Brick & Mortar

The food and atmosphere is really on point. I had the octopus appetizer which was delicious. Very tender and flavorful. The chicken liver ravioli with mushrooms and shaved black truffles were absolutely divine. Only thing that was weird was the server kept asking «is your dish a success» but that wasn’t anything negative, just different I suppose. Will definitely be coming back to try other specials as everything here was wonderful.

Good food and atmosphere. Close to downtown to get a drink after. Great date nite spot

We waited a long time. A real long time.
While we were waiting, we enjoyed a bottle of wine and tuna tartare– crisp shrimp flavored chips to cover in the flavorful bits of marinated tuna, with a crunchy topping and creamy avocado to top it off.
Next, after 1 hour, we were sat and offered truffle fries for our inconvenience, yes please! These were amazing, crisp hand cut fries drenched in truffle oil– now some reviews say they are greasy– people, this is not grease, this is truffle oil, as in truffle mushroom that are like 1 million dollars a pound (cue Austin Powers, Dr Evil). There was also cheese and parsley and everything you want to like the bowl clean.
Ox tail braised with ravioli — perfectly cooked, tender, rich sauce, large ravioli al dente– bread to pair and scoop sauce and meat, yum! everything perfect… until the taste of cinnamon came through… nope– no me gusta!
Special — soft shell crab, fried crisp a top of creamy polenta– oh my oh my oh my. Perfect dish.
Braised short rib with big old noodles– perfection rich sauce, tender braised meat.
Apps– prosciutto flat bread– ok, but very sweet, lacked balance
Duck liver — yum, creamy with accoutrements to match.
Dessert– beignets, really thick delicious dough balls with green tea ice cream. They were kind enough to give us 4, instead of 3 so there was no fighting!
Wine was perfectly paired, I always gravitate towards blends to go with everything.
So good
Worth the wait
The service and staff was so nice, even when we Waited so long, they made me not so pissed ;-) go
You should
Only 1 pic– you know why… in the belly!

My girlfriend and I came in last saturday night for dinner. We weren’t overly hungry so decided to slowly work through some apps and then split smaller dinner options. We arrived around 8 and grabbed a beer at the bar before we were seated. They had a handful of craft beers on tap, I went for a Jai alai. Restaurant is kinda small so i’d guess a decent wait is usual, but we were seated relatively quickly. Hostess was super friendly.
We started w/​the popular farmhouse flatbread and shrimp and white bean appetizer. The flatbread was great. Lotsa roasted mushrooms, nice bit of arugula, some rich goat cheese and a good bit of balsamic drizzle. More balsamic than most similar flatbreads/​pizzas I’ve had, but it worked and was still very good. The cook on the crust was nice and fairly crispy despite all the liquid-​y veggie toppings. Shrimp app was their take on a standard steamed mussels in wine sauce dish. The broth was nicely flavored, the dipping bread was super tasty and fresh, and the white beans and shrimp worked very well together.
For dinner we split a burger and grilled romaine salad. The romaine was nicely grilled just enough to soften the outer leaves. The creamy blue cheese lemon dressing and the shaved parm cheese made it taste very much like a Cesar salad. I usually dislike Cesar salad but this was still good. Burger was quite simple and that’s how I like them. The bacon jam was light enough to no overpower, and the sharp cheddar was great. Great cook on the beef and overall it hit the spot. She insisted on upgrading to truffle parm fries… too rich for me. I typically don’t like that kinda stuff. fries should be salty. I did mix the some sriracha into the garlic aoli from the truffle fries: magical stuff there. It was perfect on the burger.
As I said as we were leaving: ‘This place is Mill good’. I hate to compare restaurants directly but of the places we’ve been in StPete, these two are certainly the cream of the crop. Can’t wait to go back and get a full entrée.

The sauce on the salad was too much although the greens were good, and although advertised as is the Flatbread was way to sweet and impossible to eat without a bunch of stuff coming off, and then the meatballs. They were good but the polenta with parses an was to strong and although I we didn’t like these dishes, there could be others that are good, so if your checking the others out you could come but I personally would not come back

Absolute deliciousness! The place itself is very pretty. Small touches, such as live flowers add the to ambiance. Love the rustic look. Has that cabin feeling. My husband and I ordered their flatbread to start. It was great! I usually leave my crust, but i gobbled the whole thing for this one. My husband had their burger and said, «it was one of the best ones he’s had» and I got their noodles dish. It had goat cheese and sprouts. Fantastic flavors. Pretty big portion too. Wine selection is pretty large. Our server/​bartender was very friendly and attentive. One of the things that stood out to me is their availability of «Humanely raise» chicken. The chef has admitted that he’s not sure about their pork or beef, but could name the farm where the chickens come from. I will definitely come back for those.

It’s hard to choose a favorite here, but if I had to it might be the poutine appetizer and the espresso rubbed short ribs with just a hint of Brussel sprout flavor. So good! This menu is inventive and delicious. The service is attentive without being pretentious. Lastly, the ambience is hip and romantic. If you haven’t tried this restaurant out yet, you should.

