The Serving Spoon

Great breakfast, tasty fresh fruit, good selection, good bread. Eggs, pancakes, specials, muffins. Something for everyone!

An excellent breakfast
For my visit today I selected their Ham and Mushroom Skillet. It was excellent. It had two types of cheese that had some flavor. Too often when I eat out cheeses are so mild that you hardly notice so this was nice.
I was also happy to discover by checking in on Unilocal I earned a free cup of coffee. No problem, I just showed the screen to my server. Service was fine and I got my skillet in good time. Something I find odd, it has happened a couple of times to me now. When a server learns that I’m on Unilocal by showing a coupon or something, they don’t appear to make a little more effort to give good service.
Anyway, my visit was fine and the food excellent. I thought it was a very good start to my day.

In summary, it was ok. The place was clean and seating was immediate.
The coffee, which came first, was actually quite bad. Weak and flavorless.
The sunny side eggs were a bit runny, and the hash browns, which had the appearance of good, were sort of bland and flavorless. The link sausage was atrocious. The toast was done the way I like it (dark) but lacked any flavor.
If «ok» is a reason to go back, I guess I’d go back, but for $ 20.00, a breakfast should really be a bit more interesting. Without mentioning any names, I’ll go back to Fruitville Road, where I was headed in the first place.

Yummy, cute and deep in the artsy community. Gluten free options and fresh juice!

Biscuits and gravy were ok. Bacon was tasteless. Egg was alright. English muffin was good. Orange juice is like first watch, so it’s pretty good. The rancheros was eh, too many beans. Potatoes were bland. Wouldn’t be the first place I’d go to but the service was amazing.

First time but not my last — by far! How I missed this little gem of a place– I just don’t know. The restaurant is small and quaint and spotless. Our server, Christie, was helpful, personable and professional and JUST delightful! I had the Veggies and Spud and it was delicious! Everything was fresh and pretty and appealing! I would recommend The Serving Spoon to anyone. I look forward to trying the lunch menu. We met the very charming owner, Natasha. Nice job! :). Looking forward to see y’all again very soon :).

Typical neighborhood breakfast place, normal breakfast fare, salads and sandwiches, oh, yes and hair! I found a black hair in my eggs, of course I completely lost my appetite… the server told me that it was an eyelash, one big eyelash. I will probably think twice before eating there again.

This place was so great, that even with all the restaurants to choose from, we came back and braved a flash flood for brunch the next day!!! We walked in SOAKED! The sweet waitress brought me some paper towels after I joked about it, and 2 coffees, an amazing salad and omelet later, we were again, so happy, and can’t wait to go back!

I’ll start with: the people were nice and the service was good.
Everything else: tired, dated and uninspired.
Here’s the breakdown:
The décor /​atmosphere: as warm as a hospital cafeteria. Old tiled floors, dated booths, framed and crooked kids art on the white walls, blond wood chairs and bar seats. 1982 called and wants their furniture back!
The food: as good as an airport lounge. Hollandaise sauce looked grayish and a day old, English muffins looked and tasted stale, canned jalapeños, cheese was clustered and smothered on the eggs. Nothing about any of the food showed any hint of pride or inspiration.
Overall (other than the people) simply terrible. This place needs a serious overhaul, but is likely in business simply because it’s the only place around.

I visited The Serving Spoon back in January with my family that lives in the Sarasota area. They recommended it and said The Serving Spoon is a popular breakfast place around Sarasota. It’s located on what feels like the main street of a small town. There are several small shops and restaurants surrounded by residential areas. If you were blindfolded and had it removed in front of The Serving Spoon, you’d probably think you were in Small Town USA. For that reason, I’d recommend visiting The Serving Spoon simply to get away from the hustle and bustle of Sarasota.
After a short wait, our group was seated. The menu is fairly large and everyone found something they liked. The food was decent, if not average diner fare. We got good service and everyone had a good time. I was trying to think of why this place was so popular with locals. I think it’s the fact that it’s an old time diner nestled into a big city. It seems like a decent, old fashioned diner experience is getting harder to find this days and The Serving Spoon is a good choice if that’s what you’re looking for. A relaxed atmosphere, decent food, and a classic diner experience make the Spooning Spoon a decent pick for breakfast in the Sarasota area.

Tried this little spot a couple weeks ago. Breakfast was good. They provided gluten free bread for husband with celiac. That always impresses us.

What a wonderful find! Enjoyed a delicious brunch today with outstanding service. Love that this restaurant is cozy and comforting. Traditional fare offered with many other options. Only request would be to add Chorizo to their Mexican offerings. We’ll definitely go back!

Stopped in for breakfast this morning. Got a free coffee for checking in. Nice. Prices were very reasonable. I had a wholewheat pancake with blueberries and bananas. It was a giant pancake, couldn’t eat it all. Had to pay extra for real maple syrup, never have had to that before, but it was very good. Server was nice it was a cute place. I would go back again.

So this was our first time here, despite being snowbirds in Siesta for a long time. What a great find! My companion was thrilled to see Creamed Chipped Beef on Toast on the special and I ordered a quinoa/​black bean skillet. Jordan was our server and he was solicitous, helpful and very speedy. The meals were delicious and we wished we had room for what looked to be great pastries on the special boards as well.
The restaurant had a good ambiance — nice tables and booths, and sufficient room for folks to walk through the restaurant without feeling like you were disturbing other guests.
We also benefited from the Free Coffee for Checking in, and I did appreciate that Jordan asked us if we had heard about the Serving Spoon on Unilocal.
We arrived on a Sunday morning at 8:30 and it was pretty empty — by 9:00 am the place was jumping. They also have a large well layed out bar, and I liked that it had a step to put your feet on so your feet wouldn’t be dangling while eating. A great find for us!

