Plan Your Visit · St. Augustine, Florida
Where to Eat in St. Augustine
Four and a half centuries of Spanish, Minorcan, and Southern influence have given the Oldest City a food culture all its own — from candlelit colonial dining rooms to a fried-shrimp institution worth crossing the bridge for.
Taste the Datil Pepper
St. Augustine's signature flavor is the datil — a fiery, fruity pepper grown here since the Minorcan settlers of the 1700s and found almost nowhere else on Earth. Look for it in Minorcan clam chowder, hot sauces, and datil-spiked specials all over town. It's the taste of the Oldest City.
The Special-Occasion Standard · Reserve Ahead
Collage
60 Hypolita Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
An intimate, art-filled dining room on a colonial lane, widely considered the finest restaurant in St. Augustine. Globally influenced seafood and steaks, flawless service, and a romantic glow that makes it the default choice for anniversaries and proposals. Dinner nightly — reservations essential.
HoursDinner nightly from 5pm
Southern Fine Dining · Lincolnville
Preserved Restaurant
102 Bridge Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Refined Southern cooking with locally sourced produce and seafood, served in a beautifully restored 19th-century house in historic Lincolnville. Dine inside, on the broad porch, or in the citrus-shaded courtyard. One of the most celebrated kitchens in northeast Florida.
TipReservations recommended, especially weekends
Peruvian · Anastasia Island
Llama Restaurant
415 Anastasia Boulevard, St. Augustine, FL 32080
Exquisite Peruvian cuisine in an intimate room across the Bridge of Lions — ceviches, lomo saltado, and artfully plated tasting dishes that have earned a devoted following far beyond St. Augustine. Beer and wine only; worth every minute of the drive over the bridge.
HoursDinner nightly from 5pm
Fresh Florida Seafood · Colonial Quarter
Catch 27
40 Charlotte Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Locally caught Florida seafood in a charming historic house steps from the plaza — the menu changes with the day's catch, and dishes like the Rockefeller-crusted snapper show why locals book this one for date night. Reservations strongly recommended.
HoursDinner nightly from 5pm
Spanish & Cuban Landmark · Founded 1905
Columbia Restaurant
98 St. George Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Florida's grand old Spanish restaurant, right on St. George Street — fountain courtyards, hand-painted tile, tableside-tossed 1905 Salad, paella, and pitchers of sangria. A landmark experience that belongs on every first-timer's list. Reservations recommended.
New Orleans Flavors · Famously Haunted
Harry's Seafood Bar & Grille
46 Avenida Menendez, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Cajun and Creole favorites — shrimp creole, jambalaya, crab cakes — in a centuries-old bayfront house with a lush courtyard and live music. The building is one of the most haunted in the city: ask your server about Catalina, the resident spirit who never left her family home.
Bayfront Seafood · In a Haunted 18th-Century House
O.C. White's Seafood & Spirits
118 Avenida Menendez, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Fresh seafood, famous clam chowder, and bay views from a 1790s house across from the marina — a building with a long reputation for unexplained activity that the staff will happily tell you about. The shaded courtyard is one of the loveliest lunch spots on the bayfront.
HoursLunch & dinner daily
The Fried Shrimp Institution · Since 1965 · Cash Only
O'Steen's Restaurant
205 Anastasia Boulevard, St. Augustine, FL 32080
A no-frills landmark across the Bridge of Lions serving the most famous fried shrimp in Florida, with Minorcan clam chowder spiked with local datil pepper. Expect a line, bring cash, and order the shrimp with pink sauce — it's the law. Closed Sunday and Monday.
HoursTue–Sat, 11am–8:30pm · Cash only
The Floridian
485 Old Beach Road, St. Augustine, FL 32080
Beloved farm-to-table Southern comfort food — the Biscuits & Belly is legendary — now in a charming house with a big patio on the island side. Excellent vegetarian and vegan options too.
Pizza Time
124 St. George Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
The famous slice shop on St. George Street, regularly ranked among the best pizza in America. The line moves fast and the slices are enormous. Cash only — there's an ATM inside.
Gas Full Service Restaurant
9 Anastasia Boulevard, St. Augustine, FL 32080
A funky converted filling station just over the Bridge of Lions, slinging some of the best burgers in town — locally sourced, ground daily, char-grilled. A true locals' favorite.
Mojo Old City BBQ
5 Cordova Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Slow-smoked barbecue steps from the City Gate and the parking garage — brisket, pulled pork, towering onion rings, and banana pudding. Easy, satisfying, and right where you parked.
Salt Water Cowboys
299 Dondanville Road, St. Augustine, FL 32080
Old Florida fish camp on the salt marsh south of the beaches — fried shrimp, oysters, gator tail, and sunset views over the grass. Worth the drive for the atmosphere alone.
Aunt Kate's
612 Euclid Avenue, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Waterfront seafood on the Tolomato River at Vilano Beach, on a site that's been feeding travelers for over a century. Come for the river views, stay for the cornbread basket.
Mayday Handcrafted Ice Cream
100 St. George Street #J, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Small-batch handcrafted ice cream right on St. George Street — order a flight of six mini scoops with waffle chips and thank us later. One of the highest-rated sweet stops in the city.
The Hyppo Gourmet Ice Pops
48 Charlotte Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
A St. Augustine original — gourmet popsicles in wild all-natural flavors (champagne mango, datil strawberry) made with real fruit. The perfect handheld antidote to a Florida afternoon.
The Kookaburra
18 Cathedral Place, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Australian-style coffee house on the plaza — flat whites, iced Drop Bears, and authentic Aussie meat pies. The essential morning stop before a day of exploring, open early.
Claude's Chocolate
6 Granada Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Handcrafted artisan chocolates, truffles, and gelato across from Flagler College, made by a Belgian-trained chocolatier. Small, charming, and dangerously good.