2. Bistro AIX

Always a delight
My husband and I go there for special events, because we have never been disappointed. The escargot are tender and have the perfect blend of garlic and butter. The French onion soup is the best in Jacksonville. The mussels frites are a delight-all are open, and with a nice blend of spices and natural seasonings-the frites put other fries to shame. The portions are mostly generous. Fish Aixoise is a religious experience, the oak roasted chicken is excellent, but do try any specials of the day-they won't let you down.

Poor
Bistro Aix has all the amenities of any upscale restaurant, with a young, bustling crowd, attentive waiting staff, and eclectic ingredients; HOWEVER, the food failed in every single way compared to its atmospheric promises. I was expecting high end food that was flavorful and delicious, but each course I received was bland and mediocre. My fiancee and I started off with the crispy duck confit spring rolls and the smoked tomato soup. The duck was dry and the pineapple "ketchup" was tasteless (not to mention it did not resemble ketchup at all, so I'm not sure why they have it listed as such on the menu...). The tomato soup tasted like marinara sauce that was overspiced with oregano. I was expecting a creamy, smokey soup, but alas, it had NO smokey flavor and little cream in it. For our entrees we had the Penne with Zeke's spicy sausage, marinara & creamy goat cheese and Housemade Whole Wheat Fettuccini with Corn. The Penne was fair (but probably the best thing we ate there), and the Fettuccini was TASTELESS. I'm not even sure it had sauce. I could have made the same thing at home with canned corn and jarred red peppers. Lastly, we ordered the specialty dessert, Grapefruit yogurt cake. It was a premade cake that Hostess could have claimed as its own, with the only redeeming ingredient being fresh strawberries. I had an after dinner coffee, The Banana Split, which was overwhelmingly sweet. I wanted to try the apple cobbler on their dessert menu, but you can only get it with a TRIO of desserts. For an upscale restaurant, I was really expecting them to please their customers and allow them to order things off the menu without having to purchase the other 2 desserts that I did not want. I would not go back here, and I would not recommend this place to anyone I know. The price did not match the quality of food we received.

Best dinning experience ever!