You have to eat here, we had the best meal! Do not listen to old reviews, they have a new head chef and everything we ate during our stay was exceptional. We are from Nashville and are very spoiled with amazing food which of means our expectations are high for a great meal. This blew many of the places we had in Nashville out of the water!! We had the ribeye and the chicken piccata- both were cooked to absolute perfection. The sides were perfectly cooked. Our server, Rusty was phenomenal and incredibly helpful. The restaurant is stunning. We ate here again for lunch and likely will have dinner here again before we leave because we know we will get nothing but the best here. Well done to wait staff, cooks and chef!! read more

Burrata salad AMAZING I had the blackened snapper... Absolutely the most amazing fresh fish I've had in Florida!!! served over mashed potatoes and fresh vegetables. This is an 11 out of 10 !!! hats off to the chef!! read more

I ordered beef tenderloin it was too salty, the whipped potatoes had a golf ball size hard potato in them, the vegetables were delicious. The Demi glaze was horrible and it was not a Demi glaze. It tasted like better than bouillon. Our server Austin was excellent! I wouldn't be so hard on the review but when you charge $46 I expect better. read more

The Franklin Café - Beef tenderloin - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

While sitting a the bar having a drink and was told about there special, BBQ Chicken over a bed of Mac & Cheese. Service was spot on the bartenders are attentive and ready to provide a refill on whatever you are drinking. As stated before these bartenders are spot on with giving good food advice. They're special, not only looks good but actually taste extremely good, the barbecue chicken is superb. The mac & cheese is beyond expectations, creamy, not overdone. Something to look forward to the next time I'm here. The bar area is beautiful old Florida style great place to come and enjoy. read more

The Franklin Café - BBQ Chicken on a bed of Mac&Cheese - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

Closed out the Apalachicola weekend with Brunch at the Franklin Cafe inside the Gibson Inn hotel and it was a lovely experience. First - the coffee was pretty delicious. Always important to me. I am particular about my morning coffee! I had the chicken and waffles and was absolutely blown away. The chicken was perfectly cooked and breaded and wasn't overly greasy. It's tough to get that just right! The flavors were warmed up and greatly enhanced by the spicy Tupelo honey butter. The heat didn't overwhelm the other flavors by any means. The waffle was really good but not great. I would for sure eat this again. My co-eaters got the bananas foster French toast and the Creole eggs Benedict with cheese grits. I tasted the French toast and it was just way too sweet for my liking. If you love sweet I imagine you'd like this. The person who ate it does like sweets though and still felt it was a bit much but did like it. She traded some of it away for the cheese grits. The person who ordered the cheese grits thought they were just okay but very much enjoyed the creole eggs Benedict. Some of the best they've had! I did not taste test - I can't eat eggs ‍ I will close out by saying the service was top tier. Our server and everyone in the restaurant was super nice and also knowledgeable about the town and area and answered all our tourist questions (or found the answers). I'm not sure I will be traveling thru Apalachicola again any time soon, but if I do I will certainly stop here to grab a bite! read more

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Hungry and looking for breakfast in Apalachicola we decided to stop by the Gibson Inn to have breakfast at their restaurant; The Franklin Cafe. Service was great. We were seated by the hostess as soon as we walked in and our server came over to greet us. She answered some questions about the menu and was happy to substitute out items for my kid on the kid's breakfast; she was polite and made sure to keep checking on us during our meal. She even told us about the ghosts of The Gibson living there. The food was great too. I had a 2 egg and meat breakfast while my daughter had the kid's pancake and egg breakfast. read more

I have been there a couple of times and the service was so awful, both times I had to wait for coffee and was never checked on to see if we needed anything. Food was basically average, had high expectations regarding how expensive the rooms are. Will not be going back anytime soon, nor will I recommend! I live local and visit the area weekly, but won't be eating there! read more

Great service here!! After receiving lackluster service at another establishment, we stopped at the Parlor Bar and were very happy to be received with a great attitude and service!! We only ordered drinks but were thrilled with the welcome we received!! read more

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Awful food. Untrained and dumb servers. Deceptive pricing when coupled with hotel stay.

Brown lettuce n mushy oysters..how hard is it to get green lettuce n fry oysters...this is sad when a waitress thinks this is ok to serve!

