Katya Vineyards — Restaurant in Ocala

Going to be completely objective and totally unbiased. Was my girlfriends birthday and we booked the last reservation of the night. Wasnt overly busy for a saturday night which was awesome! Restaurant feel and decor was exceptional as was the owners daughter who greeted us upon arrival.

Dr. Patricia the owner sat us and was also our server. First experience I’ve had where one of the owners was the hostess and also a server... our table location was cozy and quiet. Only one other table out of the three in the room was occupied. We loved that. Ordered a glass of cabernet. Wine prices and selection was nice. Then ordered the three cheese plate with the accompaniments as an appetizer. Presentation was excellent but the cheese was average. For a $30 cheese plate i was expecting mind blowing cheeses with exotic accompaniments. The cheese itself was average. Nothing to write home about. Grapes, assorted nuts and various what seemed like box crackers and certainly boxed pretzel chips. The wine jelly was exceptional and the olives were “unique”. When the highlight for the entire dish was the jelly...enough said. I prefer sweeter accompaniments to cut the sourness of the cheese when i order cheese plates. Honey, dates, apricots, etc. i prefer so ill chalk that up to a personal difference in appeal to be fair. Worth $30? Absolutely not....

Ordered a second glass of wine but from the katya vineyards personal collection. David who is also the owner, for the most part slammed it on our table and retreated back to the bar without a word or a smile. From the moment we walked in to the moment we left, at no point did he acknowledge either of us, inquire about our meal, thank us for coming and or tell us goodbye when we left. Either he was having a bad night and or had other things on his mind at the time, you would have thought that for over the $200 we spent on dinner that he would have at least thanked us. That aside..

Rewinding a bit, following the appetizer and awaiting our entree’s, the intense aroma of garlic in the air coming from the kitchen was so strong in the air that both my girlfriends and my eyes began to burn. Im not being dramatic. They were burning and her eyes actually became red. Its a hundred year old building which wasnt designed to be restaurant, so ill be fair in saying thats out of anyone’s control.

Entree’s arrived and were plated beautifully. I will give a two thumbs up to the chef. Entree’s were beautiful and delicious.

Did not order desert as it was approaching 9:30 p.m. and it was obviously visible that the staff was both ready and currently leaving for the night even before we got our check.

Patricia then brought the check. We then waited an additional 15 minutes before their daughter finally checked on our table. She seemed very stressed as it was apparent from the moment that we walked in that she was being pulled in many different directions at once. She apologized to us that we had to wait and told us her mother was tired. The daughter was such a nice and caring person and you could tell that even though she cared immensely, no one person could handle everything in a restaurant. We felt bad for her :( Again this is only my perception, but it was my reality.

I payed the bill, but appropriately tipping the owner was awkward. We did not see and certainly were not greeted, thanked or asked about our experience prior to leaving. Left and impression on both of us that they were happy to get our money and on to the next day.

Cheese plate was incredibly overrated and overpriced.

Wine was good and also fairly priced.

The entrees were great. Chef clearly is awesome at what he does. Quality of the steak, lobster and sides were top notch as well as the plating.

The restaurant, at least the area we sat in in not a place we would ever want to sit at again due to the ventilation issues. Had to take my entire outfit to the dry cleaners this morning. Made my entire bedroom smell like garlic butter.

Being objective, experience was average. Certainly not worth over $200. Will not be...

Katia Vineyards in Ocala, a restaurant steeped in family tradition and reimagined by the next generation, offers a culinary journey that blends old-world charm with contemporary flair. Recently relocated and managed by the daughter of the original owners and her chef husband, this establishment shows potential but leaves room for improvement, reflecting a solid three-star experience.

Our evening began with a soft-spoken young hostess who quietly escorted us to our table for four, despite our being a party of two. This small oversight hinted at communication gaps that continued throughout our visit.

