The Ivy House Restaurant

This is, by far, the best restaurant I have ever eaten at. I felt like I was at my grandmothers table again. The food is that good. The ambiance is wonderful. I highly recommend.

This quaint little restaurant located in an old house in the small town of Williston FL, serves primarily southern type food. It is good and very popular with the locals but on a scale of 1 – 10, I would give it a 7. We made a reservation since our party consisted of eight people. However when we arrived we had to wait 15 – 20 minutes to be seated because the restaurant had not truly reserved our table. First time I had ever made a reservation and still had to wait! Our waitress was very nice and the food came out quickly.

We used to visit the Ivy House in Alachua which closed a few years ago. Very disappointed in that! Decided to have lunch a day before Valentine’s Day & we chose The Ivy House in Williston. Beautiful old house with lovely grounds. We were seated right away. Server was friendly. Very quiet place to have lunch or dinner. Food was awesome. I had the crispy chicken, mac & cheese, stewed tomatoes, cornbread, roll & a salad for $ 13. Everything was delicious & piping hot. My husband had fried shrimp & cod. Delicious! The cornbread was moist. Mac & cheese was very cheesy & some of the best I have had. Fried shrimp were large butterfly with a wonderful spicy tartar sauce. The stewed tomatoes were yummy. I asked what they put in them. A little sugar & ritz crackers was all they would divulge. Definitely will be back.

Needed a restaurant halfway between my moms house and my aunts house so we picked the Ivy house. What a quaint restaurant. Atmosphere was delightful. Service was attentive. Food was quite yummy. They did replace an over cooked chicken dish that was overlooked with no question. Very enjoyable evening and would go back.

Not the worst, but not that great either. I don’t feel the quality of the food was worth the price you pay. I went with a large party (25 people) and there was only ONE waitress that tended to us. The steak I ordered was $ 24 and was ok at best, but the salad that came with it looked like the size of a salad a kid would eat. The environment fits well close to the historical Ocala district, but I feel that’s what you’re really paying for.

I lived in Williston many years and this was by far the best place I ate next to Leonardo’s 706… Took my mom here for Mother’s day every year.
I can’t wait to get back to Fl as I will be making a road trip to have dinner here!!!

I absolutely LOVE the Ivy House! I have visited the Ocala, Williston, and Alachua restaurants and as a teacher, have even brought my entire Kindergarten and First Grade classes to the restaurants as a special «Mommy and Me» event. All of the ladies have been amazing and have bent over backwards to make sure that every need was met.
I also chose the Williston location as a treat to all of my bridesmaids after a day of wedding gown shopping. The staff was amazing and the food was delicious! I would recommend «The Ivy House» to ANYONE looking for a great restaurant to enjoy homemade southern cuisine and attentive staff!

Don’t go there if you only have a lunch break. Don’t go there if you want hot food. I went there with some coworkers for lunch, and we told the waitress that we really needed to get back to work. We had made reservations but it took them 15 minutes to seat us. When we sat down it took another 20 minutes for them to take our order. Then it took another 20 minutes to get our food. Only the plates were hot.

Just passing through town, and stopped in for lunch. Very generous portion of fried shrimp with sides, plus a salad. Really liked it!

Went to Ivy House on the recommendation of a friend. Cute B&B look from the outside and a pic of Bobby Flay’s visit. They are NOT afraid to tell you that their food is VERY good and that the this or that is homemade. Salad was pretty great with ranch dressing that I’d douse my children with to show them what true love is. I got fried cod which was delicious. Green beans, sweet potatoes, and carrots were awesome! Fries were so-​so and onion rings were ok. In general, the place was full of fascinating Southern people dressed up in clothes I’d never seen before. It felt like the 1980s and I enjoyed being in a time warp. However, after eating there, my stomach hurt a lot!!! My friend had to stop at the gas station on the way home because of being in such gastric distress. I think the food is good overall, but you’d better have an iron stomach. Another option is to come for the Southern charm and just drink some water and watch other people eat.