Had a chance to enjoy breakfast at the Franklin Cafe. It's a quaint restaurant inside the historic Gibson Inn. Atmosphere is wonderful. If weather is nice and seating available, I encourage you to dine outdoors. Weekdays, spring, fall always less busy than summer. Wonderful menu with very nice staff. Can't wait to return for lunch and dinner. We enjoyed create your own 3 Egg Omelets, Chicken & Waffle, Gravy Biscuits, the Franklin Lox and Bagel. read more

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My wife and I were staying at the Gibson Hotel and decided to have breakfast there Franklin Restaurant after looking at the breakfast menus on their website. The menu posted had a variety of options you could order. When we sat down we informed that they only had a buffet breakfast now. We reluctantly decided to have the buffet. Well that was a mistake. The buffet consisted of powdered tasteless scrambled eggs half cooked bacon, biscuits, frozen fried hash browns and the worst patty sausage I can ever remember. Oh yes and a bowl mixed fruit. All this for $17.00 each. We assumed the coffee we ordered would be included but we were wrong. I was horrible coffee for a mere 6 bucks extra. The food quality was worse than a budget hotel free buffet but in our case the room we were in was $360.00 a night. This hotel should be embarrassed by their greedy gouging practices and false website info and it is an actual insult to anyone that stays at their hotel. Can't tell you about lunch or dinner because I would be reluctant to eat anything from this restaurant. Oh yes a bottle of water in our room is $8.00. What do you expect for 360.00 dollars for a very dated, well worn hotel room. read more

Service was fantastic! Food was really good. Recommend the seafood dip. The lobby, restaurant, and bar was beautiful read more

From the outside this place looks like something dropped right out of New Orleans. The inside has TONS of character. The billiards room is worth a game and a cocktail! There is a mounted alligator that is more than worth the price of admission The food is awesome. Everything we had was good! The southern oysters, with sausage and an aioli were awesome. The waitress said they were spicy and as a guy who doesn't like spice, I can tell you it wasn't spicy. My wife had the fish tacos and I had the shrimp and grits. The shrimp and grits were made with gouda and they were amazing! (Nap inducing, yes. But 100% worth it.) Fish tacos were a great lunch. Light, delicious, and easy to eat. Highly recommend this spot. Even had an afternoon drink, you know just to check out the bar. Tried the mudslide, very well done. read more

The Franklin Café - Southern oysters - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

We've been for dinner a few times and it's good but breakfast was amazing! We both had the omelette different ways.... His: bacon, mushrooms and goat cheese Mine: ham, tomatoes and Swiss Soooo fluffy and perfect. Have the rosemary potatoes as your side... delish! Can't wait to go again! read more

This made me leave at least a 1 star, which I object to! I made a reservation for my daughter's birthday for 6. We waited 15 minutes and still never was greeted by a hostess. Finally a waitress came and could not find our reservation. Was told, oh, we need to put a couple of tables together (obviously, she could not find the reservation). While she was figuring it out, a couple exited with (frowns on their faces) with their partial bottle of wine, having never been asked what they wanted for dinner. The bad energy transcended by them gave us our decision to quickly leave. So we left! This confirms what several residents that we know say the about the current restaurant scene in Apalachicola, that it is extremely lacking in Apalachicola, FL. My understanding is that a single individual is buying up restaurants., ie. The Franklin, Owl etc. good luck? We went to our always excellent standby, The Station, as always service and food are exceptional. read more

Waited to get seated and unfortunately the hostess was very slow. Patrons did not look pleased, so we left. Very disappointed.

I really wanted to love this place. It's in a great location, super cute vibes, great menu offerings, but the service and the food were underwhelming at best. A group of 3 friends and myself went for dinner on a Saturday night. The hostess was very nice, and we were promptly seated in a mostly empty restaurant, but the first table they sat us at had a massive air vent below the table that seemed perfectly capable of causing instant frostbite if you sat down, so we asked to sit at a different table. Unfortunately, this meant we were sitting right beside the loud, slamming door to the patio which was repeatedly shoved, kicked, and battered open throughout the meal. We ordered the Louisiana creole shrimp and a dozen raw oysters for our appetizers. Oysters were super fresh and great, as were the creole shrimp. My friend ordered tea with lemons for her drink, and didn't get her lemons. Waiters and waitresses were moving quickly around the restaurant, acting flustered although the restaurant wasn't crowded (there were 5 servers for maybe 6 tables with people). We were told about the seasonal vegetable (carrots) and the catch of the day (salmon). We ordered a ribeye (carrots and Gouda grits), 2 filets (asparagus and garlic mashed potatoes) and the Apalachicola Bay pasta. After we ordered, my friend who didn't get her lemons realized she still hadn't received her lemons. We also realized that although our waitress was nearby, she wasn't looking toward us AT ALL. We overheard her tell another table about the special of the day, which was a wahoo fish that we unfortunately were never told about, but oh well. It took another 10 minutes to flag down our waitress, rather dramatically, and then she never brought us the lemons. Our entrees were actually quite good. My pasta was awesome- well seasoned, warm, flavorful. The filets, ribeye, and asparagus were also great. However, the carrots and Gouda grits were noticeably cold, and there was no detectable garlic in the mashed potatoes, which had an interestingly sweet taste. We attempted (and failed) to flag down our waitress, then when that didn't work, flagged down the hostess and told her about the grits. She said another table had noted the same thing, and that she would bring us new grits when they came out. She came back after about 5 minutes with a new hot bowl, which were great. We had to practically throw ourselves at our waitress to give her our credit card to run it, as she still wouldn't come check on our table after we finished up. We left full, but wishing we had had a better experience. I would try it again, but hope their service and food temps would be much better. read more