We had chosen Katia Vineyards partly because their online menu featured foie gras and a pistachio filet mignon, both of which intrigued us. However, upon arrival, we learned the menu had changed and these items were no longer available. Our waitress explained that the chef frequently updates the menu, but the website had not kept pace. This discrepancy between expectation and reality was slightly disappointing and highlighted the need for more accurate online updates.

Despite these hiccups, our waitress provided attentive service, starting us off with a delightful offering of olive bread and three kinds of butter. This touch was appreciated and set a positive tone for our meal. A Chopin martini my companion ordered was well-crafted, adding to the pleasant start.

Our appetizer, meatballs with tomato foam, shiitake mushrooms, and aged Parmesan, was a mix of highs and lows. The chef's personal table-side presentation of the foam was a nice touch, but the meatballs themselves were fairly average, meriting a B-.

For our main courses, I opted for the Chilean sea bass with fingerling potatoes topped with pickled carrots. The sea bass was superbly cooked and full of flavor. My companion chose the bacon-wrapped duck breast on wild blueberry risotto, a unique and creative pairing that elevated the dish from a B- to an B+.

With a background in Swiss hotel school training and a focus on five-star dining, I noticed several areas for enhancement. The iced tea, which tasted like it was made from a machine, lacked the freshness expected in a fine dining setting. Additionally, a noticeable delay in receiving additional bread and for an unexplained reason, my companion’s allergies were triggered, leading to a less comfortable dining experience. Could it have been from the heavy draperies?

We opted not to try dessert, but the short selection did include an intriguing bacon pistachio cheesecake. Despite consuming only one alcoholic beverage, our bill came to just over $200 with tip, consistent with a fine dining price point.

Katia Vineyards clearly aims to provide a top-notch dining experience. The service, while commendable in parts, occasionally felt more aligned with a three-star standard. However, the dedication of the owners to refine their offering is evident. With careful attention to feedback and a focus on enhancing their service and menu accuracy, Katia Vineyards has the potential to truly excel.

In summary, our experience at Katia Vineyards was a mix of promising flavors and areas needing polish. The foundation is strong, and with some refinements, this restaurant could elevate its standing in Ocala's dining scene. As it stands, Katia Vineyards offers a good dining option with significant...

After our experience at such a fine dining restaurant, I feel it’s necessary to give our honest review. I booked a reservation online through Open Table. I was specific in the notes that the dinner was a celebration of a very special accomplishment of my husband. When I arrived and told the hostess my name, we were greeted by several employees telling us happy birthday. We awkwardly laughed, as we do not celebrate birthdays, and simply thought they were mistaken. We got to our table and there was birthday confetti and a happy birthday card waiting for us. Thinking we had gotten the wrong table, I eventually went to the hostess to ask if we were in someone else’s reserved table. She said no, it was our table and it must’ve been a mistake. That was all okay, an honest mistake. We were at the table for 25 minutes with no food menus and no waiter ever coming to check on us during that almost half an hour wait. Finally we got the attention of an employee walking by and asked for a menu. She said “oh there wasn’t a menu at your table, my bad”. Our order was taken shortly after receiving our menus. However, the waitress forgot our order and ended up coming back 10 minutes later and asking us to repeat our order again. We ordered the 4 course tasting menu with wine pairing. For the second course I ordered the lobster bisque. It was delicious, except for the approximately 3 inch long white/gray hair that was at the bottom of it. I pulled the hair out of my soup and placed it on the black table cloth, there was no denying it was a human hair. We tried to ignore that disgusting mistake in order to enjoy the rest of the meal, but by then I had lost my appetite. At the time we felt like it would be awkward to show the hair to the staff, but looking back I wish we would’ve told them. We asked to get our 4th and final course, dessert, to go. They were out of the only dessert option that my husband actually wanted and we were ready to call it a night. Our total with tip came to almost $300. All together this was an extremely disappointing experience for such a special occasion. We cannot in good conscience recommend this restaurant to anyone. I feel bad leaving a negative review because I know this is a family establishment, but an experience like this at such a high caliber of a restaurant is unacceptable. I hope nothing similar happens to anyone else...