We sought out Brick & Mortar on a beautiful Friday evening. It’s a bit further up on Central, so not in the hustle and bustle, but also not out of the way. We didn’t make a reservation but were able to snag outdoor seats pretty quickly. While we waited, we sat in this little lounge area in the lobby of their building, which is set up with some cute little love seats and wine barrel tables. We decided on a bottle of wine we had been wanting to try, and it was AMAZING. A bit pricey (marked up about 3x the retail price), but very good. The outdoor seating was nice, and fortunately the people at the tables next to us were friendly and not too loud because seating is pretty close. For food, we ordered the grilled romaine salad, octopus, beef carpaccio with ravioli, and chicken liver mousse. The only item that we didn’t absolutely love was the chicken liver. The others were quite delicious and we wouldn’t hesitate to order them again. The service was very good, though we were disappointed that they didn’t offer to change our silverware/​plates after very different types of food (I saw another server do that for the table next to us, but ours did now)…but our server was happy to do so when we made the request. We didn’t get dessert as we wanted to walk around and get dessert on the go, but they looked amazing — I wish we had tried the lavender panna cotta or the bread pudding (which smelled incredible at the table next to ours). We would definitely return!

Excellent service and food. From the moment we walked in the door until the moment we left, all members of the staff we encountered were attentive and friendly. And the food… so good! I had the espresso braised short rib with polenta and brussel sprouts, and my boyfriend had the burger with truffle fries (an upgrade but worth it). We had the beef carpaccio ravioli as a starter, which did not disappoint. Beer and wine only, but great selection. Highly recommended.

In my humble opinion on his is the best restaurant in St. Pete. They don’t take reservations but will take call a heads. They were accommodating when I called. The service was attentive. The wine was fantastic. The food was incredible. We got the chicken liver pâté for an appetizer and it was best chicken liver I’ve had. It was very fresh and they were generous with bringing out extra bread. We also had the salad special that included local veggies beautifully presented. For dinner I had the short rib fat noodles. The noodles were excellent and the rest was well balanced. For dessert the lavender panna cotta was quite good and the donut bread pudding was out of this world, I enjoyed the homemade whipped cream on top. Overall, A+ for drinks, service, atmosphere, and food.

Cool atmosphere, bar maid was perky and attentive, bar stools however… Most uncomfortable seating at the bar !!!
Food delicious

This place is small and we had 11 in our party. The staff was very friendly, accommodating and attentive. During our visit we saw the staff help one another and even the chef came out to talk with tables, before it got busy of course. The food was very good. We had an appetizer assortment ranging from flatbread, fries and the carpaccio, which all I would order again. I then ordered the cobia with white beans and it was very good. Guests around me all ordered either airline chicken or the short rib, both ways. The flat noodles were a table favorite. As for dessert we got an assortment that stood up to the rest of the meal. They carry a lot of local items if you care and the wine/​beer selection was decent.
Good spot :)

This was an excellent meal. The server nailed everything that I wanted in the night on the menu, and each dish was unique and delicious. The polenta in the short rib dish had something going on that I couldn’t put my finger on, but man, oh man. And it’s polenta!
The egg yolk ravioli was beautiful and all of the flowers worked together in a beautiful symphony in my mouth. Wonderful place and wonderful meal!

The restaurant is small, but quaint.
The menu is small as well (six entrees, and three desserts). The food is similar to what you’d get from a catering company — not sophisticated but still flavorful.
Don’t expect much from the staff… Our female server didn’t appear «Food Safe» (if you know what I mean) and her product knowledge is below average. When we asked her questions about the menu, she was very vague in her descriptions unless she read what was written on the menu. I ordered a bottle of wine and the server just «popped» it open (literally, she managed to splash red wine across the table when she took the cork out) and automatically started pouring for other guests at the table. Based on this lack luster experience, I probably won’t return.

The menu is inventive and looks delicious. I opted for truffle fries and the prosciutto flatbread. My friend ordered the sunny side up ravioli over pulled pork. and oxtail.
The service and décor were great. I will say though the bathroom situation is kind of odd but I guess you have to do with what you have.
We decided to sit at the bar and the bartender/​server was great, she was helpful, attentive and informative. She tried help us make decision and gave suggestions based on our tastes.
The flatbread was good but a little hard to eat because it was cut down the midddle. Also for me, I felt like the blue cheese was a bit overpowering with the prosciutto and fig preserves. I also has the truffle fries which I probably wouldn’t order again because the rosemary was a bit strong and the fries were soggy. I did eat half of them since they were $ 11. The manager or owner did come over and apologize and said they should have been crisp and took it off the ticket.
They did a good job with the ravioli, it’s a tough one to perfect. Cook the pasta but don’t over cook the egg. The egg yolk was not totally runny but half of it was which allowed the egg to mix with the pulled meat. My friend enjoyed and though it was delish. I’m going to come back and definitely try an entrée.

