THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Opus 39

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Opus 39 Restaurant Review:

A softly-lit, sparely furnished, intimate eatery at the edge of St. Augustine's historic district, Opus 39 draws an interesting mix of neighborhood regulars and Jacksonville-area foodies. Owner-chef Michael McMillan offers two menu options---a three-course prix-fixe or a five-course prix-fixe---both with two to three choices per course. The menu changes nightly, although some dishes, like seared duck breast with sweetbreads and Brussels sprouts ragoût, make return appearances. Opus 39 specializes in unique preparations of unusual or specialized ingredients, such as heirloom tomatoes, purple fingerling potatoes, black trumpet mushrooms and wild boar. Desserts may be infused with cherry tobacco essence or just kissed with fresh local berries and citrus. Wine lovers will swoon over Opus 39's wine cellar. Because of bizarre zoning restrictions, Opus 39 doesn't have a wine menu per se. Instead, it has an attached wine cellar-wine store at the rear of the building. Patrons can peruse the shelves, pick something from the well-rounded collection, buy it by the bottle or glass and carry it to their table. The restaurant walls also serve as a revolving art gallery for talented local painters.