Santa Maria Restaurant Your Feedback Re This Article
Avenida Menendez - St. Augustine Florida
!0-1 Rating (where 10 is best and -0- worst) Rating -- 7 !!
The Hear-say:
There are old restaurants and bold restaurants, but there are very
few old, bold restaurants. The main attractions at the Santa Maria are
three. It's built on a pier in the Matanzas River - beautiful location. One
can feed the fish while he or she eats and one reviewer said bread is supplied
for that purpose. On the other hand, a former waitress from there told me that
so many people throw their food to the fish in disgust with the plate, cutlery
and all that the Santa Maria has to constantly re supply those items. Maybe
that's why the prices are so high? The third positive attraction? One never
sees the same people there except for the wait staff and the cook.
In my first weeks in St. Augustine, I proposed to a friend that we go
to the Santa Maria for dinner - it's such a nice location. She refused.
She had been here long enough to know better, she said. I met a tourist
who told me he had just had lunch at the Santa Maria. I asked how it was.
He said he had been here six months ago and ate there. The food was
so bad he decided to give it a second chance, that it couldn't still be that
bad. He said it was worse. |
|
Back at 7:00 P.M. The Actual Experience and Review:
The Deed is Done. I think everything I've heard about this place is bullshit.
Above is what I've heard. Below is my experience at the Santa Maria.
The Arrival: On my voyage of discovery, I walked the gang plank* to the main
house bearing in mind that this esteemed location was for ten years, the home of
the Mayor of St. Augustine (1907-1917). On this spot, the grimy bodies of
many were washed at Capo's Bath House for 5 Cents each. And today? I'm
about to find out.
The gang plank was sturdy but will need new sheeting sometime soon. The
paint while not fresh was in good condition. The overall impression gave me the
feel that I was approaching an old fish-camp style restaurant on a river where
lots of people go fishing. A large, covered porch greeted me at the end of the
gang plank. The many tables on the porch were inviting since the evening had
cooled to a nice high 70's. I went inside for a fuller experience of the place.
Ambience:
The interior is finished with lots of wood, framed all around with windows.
Antique tools adorn the walls ranging widely in their use and age. I saw clam
rakes, a bullet mold, carpentry and ship-building tools. There is a skillet I
would almost be willing to kill for - big enough to do breakfast for more than one
person. Skillets are usually so small these days. Doesn't anybody fry anymore?
There is a griddle on the wall. I haven't seen a real griddle since I was a boy.
There is even a cross-boom from a square rigger hanging from the ceiling but
the real eye stopper is the view of the Matanzas River. Breath-taking.
I took a table by the window and watched a small barkentine motor out of a
slip next door with a cargo of passengers who paid for a few hours ride. The
steel pirate ship was preparing for a show/cruise. I was just above the water a
hundred feet off shore. Then I noticed the birds.
Next to my seat at the table, a broad window sill separated me from the
heavy smoked glass of the window. In the window sill was a slot with a handle
on it. Outside the window was a ledge and running back and forth on the ledge
were four or five sandpipers, within two feet of my face. I've never seen one so
close up before. The waiter arrived with a basket of bread that he said was for
the fish and the birds, indicating the slot in the window sill.
I lifted the trap door over the slot and felt the warm, moist air coming in from
outside. I looked down at the nearly clear water. There were no fish. I dropped
a crumb of bread and suddenly there were hundreds of large fish - catfish and
Jacks mostly. They packed in tightly enough that it reminded me of the Pymatuning Reservoir in Pennsylvania where the carp crowded so tightly for a
piece of bread that I saw a duck walk across their backs and snatch the bread.
*From the Old English - Literally, "Going Board" or "Walking Board." |
Cleanliness:
I admit that after so many years of hearing nothing buy crap about this place,
I went in with a bad attitude. I expected to be critical of its cleanliness but I
could find no justification. The carpet was in good condition and freshly
vacuumed. The tables were clean and polished and the windows spotless. The
overall atmosphere was that of a classy 1950's, hunt club or fishing club. Despite
myself and my desire to justify all the stories I'd heard about the place, I felt
comfortable and at home. "Well," I thought, "Maybe the waiter will be dirty."
The Wait Staff: He wasn't. He was a nice looking, well coifed, well spoken
young man with a friendly, relaxed and competent demeanor. My opinion was
shifting. I liked the place.
The Food:
I ordered a medley of sea-food consisting of shrimp, scallops and a fillet
of fish. It came with mashed potatoes and gravy and a mixture of a' dente
vegetables. The food was hot. The fish was not dry, old or over or
under-cooked. I was amazed that my order arrived within about ten minutes
of when I ordered it The mashed potatoes were done in a recipe that allowed
for soft lumps that my mother would have freaked out about in her own mashed
potatoes. But it worked. The texture added to the experience.
As I feasted on this meal, taking breaks to hand feed the sand-pipers
and tease the fish with another crust so I could watch them fight, I wondered
continuously how this place could have gotten such a bum wrap? The food
was good. The people were nice. The place was clean. I was having a
wonderful time. Hey. It was everything I want in a dinner out. It even included
the adventure that I have always said, dining out should be.
I'm not willing to diminish what my friends have said about the Santa Maria
Restaurant, nor what tourists have told me who have eaten here. I do though,
remember what we call the 3-11 rule. That is to say, if something bad happens
where we get served or service, we tell eleven people. If something good
happens, we tell three. I can't speak for the experiences of others, only for myself
and my own experiences. My experience of the Santa Maria Restaurant was
a good one. I will very likely return.
Negative Criticism? The food was not finished with the style and flourish
that I have come to expect from meals that cost $30.00. The string was not
removed from the string beans. I had to do it myself. The setting was worth
the extra few dollars. The sauces were good, tasty and hot, but conventional.
We sometimes remember though, that conventionality can be regarded as
a quasi-virtue. In these times of unconventional dress, mores, religions and
politics, a taste of the 1950's was very refreshing. On that note, I might add
that the Santa Maria Restaurant is indeed an Old, Bold Restaurant. They have
not compromised the charm of old wood, or the simplicity of good food in
this age of plastics, electronics, MTV-politics, pop-theology and glitz. Thank
you Santa Maria for a good meal and a good time.
Eats Waller |
