What a waste of time and money
Service was inept, food was of poor quality and the prices were very high.    [05 Nov 2005 13:47:35]

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     ­Jim Clegg   jcleggfla at aol dot com

Bad night or just plain awful
I have been to the restaurant only two times and had mixed reviews from neighbors and friends. The restaurant is very trendy and pleasant inside and appears very upscale (despite being in a strip mall).
My first visit was a Saturday evening around 6PM. The restaurant was not crowded less than 1/3 of the tables occupied. I called in advance for reservations and asked if they had prime rib on their menu. "yes, Sat and Sun only!)
Joy! I was looking forward to the prime rib. At 6:05 when we ordered, unfortunately our waitress said they were out.
Hmmm, seemed a bit early to be out and I thought if they cooked even 1 or 2 that would have meant every single dinner there had ordered it, oh well. Bad luck. I ordered the lamb (medium), which the waitress raved about. When presented with it, it was rare to medium rare and very fatty. Not pleased, she sent it back and they cooked it further. Still not thrilled with it, but for times sake, ate about ½ of it.
My husband had a filet which he loved. Our waitress was very, very professional and kind. She made it worth coming back again to try.
Second visit: four of us this time. Our waiter (don’t remember his name) had no experience on how to wait tables. (Dude, that’s cool type of guy, yeah)
Tuna appetizer (after one taste) was inedible and sent back by one diner, the veal ordered by another the same and sent back. The diner that ordered the veal said it was clearly rotten meat and did not feel well for the rest of the evening. Two diners ordered strip steak (had the same quality of meat at Sizzler, thin, and dry) and the last diner’s fish and potatoes were brought to her cold on her plate.
This was not a busy night and there were only 2 other occupied tables. I noticed the man eating solo at a nearby table sent his filet back, unsure why, but requested that no replacement be brought out.
The manager came out and was gracious, removed the tuna and veal from our check and brought out small desserts (which was thoughtful).
They never asked to reheat the fish/potatoes meal or how our streaks were though.
Very poor service from the wait staff. All in our party decided we would not return.
Shame, I thought Ocala may still have hope for some nicer restaurants.    [17 Nov 2005 07:41:23]

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     ­Anonymous   

Well, we liked it...
I must be the only person who enjoyed the restaurant, and wrote about it. We shared the calamari appetizer, as well as the stuffed London broil entre. To finish we had the little desserts, the blueberry and chocolate ones. While our waitress was questionable as far as service, it was at the end of the night. (we were the last party) But the chef/owner came out multiple times, and was extremely friendly. The flavors of food are different, but that is the style of the restaurant. It is fusion, and the menu has many very different items. Walking up to the storefront, you'd never guess the inside would be so nice. The ambiance was beautiful. I would return. And we have used them for events, the food was again fantastic, the the service was again lacking. But the food makes up for it.    [05 Apr 2006 06:32:13]

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     ­Anonymous   

Terrible treatment from manager
I have been to this restaurant a few times since I live nearby. Service tends to be slow and you could end up waiting 20 or 30 minutes for your bill (after you've finished) unless you manage to snag your server as they go by. Yesterday, however, I got by far the worst service I've ever gotten in this town, and only the second worst I've ever gotten in my life.

This place charges full price ($1.99) for a half-size drink for a child in a flimsy cup. Didn't finish your drink in the restaurant but want a take-out cup to pour it in and take it with you? That's yet another $1.99 too (on top of the initial $1.99 you already paid). It doesn't matter if you didn't even get one refill, that flimsy cup is really gonna cost ya. Oh yeah, and don't expect the server to warn you (or your blind mother that asked for it) that there is an extra charge for that cup. Got a coupon? Don't expect them to honor it. They flat out refused to remove the charge that should have been covered by the coupon. Got a problem? Don't expect the manager to come and rectify it- he'll just let the very busy waitress go back and forth between him and the customers so she can do his dirty work.

Overpriced, but even worse- appalling service. Ocala is way better than this. Avoid this place at all costs.    [29 Apr 2006 15:14:13]

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     ­Anonymous, Ocala   

Excellent food and service
Excellent meal, had a chicken Reuben w/ spicy sauce..very delicious, and had great service. Waiter was very nice and courteous, and owner/manager was a very nice gentleman. Will definatly eat here again. Probably the best food in Ocala.    [18 Aug 2006 17:32:50]

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Recommended Dishes: all

     ­Anonymous   

Overall experience good, but some flaws
Four of us arrived at around 6:40 PM without a reservation. Despite the fact that there were clearly six unoccupied and already set-up tables in the dining area, we were told that there would be a five minute wait for a table.

