by erin thursby scopes1925@msn.com
Since its Film Fest time, you might well find yourself Downtown, taking in an art flick at the library or the Florida Theatre. For a bite before or after the movie, you might want to check out Café Nola. Like many places Downtown, they have limited hours, only opening from 11 am to 2:30 pm Monday through Fridays and for brunch on Sundays.
If you can find the Museum of Contemporary Art on Hemming Plaza, next to the library, you’ll be able to find Café Nola. Tucked away inside the museum, the restaurant has a view of the fountains in Hemming Plaza, as well as the bustling life out on the sidewalk. From school tours to groups of business men hurrying along, there’s always a slice of Downtown Jacksonville life to keep you entertained.
The décor is made up of neutral colors, accented with soft green and a touch of blue. In contrast to this subdued, contemporary palette is the stark white of the table cloths.
Patrons range from the Ladies Who Lunch and families to the local Downtown brass. On weekdays, the restaurant sees a lunchtime crowd from Downtown businesses; as well those who want a place to eat after a tour of the MOCA or a stop at the library.
Dessert specials are available (though they aren’t on the menu), but they aren’t a common choice for most diners, since most Americans don’t eat dessert during lunch and because, for many business people, getting back to work on time is a priority.
An unexpected shot of sweet is the signature of Café Nola. It can be shock for those who are strictly meat and potatoes or that don’t like to experiment. Nola starts their patron’s experience with a muffin shaped roll and creamy butter. Each day, they mix the butter with a seasonal fruit, like blueberries or raspberries. My favorite so far has been the mango-butter mix. To their credit, servers will always tell customers about the butter, since nothing is as horrible as anticipating one flavor and getting another. It’s obvious when it’s a raspberry mix, but nigh undetectable by sight if it’s a mango mix.
The Indian-style mussels are a great favorite, if you’re fond of mussels. The flavor of the graceful mussels prevails over the light-handed curry flavor, and the portion is fairly large. Strangely, this dish is under small plates. It would make for a good table-wide appetizer, but might be too much for one person. The dish could use a cooling dipping sauce to change up the flavor a bit, not that it isn’t tasty, but your palate may become tired before the end of the meal.
Also notable on the small plates section of the menu, are the Truffled Risotto Fritters. These little balls of deep-fried cheese goodness are offset by a sweet, caramelized black pepper shallot marmalade.
There are a number of tempting selections under salads. Salmon and herb-crusted snapper each have a starring role in two different selections. The Salmon rests atop a bed of soba noodles, spiced with a chili-lemongrass vinaigrette and garnished with pan-Asian touches. Keeping company with the herb-crusted snapper are vegetables and quinoa. Quinoa is a grain traditionally used in South America, which cooks up in a fluffy manner, has slightly nutty flavor, and is often used as an alternative to rice. As you can probably gather from these selections, some of the salads don’t start with the traditional base of lettuce or spring greens. The asparagus goat cheese salad does start with the traditional base of a spring salad mix, but jumps off from that quite nicely, adding in grilled asparagus, creamy goat cheese, blueberries and toasted Georgia pecans.
At Café Nola, they do what they can to make sandwiches sexy. Try the citrus dill tuna sandwich if you want to take an ordinary tuna salad sandwich to a whole new level of yum. But they don’t just tweak the ordinary sandwich; they also offer fairly unique, upscale selections, such as the soft-shell crab B.L.T. with Tempura soft shell crab, applewood smoked bacon, fresh lettuce, tomato and avocado aioli on a fresh baguette are served with a side salad of spring greens.
On the current menu, my choice under entrées is the Shrimp & Grits. Cheesy grits are sculpted into wedges (called grit cakes) and smothered in a savory white wine sauce with fresh wild mushrooms and bacon. Add Mayport Shrimp to this and you’ve got a nearly perfect meal. What makes it perfect is the addition of a sun-dried tomato crostini. The crusty bread and tart sun-dried tomato topping provides a faultless contrast in taste to the rich and savory dish.
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EU Critic’s Choice Awards
