I found this gem through a food delivery service. My order was the #3 grilled shrimp special with…read moreyellow rice and black beans. I didn't realize that it also included hush puppies and coleslaw, but that was a bonus. Everything was delicious! I was blown away by the care they took in packaging and presentation. The drink arrived on a bed of lettuce with a lime and 2 hush puppies. The portion of rice and beans was more than I expected. This place is a must try...I want to try the chicken kebab next. I will definitely add this restaurant to my "go-to list." Go check them out!

So it's good but stingy, this cost $10 with no fries. I don't think the food cost of fries that…read morethey probably will waste is worth not earning a returning customer. These aren't jumbo shrimp, they are cooked well and the cocktail sauce is good. But they could have thrown some fries in there to make it feel like a value. Honestly when I pulled up, I should have just driven off.

Update: service was not good. They also haven't put any money into keeping the building up. They…read morestill have a ton of fresh seafood and offered fried entrees as well as steamed. I recommend the blue crab, green mussels and shrimp. It can be served hot or cold. They drown it in butter sauces, garlic and seasoning. Simply delicious! You see exactly what you're getting before they cook it because you pick it out of the glass case. They also sell fresh, raw seafood by the pound.

Lots of selections and specials including a 3 pound headless shrimp that is quite a bargain. Plus,…read moreit is cleaned well already. The staff is very accomodating and friendly. Thank you Lorrie, Kevin and Wilson. There is parking at the front and there could be a 10-15 minute wait for service during rush hour.

Rachel at the bar is absolutely wonderful. Watched her make drinks and she knows what she is doing…read more Asked her for dinner recommendations and with my "issues" she said the udon crabonara was perfect. She was not wrong. She even gave me some life advice. Never knew but will forever use. Lee was shucking the oysters and I got a dozen to start. No cocktail sauce. No mignonette. A sauce I have never seen. OMG. Kimchi vinaigrette. Great! Highly recommend! Taverna Oceana is a place I would absolutely return to. If you go I hope Rachel is at the bar and Lee shucks your oysters. They are what make the place!

I attended a private Galentine's prayer brunch at Taverna Oceana in San Marco, and the experience…read morewas top notch from beginning to end. The private space was perfect for a noon gathering. It was naturally lit, clean, and bright making the room feel intimate but not cramped. There was no overwhelming music, just a subtle hostess playlist in the background that allowed us to talk comfortably and enjoy the moment without competing with noise. The restaurant smelled clean and fresh. Not overly bleached, not heavy with fragrance. Just well kept. Temperature is a big one for me. I'm always cold and typically bring a sweater everywhere. I was completely comfortable the entire time, which honestly impressed me. The staff was exceptional. Dakota struck the perfect balance of attentiveness. Present, warm, and responsive without hovering. Managing a group of about 20 women is no small task, and everything flowed smoothly. Now the food. Not a single complaint from a table full of women, that's huge! I made it my business to ask around and every response was great. I ordered the blue crab eggs Benedict with the parmesan truffle fries and everything was wonderful. My friend ordered the prime rib sandwich and it was a generous portion and she loved it. Pricing felt appropriate for the quality and overall experience. I'll absolutely be returning with my husband soon, and I would confidently recommend Taverna Oceana for private gatherings, celebrations, or simply a well-executed brunch in San Marco.

My sister and I decided to treat ourselves to a fancy dinner last Friday night. We had a 5:00…read morereservation and were seated immediately. We enjoyed a few drinks with our order of blue cheese chips which we highly recommend. Our server was absolutely wonderful. Her name is Banner and she treated us like royalty. She stopped by our table to make sure everything was as it should be. We had the prime rib and the ribeye steak and they were perfectly cooked. In fact, everything about the night was perfect. We will be treating ourselves again very soon and will ask for Banner to be our server.

Our server, Mia did an amazing job. She was very professional and took care of everything we…read moreneeded! She was absolutely amazing!

This location is located in a strip of businesses with shared parking, so during dinner time it is…read morepretty busy to maneuver to find an available parking spot. Though the parking lot was busy, I was sat immediately and noticed they were not too busy on a Friday night 7:30pm - likely an indicator of the experience to come. Kaitlyn was very friendly in greeting and throughout the meal. She was obviously the only bright spot on this experience, since you see the star rating. The soda lacked carbonation in the coke, so I mentioned it tasting off to me. I switched to an Orange Fanta, and that too lacked carbonation. Ended up just eating my spicy crab combo with no drink. Which thankfully, spicy is no where near spicy at this location. Medium at best if you order spicy. Genuinely let down, especially since it is ONE cluster for $38.99. Definitely felt this was a skip, and then was shocked when the bill came... As a party of one, I was charged automatic gratuity of 12%, which is bewildering to me. Larger parties? Totally get it! But a party of one, which I was shocked but they do list on the menu of prices. I almost tipped 20% on top of the bill, until I was looking into why it was higher than I expected. Additionally, $4.99 for a soda that doesn't even have the syrup and carbonation properly calibrated?! Wowza, what a letdown for $50+ for dining alone. If you are in Jacksonville, you are surrounded by lots of good seafood places. Big crab? Personally, a pass for me.

