The French Pantry -Jacksonville — Restaurant in Jacksonville

My reviews for the place used to always be 5 stars, now that they have new owners they are consistently 3 stars.

But first, some tips for the un-initiated: You will likely have a long wait in line. Even when they open, there is a line of people usually waiting for about an hour before. Just be patient and check out the menu board posted outside and enjoy some free water or lemonade. Plan on being outside without any cover (if you bring an umbrella, please try to be respectful of others). The line is outside and the proceeds in through the door. Don't force yourself inside and crowd the people who are inside trying to eat, just be patient and respectful unless you like people standing over you and bumping into you when you are trying to eat. Don't hold the door open and let all the cool air out. The line outside goes into the parking lot. Please don't block people driving through the parking lot by taking the line perpendicular to the door and across the parking lot. The line can easily form and not obstruct traffic. Again with the respectful theme. When you get inside there may be additional menu items that are special. You will have plenty of time to review them before you get to the register to order. Again, patience and respect. The desserts are in the dessert case. After you get inside, you will have plenty of time to step out of line and view the desserts. Although this restaurant does a poor job of displaying desserts for customers, you can usually see enough to make a decision. You will eventually get to the register. Keep your group together at one register. You will be told where to sit and may have to sit with people unknown to you. Do NOT rush in and try to claim a table. This is not how it works and they will tell you to move.

Okay, so for my review. The menu items change, recently they have not had my favorites on the days we can come. I am not docking them for having menu items that are not my favorites. You need to ask questions. Sandwiches do not automatically come with chips or fries. Some do, some don't...I can't make sense of it. The food is usually pretty darn good, but my score reflects the inconsistency since the Mellow Mushroom folks purchased them. I should also take a star for not having accurate descriptions, because Mellow Mushroom also does this at their pizza joints, but whipped topping is not the same as whipped cream. Why they do this baffles me because it makes me doubt their honesty about other menu items. Yes, there are a lot of rules to visit here. Yes, the food is usually fantastic. Yes, since Mellow purchased them things have gone south. Yes, we still visit here but not nearly as frequently as we did before the...

This is one of my favorite restaurants of all time in Jacksonville but today I was so unimpressed and felt disregarded as I ate alone. I ordered my usual which is the rare roast beef sandwich and I asked for it hot. The associate At the counter put that on my order. As I'm waiting by myself for over 20 minutes for my sandwich and french fries, no one has came over to the table to make sure everything is going well etc. Then my sandwich comes out and it's not hot at all. I had to wait an additional 15 minutes for someone to come over, not even to check on me, but to give the other people at my table, their food. I mentioned to the waitress that was serving table 42 around 12:00 p.m. that my sandwich was supposed to be hot. She asked for the receipt which I didn't have because I use the tap pay option and she seemed to have an attitude. And went about her way. I wait another 10 or 15 minutes and the other waitress comes over and places the plate of food on the table nobody apologizes or anything. At this point. I had to leave because I had other engagements and it was past my time to even enjoy my meal inside the restaurant and I requested a to-go box. The second waitress just placed it on the table and went about her way but was not friendly. This is going to discourage me from coming back based upon my experience of the wait time to get a sandwich that was done incorrectly resolved in a timely manner and no accountability from the restaurant. I've recently praised this restaurant about almost a month ago on my content creator page on Instagram under journeys_withari So this experience alone will stop me from coming for a little while. I would love for the manager to reach out to me regarding the experience with the waitresses that handled my table today on May 29th. I wouldn't want to stop coming to this restaurant based upon the fact of how I was treated with the waitresses and also taking accountability for the incorrect...

@thefrenchpantry 🥖 | What makes this place a must to go to is the people. The people makes this place an absolute wonder — both the customers + the gals that work there. 🍆 Being it my first time there, I came with no idea how the restaurant was set up and how the service was like. However, having a sense of that, the lady who was in front of me in line was very sweet to guide me through the process of getting my food. She was very mentor-like and compassionate though I was a stranger. Even after she had made her payment, she was very sweet to tell the gal at the register to kindly assist me with my order. 🌶 What even made the experience better was that same helpful gesture emanated the room. 🥘 Not only did I feel the exuberant kindness with the lady in front of me or the gal at the register, I also felt it with the manager. Through communication, I imagined, the manager was told of my special diet, so she approached me while I was waiting for my order and apologetically let me know that the portobello dish I had ordered was sautéed in dairy. Above all, she was very creative in offering me this alternative meal pictured here. 🍅Then when my food was ready and given to me, the gal that gave me my order smiled at me so nicely that made the whole experience from the beginning to the end a good one. 👫Not yet having tasted the meal, I went in the car called my husband and told him that I would like to come back again with him for the experience. 👨‍🍳 When I did finally take a bite and finish, I felt satiated and happy with my meal. The food was both mouth-watering and delicious. I would come back again for the food even if every one wasn't so nice. Blessing for me, that wasn't the case. • I need to make note of their names next time I...