St Pete continues to impress. I am so happy I live down here as better and better restaurants continue to pop up. B&M has been on my bookmarks for a while now, but we keep ending up somewhere else. However, my lady said she was in a wine kind-​of-​mood, and as B&M advertises as a wine bar, it ended up being the perfect opportunity.
Lets start with the bad, of which there is none. It is a very small restaurant. I don’t know if they take reservations (they are not on opentable), but if they do, make a reservation. I didn’t count, but there might be a dozen tables, maybe less. The bar isn’t that large either — maybe a dozen bar stools. Happily, when you show up for dinner at 9 PM, restaurants tend to not be on a wait. They were full, but no wait list, so we sat at the bar while we waited for a table to leave. My biggest complaint, and its not really a complaint, are the bar stools. You would think a nice restaurant like this would invest a bit in their bar stools, but these are metal seats that couldn’t be much less comfortable. Thankfully, we were only seated at the bar for a short time.
So what was good? Lets start with the bar — the wine selection isn’t huge, but the glasses they serve are not too pricey (probably what you’d expect at a wine bar; $ 8-​$ 12 range) and they have a good selection. You can try whatever you want as long as they serve it by the glass or otherwise have an open bottle. The bartenders are extremely knowledgeable, and able to describe each one, offer their opinions and an educated suggestion.
We ordered our wine just as a table opened up. Our bar check was transferred to our table and we ended up with one of the bartenders as our server as the regular server was swamped. When it came time to order, I really didn’t want to order the braised short ribs. I can’t tell you how many times recently I have ordered short ribs. I wanted something else. And they had an awesome sounding steak special, but it just didn’t sound as good as the short ribs, so I went with the short ribs. Thank god I did.
Starting with the sides, the parmesan polenta cake was good, but nothing special and not the highlight. The other side was roasted brussel sprout leaves. Let me tell you, if i could eliminate 2 foods from the face of the planet, it would be brussel sprouts and broccoli. I hate them. I used to hate it when my mom would make brussel sprouts growing up, and not because she made me eat them (she didn’t), but because the horrible smell would fill the kitchen and ruin everything else. Anyway, although they are the bane of my existence, these were off the hook. Granted, they were soaking in the juices and sauce from the short ribs, which obviously helped, but these were freaking awesome.
As for the short ribs — they were seared espresso rubbed slow braised short ribs. I never would have thought of rubbing my food in coffee. Thankfully someone did. The meat melts in your mouth and drowns your taste buds in heaven. Maybe one of the best short ribs I have had, and if it wasn’t for the short rib benedict at Ruby Slipper in NOLA, it may be the best. Certainly top one or two dinner short rib plates.
Its a small menu, but its very reasonably priced. We will likely be back at some point, though its a small menu and I’m not sure if anything could be as good as what I got.

Even though we waited a long time it was worth it. The staff here is incredible. Great attention to detail and to the people waiting. Don’t come here in a hurry though. When we finally got a table it was right by he window. Started with the carpaccio which was amazing then had the flank steak special with chimichurri which was awesome. I had the burger., very good! Locale still tops my list by this was really good. The pretzel bun add a zing and the arugula was nice. Can’t go wrong with any thing here. We will return.

Stopped by Brick & Mortar on Wednesday night wanting just wine and desserts with two of my friends. Great decision! The place was packed (even on a Wednesday night!) and we had to wait about 15 – 20 minutes. There aren’t a lot of tables here (maybe 8 inside, plus a bar area, and 4 outside tables), so I can definitely see how long of a wait there would be on the weekends! EEK!
Anyway, once we were sat, our server told us about the 3 dessert offerings they had for the evening (lavender pannacotta, chocolate espresso cake with a ganache on top, and a baked apple dish with cream on top) and recommended a wine that paired well. We ordered all three, plus a bottle of wine. Such a good idea. Wine was delicious, and when we took a bite of the chocolate espresso cake it was like biting into happiness. All three desserts were amazing… it’s hard to pick which one was best because all three were very different and very delicious. The presentation of the food was also perfect, but we all attacked it before we had a chance to take pictures. Oh well! Sorry, Unilocal!
Service was good. Our server was really nice, and the lady seating tables who I assume was a manager of some sort was also quite friendly. She ended up buying us one of our desserts because something was missing that generally comes with the pannacotta but we didn’t even notice because it was so good.
The rest of the menu looked fantastic, and from what I could see of the people around us, the food had great presentation. Really enjoyed everything that we got, and if I’m back in the area soon I’d totally go back.

I was really excited to check out the new Brick & Mortar in downtown St. Pete. The inside of the restaurant has very thoughtful décor. We ended up sitting outside on the patio which had 4 two-​top tables.
My husband and I ordered four appetizers and were pleasantly surprised! The ahi tuna and beef carpaccio were by far the tastiest dishes! For dinner, we split the burger with the bacon jam and it was heavenly! For dessert, we capped it of with the molten lava cake with espresso whipped cream.
All in all, we loved our dining experience at Brick & Mortar. We will definitely be back!

Totally unexpected and complete happiness. From the décor to the service — the ambience is great. But the food is the real star.
I had the grilled romaine but I don’t eat dairy so they subbed for a more citrusy vinagrette — nice touch for a place that just opened.
I debated for a while over a delicious glass of rose — and settled on the espresso short rib with a substitution of truffle fries for the polenta with Parmesan.
Y. U. M.
I will be back on my next business trip to St. Peres.