by erin thursby scopes1925@msn.com
Since opening in 2005 Cobblestones has fast become a Jacksonville staple. It's casual fine dining, not quite white table cloth, but with a classy vibe. They've consistently turned out good food at their Julington Creek locale.
They also have a second location in Jacksonville that you might not know about, which opened this year. It's in the Harbour Village shopping plaza, along with my favorite family-run gelato place, Bella's. Entrées at Cobblestones range in price from about $14-27, with steaks on the high end of that, and pastas on the lower end.
Although there are two Cobblestones in the city, they aren't cookie cutter or corporate-ized. Each location caters to the local neighborhood's needs.
Chef Greg Desanto of the Harbour Village location says that his restaurant is more geared toward seafood than the Julington Creek locale. "It might be because we're nearer to the beach," says Desanto, "but there's more of a demand for it here."
Seafood entrées include tilapia crab au gratin, grilled sea bass with a citrus cilantro butter and macadamia crusted flounder. They keep things simple with their grilled salmon, serving it up with a lemon caper cream sauce.
They still have many of the beef selections on their menu that brought back customers to the Julington Creek location again and again. I sampled their Signature Fusion Fillet, a 9-ounce fillet broiled with fresh mushrooms, roma tomatoes, prosciutto and veal sauce topped with bleu cheese crumbles. The taste is an intense synthesis of flavor, as well balanced as a samurai sword, but far more savory.
Their ahi tuna ranks up there as one of the best I've had in the area. It, like most seared ahi preparations, plates well, but it packs an unusual punch in flavor. It's topped with a ginger sambal sauce, giving it a light sweetness, countermeasured with a subtle salty heat and sesame flavor. If you're into more traditional presentations of ahi, you might be a little taken aback, since it isn't the standard. I loved it because it was a bit of a twist on the standard. I'm already craving it again.
Most of their common appetizer selections have that twist. The calamari is served with a chipotle remoulade and the grilled shrimp is served with a Caribbean mango barbecue sauce. They stay close enough to the standard prep so they won't scare off conservative Jacksonville diners, but they aren't serving stuff you could get at a TGI Fridays.
Other appetizers you might want to try are their blue crabmeat stuffed mushrooms, their Maryland crabcakes (served with a Key lime tartar sauce) and their signature Creek Chips. The chips are Yukon Gold potato chips with melted gorgonzola cheese and marinated sun-dried tomato.
Something else you might crave once you've had it-Cobblestones' Mini Indulgences. If you want just a little dessert, this is what you'll want to go for! They're just $2.15 each, served in tall double shot glasses. There are generally a number of flavors to choose from: lemon meringue, cheese cake, chocolate mousse, raspberry pie and more. Get a sampler of minis for a real experience in flavor.
If you'd rather drink than eat, the Harbour Village location has a great little bar and a most fab selection of martinis. Check out $4 martini Thursdays. If you're more of a wino, try Mondays for their ½ price wine. If you're an equal opportunity drinker, take Monday off of work and go to Cobblestones on Sunday, when they have their all day happy hour. Pace yourself though, it's not a dive bar!
Favorite ingredient?
It's lamb, I love lamb
Sweet, sour or salty?
It's salty. I would much rather have a bag of chips than a dessert.
Appetizer, entrée or dessert.
Appetizer. The last restaurant that I came from was a tapas menu, so I like the small flavors, I like to vary things up.
If you could have one cooking tool (other than a chef's knife) on a strange desert island with plenty of electrical power, what would it be?
A sauté station…Most chefs, they're either sauté or grill. I'm sauté. I like the building of the dish, the building of the flavor…You're really building the flavor from ground zero.
13475 Atlantic Blvd. Jacksonville, FL 32099 (904) 220-7844
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