Like previous reviews, this place is overrated. Went in to the establishment really excited and optimistic.
Pros:
–cute and cozy place
–crispy chicken was good
–huge portions
Cons:
–TERRIBLE service: we are a young couple, and for some reason we were treated much differently than the older crowd around us. We were not greeting, we weren’t explained the specials, and when our food came out server practically dropped the plate onto our table while already walking away. Didn’t ask if it looked ok or if we needed anything at any point. We don’t even know her name because she never introduced herself. Older blonde lady. She seemed nice when she interacted with other customers, but was rude to us for no reason.
–raspberry tea is not even tea. It’s more like juice with a ton of sugar.
–food came out really fast for the amount of people in the restaurant. It must have been prepared ahead of time.
Overall: would not go there again. Had high hopes and we were greatly disappointed.

Easily the most over rated restaurant I’ve been to. Crispy chicken was not crispy, the breading was soggy and sliding off. Not to mention, the chicken was over-​cooked. The carrots were delicious, but the green beans tasted like like canned. I have no problem with canned veggies in a pinch at home, but at a restaurant that has such a local buzz I would expect something better. Mac n cheese pasta was overdone and there was way to much milk in the cheese sauce. You could barely taste any cheese. The drive to Williston is beautiful and the restaurant has a great southern atmosphere. Sadly, the food is just not up to par.

Absolutely the worst service I’ve ever had!! Table we had reserved was not available so they moved us to about her room. We were seated without menus. Took waitress at least 10 minutes to even greet us. she had a very unfriendly personality and made us all uncomfortable. The raspberry tea was disgustingly too sweet. Apps were good enough but salads were served on top of them basically. Then the dinners took at least 30 mins after salads were done. 5 dinners came out about 5 minutes apart. The 6^th person didn’t receive their food till others were mostly done. The food was just okay, nothing great at all. Shrimp and grits had way too many grits. Delmonico Steak was thin and medium was more like well done. Chef came out to apologize and gave us coupons for free desert on next visit. I’m afraid there won’t be a next visit. He apparently didn’t notice the table had not been bused and dishes were all over the place. We signed the check with stacks of dishes on all 4 corners still sitting there.
Not sure what others find appealing about this place other than the southern décor. It was a total and complete bust.

The Ivy House — Ocala, Florida 352−622−5550
Tonight myself and others went to this restaurant to try it out. First mistake was our waiter — who’s name is not on our receipt– He was rude and just had a nasty attitude. After finishing our salads, he rolled the silverware on to the table, just was awful, I told him I wanted clean silverware he never brought them, had someone else bring them over. Upon paying for the meal, he took all the receipts and I said I need my copy, he said oh I thought you didn’t want it and I threw it away. The food was good, but, definitely they need to get rid of this waiter. He spoiled all our meals with his attitude. Would I go back NO

This is outstanding in any town but in Williston doubly so. Oven baked chicken rolled in rice crispies, squash casserole, Lima beans, Mac and cheese and green salad plus sweet potato with corn bread and fresh rolls. It all comes on one plate. We added a great buttermilk and walnut pie fresh from the oven. Everything made on location. Sunday few selections. Meatloaf sold out but okay all was excellent. A few salad plate options. Old Victorian home. This is our second time to stop with the same goodness last time. It’s on our road home.

I live in Williston and have been going to the Ivy House since it has been opened, not because it’s easy to get to but because it’s where we (my wife of 47 years) go for special occasions. I have always found them to be Southern polite and immaculate, never having a bad meal nor bad service. This last meal, with special friends, was a joy because not only did I have never heard of frying lobster tails they served me my first one and it was delicious beyond my wildest imagination. It’s like beer battered shrimp but better. If you never had any you haven’t lived: artJones

Enjoyed the homemade honey mustard on the chicken salad salad. Great yeast rolls and delicious cornbread. Enjoyed homemade walnut buttermilk pie. Delectable.

