Side trip to St. Augustine, Fla.? Make time for seafood, barbecue and history
St. Augustine gets credit for being the first place in America to stop in for a drink, and Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon was its first customer in 1513.
Still in its original location, this drinking spot has only one libation on tap – a sort of rusty tasting water, but that hasn’t stopped thirsty pilgrims, hoping to sample the (supposedly) magic elixir, from flocking to the Fountain of Youth for the past 509 years.
Don’t worry – you may not find eternal youth, but you can find all manner of craft cocktails and craft beer, along with a robust dining scene in America’s oldest non-indigenous city (established in 1565, 52 years after Ponce de Leon’s landing.)
If you are planning a trip to the Sunshine State for the Kentucky/Florida football game in Gainesville on Sept. 10, you might want to tack on a few days for a side trip to this fascinating city a mere hour-and-a-half drive away.
If you’re a foodie as well as a football fan, you’ll discover a treasure trove of all the dishes Florida is famous for – conch fritters, shrimp and grits, gator tail (really), the fresh catch of the day (naturally) and Key Lime Pie.
Surprisingly, what I had a harder time finding considering the city’s history was Spanish food. I searched in vain for paella, the rice and seafood dish that originated in Valencia, and just missed out on gazpacho, the cold tomato-based soup from Andulusia.
“We had it on our menu last week or we will be offering it next week” was the response I got wherever I requested it.
One dish I did try was Minorcan Chowder, on the menu at many restaurants. Originating on the Spanish island of Minorca, it’s a rich chowder of vegetables, clams and seafood stock whose red color comes from the tomato base.
Its kick comes from the datil pepper, imported to northeast Florida from Cuba, and now a key ingredient in many of the city’s dishes and even some of its cocktails.
The datil is similar to the habanero on the heat index, but has a sweet taste. So beloved is the datil that it has its own festival every October where local restaurants compete in creating dishes using the versatile pepper.
As they like to say here, “the devil is in the datils.” If you would like a sample before committing, the Pepper Palace in the historic district has datil tastings.
This focus on food and drink has resulted in a slew of festivals throughout the year. A Taste of St. Augustine is held every April, followed in May by the St. Augustine Food & Wine Festival. There’s a Shrimp & Seafood Festival in August and February brings the Spanish Food & Wine Festival.
There’s no timeline, however, for dining in one of the city’s celebrated restaurants. In 2019, “Southern Living Magazine” named St. Augustine one of the South’s Top 10 dining spots.
Where to eat in St. Augustine
My own dining odyssey began with Michael’s, known for its steaks and for being one of the places to have authentic Spanish dishes on the menu.
Try the Manchego, a sheep’s milk cheese marinated with olive oil and herbs or the Pulpo a la Plancha, grilled Spanish octopus with spicy aioli, wilted greens and garbanzos.
If you don’t go for one of the prime cuts of beef, a good choice would be the Criollo Shrimp (sauteed red shrimp over smoky tomatoes, yuca mofongo mash (plantains) and tomato nage.
Michael’s also has a nice selection of tapas and Spanish wines.
Where to get seafood
If it’s fresh seafood you’re looking for (and in Florida who isn’t?) book a table at Catch 27, popular with locals and visitors alike.
Start your meal with one of their creative appetizers – I recommend the deviled egg BLT (crispy corn fried oysters, house-made tomato bacon jam and local micro greens) or the 27 Trio (pico de gallo, guacamole and datil pepper pimento cheese fondue served with fried corn tortilla chips.)
There’s always a fresh catch of the day, and ordering it will make you feel virtuous when you throw calories to the wind with a dessert of doughnut bread pudding with rum caramel, whipped cream and cinnamon streusel.
Southern cuisine, special spot
My favorite meal was at Preserved, described as having “authentic Southern cuisine in a historically preserved location.” A table on the spacious veranda and an errant breeze wafting in from the Atlantic made this a memorable dining experience. Well, and the food, of course.
Appetizers showcase seafood. If you have a big appetite (and several in your party), go for the Grand Plateaux (six raw oysters with crème fraiche, caviar and chives, a dozen more “naked” raw oysters, a dozen poached shrimp, a dozen P.E.I. mussels and house cocktail sauces. If you’re sharing the platter, share the cost as it’s a hefty $64 (you can get a pared down version minus the first oysters for $43.)
As an entrée, Preserved offers a dish not often seen outside of France. Bouillabaisse, a thick soup of local fish, shrimp, mussels and scallops in a tomato fennel broth is a must for any seafood lover.
Vegetarians might be intrigued by the Vegetable Middlins (local rice, roasted seasonal vegetables, mushroom broth and black truffles.) If you’ve never had middlins, they are broken rice or rice grits found on many menus in the Deep South.
More restaurants
Alas, one restaurant I didn’t make it to, but you should is Café Alcazar, adjacent to the impressive Lightner Museum.
It’s not the somewhat limited lunch menu that makes it memorable, but the location of the restaurant. It occupies what was once the swimming pool in the former Alcazar Hotel. During St. Augustine’s Gilded Age, the pool was the largest indoor swimming pool in the world.
If you get the feeling you are dining on the downslide from others in the room, it’s probably because your table is in what was the deep end of the pool. Make a reservation to avoid disappointment.
While you’re in town, try to hook up with Alex Drywa, a transplant from Brooklyn who has become a fixture on the city’s food scene.
His company, St. Augustine Experiences, offers a number of tours devoted to food and libations – the Ale Trail, Craft Beer Trail, Not Just a Chocolate Tour and Tour at Twilight (a progressive dinner tour.)
However, if you have three-and-a-half hours and $129, sign up for Alex’s “Perfect Pairing” voted the number one walking tour on Trip Advisor’s Travelers Choice.
You’ll start off with a wine tasting in the lush tropical garden at Casa de Vino 57.
Next, it’s on to Mojo Old City BBQ where you’ll get a history of ’cue and learn why Southern states are willing to go to war over just which one has the best. Of course, you’ll also get to sample the reason for the barbecue wars – luscious brisket and falling-off-the-bone ribs.
The tour concludes on Aviles Street, America’s oldest thoroughfare, at Forgotten Tonic, a neighborhood gem in the city’s arts district.
Nosh on light bites and sip the craftiest of craft cocktails, and experience food and drink St. Augustine style.
If you go to St. Augustine
For more information on the city’s dining and drinking scene, go to