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First, this is a terrible restaurant. Service sucks as the wait staff saw fit to take of themselves rather than serve us lunch in a room of empty tables. Yes, we were the only ones there, it took 45 minutes to get a burger and oysters. the burger was ordered as medium rare and came out well done and cold. Inexcusable, nobody's paying attention. We won't be coming back. Too many other good options in Appalach. read more

I love this place! The Gibson is gorgeous, the bar and cafe ambience is awesome. One evening we had cocktails and heavy apps at the bar. Real, crafted cocktails with a bartender who knew his stuff. Apps were delicious. I've eaten weekend brunch twice. Franklin lox and "Everything" bagel with tupelo honey cream cheese was a great touch. Franklin Tartine is basically super charged avocado toast on sour dough bread, tomato, tupelo aioli and fried egg. Deliciousness. Blackened shrimp, gouda grits and cajun cream sauce was plate licking yummy. Service was a little slow but still attentive. This is such a cute venue and I look forward to returning. read more

This restaurant is inside the "haunted" Gibson Inn. I'd been to a different restaurant in the Inn before and had a completely different experience. The Franklin is amazing! We made a reservation for a Saturday because Yelp said it could be busy at times. I ended up having a pineapple mimosa and it was absolutely perfect! I tend to like more champagne with my mimosas and this one was perfect for me! Our waitress (I can't think of her name now, I'm sorry!) but wonderful. She was helpful, gave us a little history of the Inn, recommended dishes and wasn't the hovering type. She came back at the right times, always with a refill of coffee for my dad and husband. Next time we're at St George, we'll be sure to stop in the the Franklin! read more

The Franklin Café - Pineapple Mimosa - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

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OK, so 3 yrs ago we were quite disappointed in the quality of the food at the Franklin. We have been coming to the Gibson for 30 + yrs. Back again and eating at the bar, the service was great, and the food was superb. Beef Carpaccio was awesome, the Tile fish dinner special was phenomenal! Whatever changes they made, outstanding change! Very glad to see the improvement! I wish I could retract my previous poor review. read more

The food was great the eggs were well done. The egg Benedict was cooked just right. The butter for the biscuits was soft. The water was also filtered. read more

The Franklin Café - Breakfast platter and Egg Benedict. - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

There wasn't much positive about this place. The food was bland, the order was wrong, and it took a very long time. The server did not come check on us or refill beverages. The hotel is beautiful and we enjoyed cocktails at the bar in the afternoon but I would not recommend eating at the restaurant. read more

Server gave us a lunch menu for dinner and after we made our decisions and were ready to order after a 20 minute wait they told us we weren't able to order from that menu. read more

Great place for brunch. The staff here are so friendly. I cannot wait for my next visit.

Visited this morning for breakfast. Food was excellent! I had the Cajun Benedict and my co worker had the classic breakfast. Will post photos. read more

The Franklin Café - Cajun Benedict with potatoes. Excellent! - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

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I was generous and awarded four stars several months ago, but after my most recent visits I'm going to drop it to three, and if I'm being totally honest, the third is for the ambiance, which is so welcoming. The service and food are two star worthy, at best. Stopped in with a party of six for a late breakfast this morning. The host was great and advised us that it would be 20 minutes for a table, which is understandable given the staffing issues in small towns. A few of us decided to have a drink at the bar while the others went shopping across the street. We sat in the middle of the bar, directly in front of three bartenders/servers. Not one of them acknowledged our presence for at least 15 minutes. A very long and awkward 15 minutes. Finally I made eye contact with one which prompted a greeting, but no offer for a drink. I let her know that we were waiting to get seated but wanted to have a drink while waiting. After a very average Bloody Mary (adding pepper and Tabasco helped it), we were seated in the dining room, which is beautiful, but the food is more reminiscent of what you'd expect to find at a Hampton Inn complimentary breakfast buffet than at an upscale hotel restaurant in a historic coastal town. Hard, dry biscuits. Lousy sausage gravy. Boring omelettes. Dry toast. Mediocre waffle. So much potential, so disappointing results. read more