The fifty-something and somewhat frumpy hostess had zero personality.

The menu was interesting and varied.

Glasses of water were served with straws protruding from them (a big black mark for a restaurant aspiring to class).

The wine list was more than adequate, if a tad pricey.

The French Onion Soup was all that it should be.

I have had Osso Buco many times in various parts of the world, but never a Pork Osso Buco.

It was very very good - the pork was extremely tender. The fact that it was served on a bed of whipped potatoes (instead of the traditional rice) was a bit odd.

The Tiramisu was a disaster, served as a square lump of something, covered in some sort of sauce. The layers of the thing were so sauce/cheese (or whatever) laden, that if there had ever been any coffee or liquor in this glop, the flavors were long-gone and overpowered.

I first discovered (and became addicted to) tiramisu in London nearly 20 years ago. Since that time, I have sampled it in many restaurants on four continents.

During that time I have discovered that tiramisu can be served in many formats (all the way from mousse format to solid cake format). That being said, the basic ingredients are nearly always present. The Copper Pot, sad to say, hasn't a clue.

Service was adequate.
   [11 Nov 2006 09:24:11]

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     ­John   

It's Ocala dining what did you expect?
My boyfriend and I went to the copper pot for our 2nd year anniversary.
The layout of the restaurant was a little cramped for my taste but still quite lovely.
I had order a pot roast dish that was excellent!! My boyfriend being vegetarian was also pleasantly surprised at there being more then just 1 vegetarian friendly dish there, he order I believe it was called the Jasmine rice dish and loved it.
The waiter was a bit young and seemed to be new or just have no clue what he was doing. Very nice and polite however and it took him a bit to remember to bring us our wine but was very polite again and apologized for forgetting.
Overall the atmosphere was nice, the staff friendly and the food excellent.    [09 Jan 2007 13:30:44]

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Recommended Dishes: All

     ­Anonymous   

What a drink!
My husband and I visited the Martini Bar on a Friday night. We were pleasantly surprised. Having dined in the restaurant quite a few times, with both good and bad experiences, we were unsure of what to expect in the lounge. There were two bartenders working that evening, one male and one female. We were promptly greeted by the female bartender who we have noticed working there before. She was very pleasant and helping to the two of us.

My husband and I had never experienced martini's quite like the ones available on their extensive martini list. Although the lounge was very busy that night, she took the time to go through the list with us, explaining what we could expect from each of the drinks. After careful deliberation my husband and I decided on the Key lime Martini and the French Martini. Both were outstanding!

We also ordered the stuffed mushrooms on our bartender's recommendation. Our food was served at perfect temperature and presented in quite a unique manner. Once again, we were pleasantly surprised. The mushrooms were superb being stuffed with Gorgonzola cheese and crab meat. I would certainly recommend the Martini bar to anyone, especially a first time martini drinker. Let me also give kudos to the decor of the lounge. It's the only one of its kind in Ocala and offers a perfect ambiance. The music that evening was great as well    [18 Feb 2007 02:41:08]

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     ­Anonymous   

What a great place to go with friends
Great food but even better great drinks.
Great place to go when you don't want to be rushed and have a great dinner. save room for desert!    [09 Apr 2007 13:58:52]

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Recommended Dishes: Oso bucco 'pork shank' don't know how to spell it.

     ­Eddie Mills   

Big tip for poor service and food
We were a party of 8. We sat at the "chef's" table. It took us 2.5 hours to have the meal. Obviously the service was slow; the server didn't take the order until an hour after we sat down. The food when it finally came arrived in trickles. It was lukewarm.

The soup had a skin on it, the vegetables were cold, substitutions to what was ordered were made without notifying the diner. The biggest screw up was the check. We wanted two checks. When they arrived the dinners were all mixed up. We sent them back and they returned even more mixed. Keep in mind the bill was close to $500.00.

The final insult to this poor service cold food performance was they had the nerve to add a 15% tip to the bill without asking. They were not deserving of a tip let alone almost $75.00 for all the poor service. Needless to say I will not return to the Copper Pot ever!    [06 May 2007 10:32:38]

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     ­Dale Woodland, Ocala resident   dwoodlan at otowhomes dot com