Great breakfast this morning. I had a made to order omelette, with sausage, peppers, onions, and feta (the feta addition added great flavor. My side was tomatoes, with were fresh and delicious. It cost just over $ 10 before tip. I would recommend this place as a great start to a day! One star off for waiting at the front for some time before being seated.. .and there was no one else!

Love this casual, unfancy breakfast/​brunch spot! Consistently good food at reasonable price points and the staff is attentive and polite. They offer gluten free toast which is a win and they always are very helpful at finding out what is and isn’t gluten free — offering suggestions and substitutions. I’d like to see them expand their gluten free menu by offering gluten free French Toast and Pancakes at some point but that’s merely a suggestion. It is a busy place but you can typically get in and get seated within a reasonable amount of time. I’ve always had a good meal there and frequent it and that’s saying something because Sarasota has tons of great restaurants!

Gotta love a place that serves breakfast all day. Well they are only open until lunch time but still nice that you can get breakfast during business hours.
Loads of options with generous portions. The menu has the usual and not so usual options. Gluten free pancakes, quinoa power bowl, omelets as well as burritos. They also have bakery items such as scones, muffins and breads.
Service was quick, efficient and everything you want in a breakfast place. They also have a lunch menu.
My veggie omelet came out perfect and hash browns crispy good.
Don’t forget your free coffee with check in. Coffee is where they lost a star. Well more like half a star. Would go back again.

One of my favorite places for breakfast in the area. They have delicious juices, fresh baked toasted muffins and rolls and interesting specials– like the croissant with ham, egg, Brie, apples and raspberry preserves. The omelets and pancakes are always perfect and they are generous with their fruit. The only item that doesn’t live up to expectations were the home potatoes, which were dry.

Cute place. Food I admit was very good. My wife and I were pleased with our choices. The reason this place only gets two stars was the service. We went there this morning after work and Andrea W was our server. She was very cold and made us feel like you were bothering her just for coming in. She took our order with an attitude and when she brought the food she just them on the table and walked away. Didn’t check on us for refills of water and coffee for a good while. It was just like she didn’t want to be bother. Lastly she walked by and put the check on the table didn’t ask if we wanted anything else just dropped it and kept walking. After running the card she did the same thing and I thanked her anyway to be nice and got no response. No «thanks for coming» «have a nice day» nothing but a cold shoulder. So like I said although the food was good the experience as a whole made me never want to return.

Nice family owned business. Always busy on the weekends for breakfast. The menu items are pretty consistent and tasty. A very convenient location if you live in the Hillview area.

It was so-​so. Not a great selection of breakfast foods. The chipped beef and gravy was good, but the corned beef hash had No potatoes. I’ve never had hash with out potatoes. Service was not great. Only thing I liked was how fast the food was served.

The food is consistently great and the specials are interesting and give you different options from most other breakfast places. Staff is friendly, although look fairly harassed when it’s busy. A good go to place to make part of your routine.
As they say at the bottom of their menu their kitchen can’t be guaranteed to be gluten free. One time out of the dozen I’ve been there I had a reaction with bloating, headache, the whole gluten shebang. Just a thought for you sensitive gluten intolerant people out there.

Prompt, the food is on point. Great place for morning after recovery. The sheepherder and Greek wrap were really good.

Highly recommend this breakfast/​brunch restaurant. The staff is always very friendly, warm and hospitable. The Serving Spoon is locally owned and definitely has that «mom-​pop» feel. Their oatmeal with quinoa & berries is my go to every time. Next time you’re in SRQ check this place out. I can promise you. it will not disappoint!

This place has a good diner feel with friendly staff. I was happy with the «Jmans breakfast sandwich.» My friend ordered the Parkers omelette and it was delicious.

Wonderful little place with great breakfast and homemade muffins. Also a good selection organic offerings. Fresh juice menu. Seems a large regular patronage. Beth was my waitress. She was super friendly and made me feel welcome.

Great Food! Handcrafted corned beef hash is the real deal! My family and I will continue to come back!

This is the second time I’ve been here and I still agree with my previous comment. The service is quick and friendly, the food is fresh and delicious, and the place is clean.
This time, I ordered the Sheikra Scramble special, which has crumbled goat cheese on top. Very good!

What a disappointment.
I’m visiting the area on business and decided to try The Serving Spoon based upon their positive reviews. Also, because it seems to be one of the only places nearby to offer a Breakfast Burrito.
That should read Breakfast «Burrito». What I received contained broccoli and zucchini. Ok, I’m open minded but seriously? Broccoli? Anyway. No beans. Meat was extra. To top it all off, it was folded more like a crêpe than anything. See the photo.
Burritos are designed to be picked up. They should be wrapped up. They should contain a certain amount of traditional Mexican ingredients. This whole thing was perplexing at best.
My «burrito» was served with a side order of home fries, which were flavorless and greasy. They seemed to have been sitting for quite some time and I was there around 9:30am.
Now for the positives!
The waitress was wonderful. Exceedingly polite, accommodating (including a table change) and attentive. I used a check-​in reward via Unilocal!for a free coffee, which she had not known existed but happily obliged without «having to check».
The restaurant was clean, maintained and moderately busy.
Perhaps this restaurant exceeds in other areas with regards to their food.