Would you occasionally drive 30 to 45 minutes for a great dining experience?
We do from time to time. One of the best restaurants in this area has long been 11 Maple in Jensen. Another excellent one is the Yellow Dog Café in Malabar. And recently, we had a superb meal at Djon’s Steak and Lobster House in Melbourne Beach.
For most beachside residents, Djon’s is a 30- to 40-minute straight shot up A1A – less if you live in Orchid or Windsor, a bit more if you live in South Beach.
But the food there is as good as it gets. The very white dining room is truly elegant. And if you crave live music with your dinner, Djon’s offers contemporary and jazz stylings in an adjacent piano bar that you can either enjoy with your meal, or adjourn to on weekends for dancing later.
Djon’s focus, as you might guess from the name, is on steakhouse fare and fresh seafood (including both Maine and Florida lobsters).
On our most recent visit, I started with the seafood crepe Djon ($14) and my husband opted for the escargot ($12).
The Djon crepe was not the French batter crepe we are all familiar with, but was formed from thinly sliced eggplant. This crepe was then filled with nice little shrimp and bay scallops, and topped with a pesto crème sauce. A wonderful appetizer. And the very garlicky pesto crème sauce atop my husband’s escargot was even tastier than the crepe sauce. Two great dishes to start the meal.
We then enjoyed the salads included with all entrées. I chose the house salad, and my husband and our companion both had Djon’s Caesar ($1 extra if you want anchovies).
For entrées, I decided to go with the double-cut Australian lamb chops ($29), my husband could not resist the veal rib chop Djon ($42), and our companion went with the roasted 10 ounce lobster tail ($42).
My perfectly seasoned lamb chops were absolutely wonderful, served with mashed potato and baby green beans. My husband’s huge veal chop, again perfectly prepared, was topped with a gorgonzola spinach sauce. It couldn’t have been more tender or flavorful. And our companion also raved about her roasted lobster tail.
On previous visits, we have enjoyed the seared scallops, served in a roasted garlic cream sauce, and the yellow fin ahi tuna au poivre. Ironically, we have yet to try the steaks at Djon’s, but observed a couple that looked mighty good headed for neighboring tables.
On this evening, we decided to forgo dessert, but have on previous occasions enjoyed the bread pudding.
Dinner here is not inexpensive (wine prices are a bit stiff as well), and the tab for two is likely to run $130 to $150 before tax and tip.
But the daily happy hour around the piano bar from 5 to 7 is a great deal of fun, with $6 martinis, $5 cocktails, and small plates that include filet tips and garlic shrimp and scallops. And beyond the great food, the lounge with its dance floor provides another argument for giving this restaurant a try.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at tina@verobeach32963.com.
The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.
