columbia restaurant

this is a big, beautiful eatery on the water with a view that one can just imagine. our waiter, stephano, was helpful, attentive, & charming.

as for the food, it was good. the 1905saladwas a little too acidic for our taste (vinegar & lemon) but had the goodies we like in a great salad, i. e. julienne ham, swiss cheese, manzanilla olives, shredded romano, chucks of tomatoes, & my preferred lettuce, iceberg. my gambas "al ajillo" was the spanish tapa version of shrimp scampy with 6 medium shrimps & a load of garlic. the croquetas de langosta were tasty but had no discernable lobster meat & just a drizzle of sauce.

my wife's grilled red snapper was ok. our pitcher of red sangria prepared at the table was good, & the warm, crusty, cuban bread a welcome accompaniment. the tab: $102 ( tax & tip incl) for 2 tapas, 1 entree, 2 side 1905s', & 1 pitcher of red sangria. .

we'd certainly return, but would still rank vizcaya as our top pick for spanish food.

excellent food and excellent service. today the gazpacho soup and 1905saladwere especially good. beautiful view of inter coastal waterway from our table. darlene, today's server, was friendly, professional and efficient. highly recommend.

classic spanish / cuban cuisine in an enormous beautiful setting on the water. the famous housesaladis simple abut delicious and well worth a try. all of their traditional spanish dishes are done right for an american crowd (i don't think most americans actually enjoy the high levels of salt and brine that you commonly find if you're eating out in spain). the selection of fresh seafood and availability of several cuban fusion dishes makes for a very interesting menu. the sangria is also delicioso and there is a great list of wines by the bottle as well to pick from.

1905saladis amazing. everything we've gotten here is great. except for the queso and that's just because its not queso (marinara).

nice alternative. i recently stayed on clearwater beach for a week with a group of friends and we ate pretty much everywhere! i'm a big fan of cuban food so i wanted to eat at the columbia as an alternative to the seafood places were were dining at. the flank steak and black beans and rice were delicious and so was the 1905salad- the restaurant needs a face lift but the food hit the spot! the sangria was pretty good too! a little pricey for cuban food but overall good experience - service was good!

old and worn out - the food tasted the same. i just didn't think this columbia lived up to the one we frequently dine at in st. augustine. it just felt old and run down. the furniture definitely needs to be updated. i was shocked to see old green plastic chairs being use for the waterside dining. the view was beautiful, and i enjoyed the open airy feel, but it's just not what i expected out of the columbia. we started with the red sangria. it was good, however i noticed the pitcher it was being served in was chipped and broken. why not throw it out? i guess it matches the worn out surroundings. the 1905saladand cuban bread were as good as the st. augustine columbia, however our entrees left a lot to be desired. i always order the palomilla. it is my favorite dish. my husband is cuban and we make this at home quite often, but it's always been my favorite when dining at the columbia. this came out virtually tasteless. it's as if they put no seasoning on it at all. my husband ordered the camarones rellenos (stuffed shrimp). he ate the shrimp but said the rice and veggies were so overcooked they were mush. i believe our bill was around $75 before tip. i do not believe it was worth that kind of money. we will be avoiding this columbia next time we're in the area and stick to the one closer to home.