Full Circle Eatery

Delicious fresh ingredients! A great day date spent in the antique shops and lunch. We had the Turkey Stack with a side of broccoli salad and the Veggie Deluxe with a side of the wheatberry salad. I’d never had wheatberry but it was pretty good! A definite for a return visit!

Definitely a hidden gem from the service to the food to the home baked cakes… thumbs up on this place. Wine and beer as well :)

I got a chicken salad sandwich To Go, and It was horrible! The bread was old, hard and super stale. They hardly put any chicken salad on the stale bread. The little bit of chicken salad they did put on was filled with pieces of fat so I spit part of it out. I know that you get some fat with chicken salad, but in this case there was more fat than chicken. So all in all the sandwich wasn’t edible and cost 8 bucks, with no side.
We used to get Olde Florida Café because we work across the street, but I won’t be back to Full Circle if the food is this bad.

Some friends and I decided to try out the «new» spot in the Avonlea Antiques Mall. We had been before when it was a tea room and had really enjoyed ourselves, so wanted to give it a try since it’s re-​opening.
First, the menu is very similar to what it was before. Soups, Sandwiches, and Salads, with a beautiful case full of yummy-​looking desserts. Prices are reasonable, and staff was very friendly and helpful with questions.
You order at the counter, and then take your seat to await your food delivery. It was quite a surprise to see the new look. Nothing like expected, and not sure it fits in with it’s location nor it’s food selections. The walls are covered in old barn boards, and some of the booths have fake cow hide for the upholstery. Giant stars on the wall and red divider walls remind me of a steakhouse more than a quaint lunch spot. It was somewhat a disappointment from the linen tablecloths and tea room look previously.
I ordered a Orange Kale Salad, with Wheatberries & Cherries. It was a very pretty salad to look at, and quite tasty. Just enough oranges and cherries to balance the sweet/​bitter/​tart tastes. I was quite pleased with my selection.
One of my friends ordered the Grilled Mozzarella & Cheddar Sandwich with Chili. This was somewhat of a fail. The sandwich was was ¾ bread to ¼ cheese, and she said the chili did not have much flavor.
Our other table-​mate ordered the Crab Mac & Cheese. It was served hot and steaming in a small cast iron skillet, with a side salad. I, luckily, got to sample a taste and it was full of crab and very cheesy. The ratio of noodles to crab was perfect. It was a filling lunch for certain.
Desserts were next. We each choose something different so we could share. Lemon cake was quite tasty, and light. Everyone enjoyed their bite of this. I chose Carrot Cake as it’s one of my favorites. This one — not so much. I felt it didn’t have much flavor at all, not the cake and not the icing. It will not be something I order again if we return. The third dessert was a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake. This was everyone’s favorite. The cake was moist and light, with just a hint of peanut butter taste. The icing was not too sweet, and complemented the cake perfectly.
All in all, we enjoyed our lunch, and spent some time walking around the antiques afterwards. Nice way to walk off some of those calories!

Wow, what a great lunch! Although I go to the antique mall from time to time to look around, I had never eaten at the restaurant there. This time around, I noticed the new décor and menu and thought… why not? I had the cuban sandwich, and it was the best cuban sandwich I’ve had in Jax. No flimsy cold cuts for meat-​it was filled with a big slab of roasted pork and grilled ham. Delicious. They have local beer as well, which is nice to see. I wil hit it up again when I am in the area.