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Cutest restaurant and attached parlor. The size of the meals is a good value; we were stuffed when we left. The food was flavorful. The service was a slow, potentially short staffed. But the staff were friendly! If we're in Apalachicola again, we'd return for a nice meal. read more

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Nice place to get a great meal in a cute town! We were staying in the area so headed to The Franklin for a birthday dinner. The restaurant is located within the Gibson hotel so it was easy to find and there was plenty of parking on the street! We were seated right away and our server, Mark, was outstanding! What we ordered: We started with the Louisiana Creole Shrimp which was a great recommendation from Mark. You got 6 pieces of shrimp, 3 pieces of bread, all in a delicious sauce! Then I ordered the Seafood Imperial since it has every item I was craving - it was also a suggestion from our waiter. I don't normally get too excited about grits but the smoked Gouda version was so good. Others ordered the Apalachicola Bay Pasta which was also a delicious plate. We finished the meal with the Salted Caramel Cheesecake. The crust on this cheesecake was phenomenal! Outstanding choices all around for dinner!! Overall, we had a fantastic time! The staff was extremely friendly and we will be sure to stop by again when we are in town! The only thing we'd do differently next time is ask to sit outside, assuming it's a nice evening! This location seemed to be pretty accessible to anyone with a stroller or wheelchair as the tables are spaced out in the main dining room. read more

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Our evening at the Gibson transported us back to the Old Era of Florida when the boats could be seen lined up spilling out their bounty of the day just off the dock. We had a drink on the wrap around porch and imagined the likes of writers and businessmen of yesteryear summering here along the beaches of the Forgotten Coast. This preserved visage of a bygone era isn't far from the commercial Panama City and is well worth the trek for a moment of tranquil escapism. read more

The Franklin Café - The Gibson and Franklin - Seafood Near Me - Apalachicola, Florida

White chocolate bread pudding outstanding. Service is fantastic. Best hotel on the forgotten coast. Ambiance best ever opened in 1907. Get down here to Apalachicola. read more

Stayed on property and decided to have a few drinks at the bar. Menu looked great so we stayed for dinner. We shared a dozen of classic baked oysters and soft shell crab. My husband had the seafood imperial and I had the filet. All delicious!!! April our server and bartender was great. Would definitely recommend this restaurant. read more

Great little place for breakfast. Wonderful service, good prices and a really solid mimosa. We will be back next time we visit Apalach. *stroll around the hotel bar, lobby and Bullard room. The place is really cool. read more

Great Lunch spot with outdoor seating. Fish tacos were good but surprisingly the steak fries were the star of the plate. Drinks were justifiably proud of themselves. Summer salad with spicy chicken was a hit with the dressing being the leading lady. read more

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great place for Sunday brunch. Loved the chicken and waffle, the bananas foster french toast, and the shrimp and grits. $10 bloody mary or mimosa (bloody mary could be thicker, spicier, and more vodka and garnish). Sherrie runs service in the bar and seves in the dining room-she is phenomenal! Friendly, fast--saw her run the bar AND serve all tables in the cafe on her own. Great service! read more

The staff are very helpful and have that southern charm we usually only hear about. The food is very good. I had 1/2 dozen baked Parmesan Oysters. They were small but tasty. For my entree I selected the Seafood Imperial. At first sight, it was underwhelming when the server brought it. I expected a much larger portion for $36.00. HOWEVER it was all delicious and the portion size actually was just right after having the oysters. The shrimp were perfect. The Gouda grits - which I have never had, were really good. I would have it again. read more

One of my favorite date night spots. The food is always good and they have a good variety of specials.

The Franklin Cafe was recommended to us by a local. We were vacationing in Cape San Blas. It was only a 30-minute drive so we got a reservation. The hotel and bar it is connected to looked great, especially the bar area. However, the restaurant portion was a huge disappointment. It was severely overpriced for what you got. We ordered and my 2 kids got steak frites. Their order came out in 5 minutes. We waited 45 minutes for the rest of our food. It made me think the steak dishes were already cooked and sitting under a warmer for someone to order. Why? Even the food we waited on was not great. I got shrimp and grits, nothing special. My wife got grilled fish. Again, it was our most expensive meal while on vacation and the worst experience. I would recommend a hard pass and spend your money elsewhere. read more

I would give this place a five star rating but cannot due to the noise level. Everything else about The Franklin is wonderful. Drinks are well made, meals are carefully designed with quality ingredients, service is spectacular, and atmosphere is old style comfort. However, the acoustics in the dining room create a chaos of sound. People quietly chatting are amplified to a thunderous roar. I know ownership must be aware of this as I've seen the same complaint in other reviews. Simple ceiling baffles might solve the problem. Meanwhile, I suggest you select outside seating if the weather permits. read more