The District SPR — Restaurant in Jacksonville

This is a really disappointing review to make but my experience yesterday was awful. I’ve recommended this restaurant multiple times. Whenever friends come into town or someone’s looking for a cute place to have a little bridal party or get together I always recommend them because the food is good and so are the drinks.

Yesterday, however the service was really disappointing. We had reservations for 130 for a party of eight. Two of us arrived at 1:20 and gave her name to the hostess who seemed very annoyed. We were told “the table‘s not ready they haven’t even cleared it off yet.” we weren’t given an estimated amount of time that we would need to wait and her attitude just gave bad vibes from the beginning. We ended up waiting 30 to 40 minutes to actually get seated even though we had a reservation. Every time we went to go ask when we be able to be seated we were just told they were cleaning off the table. It was more likely that the party in front of us was running over but instead of saying that, we were told to just wait outside without any idea of how long it was gonna take.

Once we were seated, we were given a round of shots that they selected as compensation for the wait. This honestly probably would’ve been enough but it took forever to get our food. After the shots were put down in front of us it took about 15 to 20 minutes for someone to come back and give us water or ask us if we want anything to drink. My friend ordered a mimosa tower that took about an hour for us to receive. Once food finally started coming out. The first people got their plates about 30 to 40 minutes before the rest of the table got theirs. We had to ask 3 to 4 times for multiple things, including straws, butter, hot sauce, etc.

The icing on the cake was when my friends order came out she didn’t think her steak was closed correctly and it just didn’t seem like it was her meal that was sat down in front of her. She told the waitress and the waitress took the food back to the kitchen 7 to 10 minutes later the waitress comes back with the SAME PLATE of food that she initially put in front of my friend and said that the kitchen said that the food was cooked correctly. I’m not exaggerating when I’m saying how long she was gone. The food was cold by the time I got back to her and you could see that they had stuck knives in the center of it a few times to say that it was cooked correctly.

We had to ask to speak with a manager before we could even get our last four meals delivered to the table. And the manager said that she had a “surprise” that was gonna make up for everything. It was a slice of their banana pudding for my friend’s birthday.

I’ve been here multiple times with larger parties, and I understand the grace that needs to be given on busy brunch days. But this was absolutely ridiculous and it seemed like no one cared. From the hostess, to the waitress, to the manager. ….it seemed like they just wanted us...

First off this establishment does not have any HOT DRINKS. Not a tea not coffee, not a hot water with lemon or lime. So if you’re coming for brunch and you think you’re going to have your food with a little hot coffee or a nice chamomile think again. My mother and I talked about it the entire tea of our visit in disbelief.

Secondly, the atmosphere and the ambience was extremely nice very chic very thoughtful lighting designs. We love the paint, the decor, very lovely. Especially having visited this Space after it was the walrus years ago, it’s surprising to see how they have transformed the venue.

Now onto the food. We ordered the deviled egg appetizer. They were underwhelming at best. For something placed as a menu item, left much to be desired it was a little less than a regular deviled egg. The tiny chip of maple bacon didn’t make it a delicatessen. 1 out of 5.

I ordered the chicken and French toast and my mother ordered the shrimp salmon and grits with bread pudding French toast. I would like to mention that this establishment only makes bread pudding French toast . And if we had known that she would have just tried my French toast and not ordered one for herself. So keep that in mind if you’re interested in the French toast it’s literally the same dish with the bread pudding.

The fried chicken was seasoned and battered very well very tasty, but the chicken meat itself was a little on the dry side. I did like that it was chicken thighs. The bread pudding and French toast was actually the best thing that I had during the visit it was so good. Not too sweet and the glaze they used was very nice. It really saved the dish for me. Chicken in French toast three out of five.

My mother ordered the shrimp and grits with the salmon. Admittedly the grits and the Cajun gravy combo with very very tasty. And the shrimp was cooked to perfection it went very well with the rest of the dish. The salmon on the other hand was overcooked a little stringy and didn’t have much flavor even with the gravy trying to help it out. I only tried a little but for me the shrimp and grits and salmon was 3 out of 5.

Our server was very scarce throughout the visit. It was a little busy for a Saturday brunch, but we were in the middle of the restaurant not difficult to see.

Overall the district for me was a cute spot they have a full bar, as it used to be a bar, and it looks as though people mainly on there for the drinks. Also the bacon was good. The...

Let me preface this by saying that a 2-star review is overly generous and I still left a 20% tip on a $170 bill.

However, The District (Springfield) will not be getting my business ever again.

I booked an 11:15 a.m. Sunday reservation for my Mom's birthday. We were there at 11 a.m. and it started off well with a beautiful canopy in the back.

There were 5 of us, including my friend's Autistic child. However, we didn't leave until 12:42 p.m.

When we arrived, it was rainy and slow. We put in an appetizer, but after 30 minutes of waiting for our waiter to come back, I had to go inside to let her know we were ready to order.

We told her three times that we needed water, and she didn't bring it. She brought it the fourth time after we were more than patient and kind.

I spoke to the manager/owner after and her only words were, "I'm sorry. I'll talk to her. We were busy."

She didn't offer anything more than a half-hearted apology. I'm not expecting any form of compensation, but the appropriate way to respond should have been "You came at open, and we dropped the ball. We are sorry. I'll talk to my waiter about better service in the future so no one has to have this experience in the future because that's not how we like doing business."

We were patient in the morning and kind, and they weren't busy. It is NOT ok to ignore a table to tend to others who arrive after and then claim that you're busy.

I booked a reservation there because when we went for my friend's birthday they were busier and on point. However, during our experience, none of the food came out at the same time and they only picked up the pace toward the end of it all. Including delivering my friend's child's food last. He was the first person to say what he wanted and that he was ready, even before all of us ordered our main meal.

I don't know what happened between now and then, but here are some places where you can spend your money without a reservation:

Grumpy's Cafe (St. Augustine) Southern Grounds (Avondale) Cool Moose Cafe (Riverside)

Food was 6/10 ...

Alcohol was purchased

The Autistic child in question was 9 and waited over 60 minutes for his food when he was the first one at the table to state...