Came here for dinner with my family and some friends and we were seated right away. There's a lot…read moreof space in this restaurant, which is nice. We ordered the crab and shrimp dip, which was yummy. For my main meal I got the fried basket with fried shrimp and calamari. It wasn't amazing. The calamari was definitely overcooked. My dad also got a fried shrimp and instead of telling him that they ran out of something they just added hush puppies without telling him, which was strange. The waiters were nice though, but overall wasn't super impressed with the food. The seafood platter seemed to be the star of the show for my group!

My experience here was delightful. Our waitress was very kind and explained how you order and the…read moreamount of food that you received was just completely a full serving. Our party had different sea food, boils, and catfish. The price of their delicious food is very affordable. I most definitely will go back and make this one of my staple rests. Great job done by the red crab.

We love this place the Wednesday special was phenomenal. Our server Cammy added to our enjoyable…read moredinner

Very good and attentive service. I was very impressed with the croquetas, all 4 were delicious…read more The ropa vieja was very authentic. And the sweet plantains cut the long way, I love that.

My wife and I arrived just after 5pm on a Saturday night. The place was totally empty (which is…read moreseldom a good sign for me). Very unassuming store from. Inside was open and pleasant. The music was a loop of calypso with the most annoying, nightmare inducing AI video I've ever seen. But I digress... The Food... my wife had a Cuban sandwich special which came with a guava smoothie (?) she also ordered a side of Yuca Frita. The insides of the sandwich were good but totally overtaken by the bread which was dry and too crumbly. But the thing that sums up this visit was the Yuca Fries...$4 for (I kid you not) THREE yuca fries! Yes, I said 3 little yuca fries on a small plate for $4!!!! I had the Vaca Frita with Yuca con Mojo and grilled veggies. The meat was dry but the flavors of all were pretty good. Ended the meal with "Cuban" coffee which was NOT Cuban coffee but what tasted like unsweetened instant espresso. And a flaN which was the highlight of the meal. Good portion, fresh and delicious. I was told this place had been open for 2 years. Hard to believe. Maybe we came at a bad time but I wouldn't expect a place like this to last six months. Oh, the server was pleasant enough. I don't think she knew just how bad things are. I'd give this place 1 star if not for the fact the flavors were okay. Oh yes, almost forgot...the bill for this lackluster of an experience was $58 including tip!! (Did I mention we drank water? Drink prices were incredibly overpriced). And finally, a terrible case of heartburn accompanied me for the rest of the evening. My wife and I grew up in South Florida so we kinda know what this food should taste like. Lots of decent to good Cuban restaurants in northeast Florida. This is not one of them. Needless to say, we won't be back!

My girlfriend and I came to this place because we had heard such good things about it. Safe to say,…read morewe were not disappointed. Jean-Luc and Sean were exceptional and made our experience hard to forget. Came on a slow Monday night and we couldn't believe there was not more people. Service was completely tailored towards us and made us feel like we were the only people there. Couldn't ask for anything more.

We celebrated our anniversary at Gemma Oyster Bar and, as always, the atmosphere was wonderful…read more It's one of our favorite things about dining here, it's comfortable, relaxed, and quiet enough to easily have a conversation. We also appreciated that multiple staff members wished us a happy anniversary, which made the evening feel special. That said, for a nearly $400 dinner, the level of service didn't quite match the price point. Our server was very kind and pleasant, but she appeared inexperienced. She spent about five minutes struggling to open our $130 bottle of wine and, while everyone has to learn somewhere, it felt uncomfortable for that learning experience to happen tableside during such an expensive meal. There were also several menu availability issues. The restaurant didn't have the 2016 wine we initially ordered, and we were told it had been unavailable for the past four weeks. They also didn't have the first bourbon my husband selected for his Old Fashioned. At that point, it seems reasonable to update or reprint the menu so guests aren't repeatedly ordering items that haven't been available for an extended period of time. The timing of service also felt off. We were expecting our bottle of wine to be delivered and uncorked before our meal arrived, especially after taking additional time to select a replacement bottle. Instead, our entrées were delivered within minutes while we were still waiting for the wine, which made the experience feel rushed and a bit awkward. At this price point, we expected better coordination between beverage and meal service. None of these issues ruined our evening, and we still enjoyed celebrating our anniversary there. The atmosphere remains a highlight, but for a nearly $400 dining experience, we expected a more polished and seamless level of service to match the overall ambiance and price point.