortar restaurant that evolved from a popular food truck, chef and owner Jojo Hernandez, who was born in the Philippines, focuses on classic and innovative Filipino fare. Topping the menu are appetizers, including lumpia and street food fish balls. Popular entrees range from Chicken Pancit to Seared Salmon Ginataan and Crispy Pork Belly Adobo. Desserts include Ube cheesecake and Halo Halong Himagas.
Argyle
254 Alta Mar Drive, Ponte Vedra Beach, (904) 395-3114, argylepvb.com
Argyle, which opened in August, offers contemporary American cuisine focused on fresh Florida ingredients opened at 254 Alta Mar Drive, at The Yards in Sawgrass at Ponte Vedra Beach. The chef-driven restaurant features a rotating selection of seasonal-based dishes as well as year-round classics served amid a casual California coastal-style decor and ambiance. Argyle's menu features steaks, fish and seafood as well as salads, sandwiches and more. They make their own pastrami and other smoked meats as well as bake some of their own bread in-house. The restaurant also pays homage to the roots and heritage of golf. Argyle replaces the former 3 Palms Grille.
Sugar Factory American Brasserie
4910 Big Island Drive, Jacksonville, (904) 551-0961, sugarfactoryjacksonville.com
Its opening was delayed several times but the ballyhooed Sugar Factory American Brasserie finally opened its doors in March. The Las Vegas-based upscale, celebrity-centric restaurant at The Markets at Town Center on the city's Southside features an elaborate menu. Sugar Factory is best known for its $150 24K gold burger meal, $99 King Kong Sundae that serves 12, and its celebrity-centric couture lollipops. Innovative "Insane Milkshakes" and candy-flavored craft cocktails round out the menu.
Twin Peaks
11892 Atlantic Blvd., Jacksonville, (904) 634-7552, twinpeaksrestaurantjacksonville.com
Jacksonville’s first Twin Peaks sports bar opened in September just in time for the kickoff of the 2023 NFL season at the former Cinco de Mayo Mexican restaurant site. The Dallas-based chain is known for its 29-degree draft beer served in frosted 22-ounce mugs, made-from-scratch menu and 43 TVs offering live sports coverage. It’s also famous for its waitstaff, known as the "Twin Peaks Girls," dressed in short denim shorts and buffalo plaid tops, often exposing their midriffs, and described as the “essential ingredient to the perfect lodge experience … equal parts friendly, engaging and attentive.”
Teresa Stepzinski is the dining reporter for the Times-Union. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @TeresaStepz or reach her via email at [email protected].
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Best new restaurants in Jacksonville Florida in 2023