The following review was published under my byline in the Florida Times-​Union on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015. This is an original, unabridged version of that review.
The guys behind Jacksonville’s Secret Garden Café and Five Points’ Derby on Park are back in the kitchen once again.
This time they’re cooking up something new in a place where «old» is the reason people show up.
In July, Jacksonville restaurateurs Michael Williams and Zack Nettles reunited with the operators of Avonlea Antiques & Design Gallery, who gave them their start 15 years ago at Secret Garden. Michael and Zack remade the since-​relocated mall’s dining operations, transforming the former Old Florida Café, which closed in April, into Full Circle Eatery.
While «Full Circle» ostensibly represents the culinary journey its owner-​operators have taken since 2000, the name takes on a more literal meaning when you enter the antiques mart’s front doors. You have to bear left, then left again as you tour racks of knickknacks, and follow floor-​worn «Old Florida Café» arrows to find the new eatery.
As it turns out, it’s not quite a semicircle.
You’ll know you’re there when you spot the larger-​than-​life chalkboard overflowing with daily specials, and a decadent dessert display case beckoning you with its tempting sugar-​laden treats.
Order and pay at the counter, take a number and proceed into Full Circle’s dining room, a quirky, kitschy menagerie of knotty, multicolored wood-​plank walls, pendant mood lighting and cowhide cushion upholstery. Some of the homespun accents – an oversized bronze-​framed clock face one of its most prominent – would be right at home on the retail floor next door.
Full Circle’s lunch-​only menu draws similarities to the nearby French Pantry, with crowd-​pleasing sandwiches and salads served with a zesty twist, and those decadent homemade desserts. Everything is homemade or locally sourced, including daily bread deliveries from Village Bread Café.
On a recent Friday-​afternoon visit, my friend and I caught the tail end of the lunch crowd. We began with a «nibble,» the Pesto Avocado Toast ($ 8). This best-​explored-​by-​fork starter featured layers of toasted focaccia squares, pesto rosso spread and avocado chunks, topped by a tangled conflagration of heirloom tomato salad and Parmesan curls. It was a colorful, tangy and wonderful intro to our visit.
Like most sandwich shops, Full Circle offers half-​and-​half combo options to pair sandwiches, soups or sides (most combos $ 8.75). My friend’s Veggie Deluxe sandwich was a tall and tasty stack of roasted red pepper, cucumber, tomato, red onion, greens and Havarti with Vidalia honey mustard on multigrain. The Butternut Squash soup of the day (available a la carte; $ 4 cup, $ 6 bowl) was a hearty masterpiece, with a finish resembling that of Thanksgiving stuffing.
Four of Full Circle’s sandwiches are grilled cheeses. My choice, the Havarti, Basil, Tomato ($ 8), was a crunchy delight with a soft center of sweet basil. However, my choice of four side items, pasta salad, was serviceable at best.
You can sample Full Circle’s cakes and pies by the slice, a la mode optional, or call ahead to order the whole thing. We chose two: a pumpkin cheesecake and a caramel apple pie (both $ 5.50). The former was lightly whipped and not too dense, with a semi-​sweet, semi-​spiced filling that hit the spot. The apple was a crumbly topped creation with lots of fruit and a caramel swirl. Next time, though, I’d ask for it to be heated.
Full Circle’s kitchen is at your disposal daily from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., while the restaurant continues with dessert and beverage service until 5:30. While there’s no happy hour pricing, the selection of mass-​market, craft and crafty draft and bottled brews and five wine varietals by the bottle or glass won’t break the bank.
While the name of Michael and Zack’s first Jacksonville restaurant could fit well with their newest location, there’s no reason for Full Circle Eatery to be a secret to lunching types and sugar-​seeking sweet tooths from Baymeadows and far beyond.
Full Circle Eatery
8101 Philips Highway, Baymeadows (just north of Baymeadows Road intersection)
(904) 503‑3829
Type of cuisine: Casual Americana sandwiches and salads
Hours: Open daily, 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (kitchen open until 4 p.m.)
Credit cards: All major accepted
Bar service: Beer and wine
Children’s menu: No
Reservations accepted: Yes
Catering: Yes
Price range: Appetizers, $ 3 – 8.50; salads, $ 7.50−11; sandwiches and grilled cheeses, $ 7.50−10

The restaurant has changed management and it was good. I ordered the roasted pork with rice/​gravy and side salad for $ 10, (it was a little dry) A friend ordered the Cuban sandwich and I wished I had. Service was good; the decore was lovely. I’ll be back!

Great service from very nice people in an unusual location. I had a good Cuban with wheat berry salad. The salad had a surprisingly good flavor!

We decided to visit Full Circle today after church and I was pleasantly surprised! My husband had a Cuban sandwich with wheat berry salad and I had the turkey stack with broccoli salad, both entrées were tasty and well made. I went back and purchased an apple bread pudding, so so good! This place is a hidden gem with nice décor and very friendly staff.

Had lunch here after hearing they were longer Florida Café, which was wonderful as well. Counter service was super friendly and personable. Fresh handmade desserts were very tempting to look at, glad we didn’t partake only because the sandwiches we ordered came out in full glory stacked and towering high. Long story short, the place was full when we got there at 1:00, service was warm and professional. Will definitely be back for desserts. (And wine!)

Unilocalers, BEWARE… This place had the nerve to charge $ 6.25 for a frozen from the factory, out of the box, dried up, piece of cake!

Myself and 2 other coworkers came in last Friday for lunch. We have been coming to this location for lunch for the last 5 years when it was the Old Florida Café. My Coworkers and I work at Ring Power so it is a drive from St. Aug but always well worth the break from the office. When we got to the new café we were in shock over the new décor. Before it was very cozy and relaxing. The new décor is a twist on Vegas or Miami and very cold nor inviting. Come on Avonlea this is not your target market.
I was expecting a similar menu as we were told by the front desk in May that the new café would have the same options as the old café. I ordered the Trio Salad which I thought would be the same as I ordred in the past. It was not. Very small portions and $ 2 dollars more than the old café. My two coworkers ordered the house salad with chicken since they do not offer Salmon like the old café did. Both of them did not eat the chicken because it was so dried out they compared it to jerk. With all this being said the total for the 3 of us to eat here was $ 50 dollars with tip!!! Guess someone has to pay for the renovation. This didn’t include the dessert that we passed on since we were in sticker shock. The café never ran us over $ 12 per person including tip. We also miss Anns coconut cream pie. You may want to ask if she can still supply them just a hint or in that case hire Cheryl, Ann, Kayla, and Angel back.
Unfortunately we will not be running back anytime soon and we hope that they will really consider the customer base that came to lunch here in the past. This was always a neighborhood lunch place for ladies day out or a quick bite on your lunch break. Beer, wine, and neon lights in an antique mall during lunch a bit strange for my liking.
I may be some what critical or biased since I am comparing my experience to the Old Florida Café so please understand this is just my experience and opinion.