Great atmosphere, ownership, service. Food the night we were there was not up to expectations however, especially given the pricing - all in our party agreed. Several had been there before more than once and noted it was better on prior visits.Update: back tonight with a party of 8 -outstanding all the way around! Brannon and Stephanie (owners) have done a great job with their new place.Many had the tile fish, also the farm chicken, several appitizers, several of their great specially drinks - outstanding! Danny, among the best anywhere, was the server tonight.They are now open for happy hour 3-5 with excellent offerings and pricing; enjoy the for drinks and stay for the dinner.
Did not expect this place to be as good as it was. Last minute turned out to be one of the best dinners we had in florida. I HIGHLY recommend, like seriously stop looking for other places for dinner and come here…food, service, and atmosphere was amazing… loved every bite.
We got so lucky getting a table of six at Down Island last minute. Everything was exceptional, which is rare for a restaurant. Wood fired oysters had great flavor, the cocktails, wine and beer were excellent, the crab imperial was so good, the leek & crab soup was great, and the barbecue shrimp with homemade Worcestershire was the best I have ever had! Highly recommend
My family has been raving about this place for weeks now! Well last night was my first night there and let me tell you… ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! I have never ever ever ever tasted such delicious food like this place! The $700 dollars we spent there was well worth the atmosphere and food there!!!! Definitely going to be a frequent patron there! Oh and Justin the bartender will definitely take care of you on the bar side! ???? to the CHEF ??.
We have had the pleasure of dining here several times since they opened and we can't say give enough accolades! The menu is delightfully creative and taste bud-tantalizing; unexpected items such as Broiled Octopus small plate and the Korean Fried Broccoli, just to make a couple. We can't get enough, and can't wait for our next visit.Stefani is a bundle of pure delight, and makes sure everyone is treated like the only guests in the house. Her staff is well trained, and their pleasure of service is obvious. Chef Brannon and his kitchen are knocking it out of the park!We are so happy to have Down Island in the "neighborhood"!!
I have been extremely excited to try Down Island and had set out a featured item in each category of the menu lol. My friend had the Black Bear sourdough topped with lobster and various sprouts and baby greens. Very tasty! I started with a dozen raw oysters. Two mignonettes, both delicious. The red wine one had me literally finishing the little bowl. And the horseradish? I have never tasted anything like this. The ice cold oyster topped with a delicious heap of creamily piquant horseradish followed insantly by the fiery afterburn of fresh horseradish. Next on the menu was the leek, crab soup. It was simply divine. The Matchstick potatoes Blended seamlessly with the creaminess of the soup. The main entree was extremely extremely hard to choose. I ended up with the Kings table farm chicken. I am not a huge consumer of chicken but they sold me at homemade parpadelle pasta. I am always in search of the perfect bite and there was not one bite and my Kings Table chicken that was not perfection. All of the sauces and seasoning and just great preparation made this a true culinary experience. I was excited to dine here and I cannot wait to come back. Also, Justin, the bartender made me amazing drinks! The pomegranate margarita is worth the trip simply because of the amazing color. The absinthe cocktail was just the right amount of flavor. I will definitely be back but also singing your praises to all who will listen. Bravo!
This is the best food I’ve had in Santa Rosa Beach so far! The menu is inspired using local ingredients. Additionally, we loved the cocktail menu- most notably the Big Duck Energy. Better try it now before it becomes too hard to get a table.
What an incredible night!!!! We arrived around 8 and they sat us down immediately, upon entering the place the vibe seemed very different to what is usual in the area, as an appetizer I ordered the bbq shrimp, even though I don't like bbq, I decided to try them and I LOVED THEM! ! the sauce had a very homemade flavor, being very smooth, my 5 friends and I tried the dishes of the others and all of them without exception were delicious, my favorite was the pappadelli pasta, the presentation of the dishes is BEAUTIFUL!!! and everything looks neat. For dessert we tried blueberry pie and pistachio cremee brulee, and although I don't prefer sweet things, I loved them!!! since the flavor was very mild.The attention was excellent!!! Everything felt in order and in its place, the vibe of the restaurant flows with the food and the attention.We had the opportunity to meet the owner of the place and we could not feel more welcome, she told us that the pottery was made by them, WOOW!!!I can't explain how satisfied I felt to have visited this place, I'm new to the area and I've had several disappointments in other restaurants to the point of preferring to cook at home, we'll be back soon!!! Thank you for making us spend such a beautiful night!!!
Amazing food and excellent service. We arrived around 8:30 and were seated immediately.Our waiter and all the staff were very welcoming, friendly, and very knowledgeable about the menu and provided the best service. The interior design was very unique and gave us a relaxing vibe.We started with the lobster bites and BBQ shrimp for appetizers, which were amazing and plated beautifully. The crawfish was fresh from Louisiana and paired with the parpadelle pasta made from scratch by Chef Janca. For my main entree, I had the chicken farmhouse with mashpotatoes that were very tasty and well made.The desserts were bomb! Our favorite was the wood-fired blueberry pie, hands down one of the best desserts I've ever had. Our entire meals were flavorful and plated so beautifully.The handcrafted water cups gave a homey feeling, and later, we found that the owner and Chef Jenca made those for the restaurant.I can't say enough good things about this place; It's was definitely an amazing experience.
Ate here last week at the bar. Had pretty low expectations, but it was great!!The fried broccoli was not what we expected. We thought it'd be pan fried, but it's battered and deep fried. It's definitely a gut bomb but it's soooo tasty. I couldn't figure out how they got such an awesome smoky flavor. Loved the rice noodles as well (wish there were more). I could probably make a meal out of this dish.The BBQ shrimp was solid - nicely cooked in a tasty sauce.The fried oyster salad was pretty bland, but some salt and pepper made it shine. The oysters were very plump and tasty.The octopus was the highlight. We've had pretty bad experiences in the past where it ends up being fishy or rubbery or both. This was neither! The celery root (I think) puree went great with it.Now I'm hungry!