Since the Ivy House closed their Alachua branch, I don’t make it to their restaurant as much as I’d like to. It takes a special occasion for me to drive out to Williston to dine with them, but every time I do, I’m happy I went.
There is one main dish that they often have on special that I always get — their Baked Krispy Chicken. The plate comes with chicken, cornbread, yeast roll, small salad, mac n’ cheese, and a veggie of the day. While baked, the chicken is slathered in butter and rice krispies, making it some indulgent, moist, and tasty baked chicken. The cornbread is a wet cornbread, almost to the consistency of a corn casserole. Like the chicken, the yeast rolls have butter as one of their main ingredients. The small side salad is made special by the raspberry vinaigrette, which is sweet and a little creamy. The mac n’ cheese seems to be a mix between real and Kraft cheese, with penne pasta. My favorite veggies they serve with this are their green beans. In short this food is decadent and tasty.
Oftentimes when people think of homemade, old-​fashioned food, they have in mind that the only ingredients that are used in the recipes are fresh ingredients. Anyone who has asked their grandma for a favorite recipe knows this isn’t always the case. There’s usually some brand-​specific packaged product that has gone into that favorite dish of yours. To that end, I feel MiMi’s recipes are like this. This is authentic southern cooking, and it’s probably always used a little help from some items that wouldn’t be «whole”/“natural» (looking at you Kraft). The end justifies the means, and in this case, the end is some really tasty, authentic Southern cooking.
Like their old Alachua location, the Williston location is in an old house, which adds to the place’s character. There seems to be more of a hunter theme going on in some of the rooms compared to the Alachua location. My favorite part of this building is their closed-​in outdoor porch. I always ask to be seated out there.
If you’re in the mood for some classic southern comfort food, it’s worth the drive from Gainesville to visit the Ivy House. The drive to Williston from Gainesville is a pretty drive by the way, which I always find relaxing.

The Ivy House is ALMOST as good as having lunch at Grandma’s house. In fact, when I visit my Meme in Williston, this is about the only place she’ll agree to go to. Located in the tiny town’s main drag, the huge Victorian-​style house offers a maze of quaint, cute dining rooms usually filled with familiar local faces. These days, the folks in Gainesville and Ocala have heard the good word of Ivy House and often make the 20-​minute drive to savor the flavor alongside the Williston residents.
They have a southern style menu filled with yumtastic dishes like Fried Shrimp, Chicken Salad Croissants, Pulled Pork Sandwiches and more, but I come for one thing and one thing only: The Krispy Chicken Special. Baked golden brown with butter and crunchy rice krispies, the chicken breast is served on a positively packed plate consisting of a dinner roll AND crumbly cornbread, fresh salad with the sweet and tangy house honey mustard dressing, and a vegetable of the day that is guaranteed to be country-​fied (think field peas or collard greens.) This is truly one of my favorite meals of all time and, when paired with their super sweet Raspberry Tea, it reaches another level of DELISH, ya’ll.
Another sweet selling point of Ivy House is their sincere Southern hospitality. They will happily accomodate special events like birthdays and showers with private rooms decorated to the nines with special personalized place settings. The ladies at the front door treat every guest like a dear niece or nephew when they enter, and the servers continue the graciousness from greeting to check. The Ivy House is a true gem and has earned it’s reputation as a WIlliston institution.

The Ivy House is classic Southern style cooking in a renovated Victorian home in Williston. They also have a sister restaurant in Alachua in what appears to be an even more impressive Victorian house. The atmosphere here is nice enough, but a little over-​done on the country-​cute and huntin’ and fishin’ themes. I would have rather if it had been decorated with antiques like someone’s grandma’s home instead of this over-​done approach that looks like it’s halfway decorated for Christmas (they have wreaths up and garland. .. seriously. .. it looks like Christmas-​time at Smokey the Bear’s).
That said, it the food is very good. I had the BBQ shrimp and grits and it compared well to the same dish in Savannah, Georgia, where shrimp and grits is a trademark dish of many local restaurants. The grits were just perfect and the sauce on the shrimp was great too, while the shrimp themselves were fine, it was hard to tell if they were fresh or frozen. The only real difference between the dish here vs. in Savannah was most places in Savannah you can taste the freshness of the shrimp (not at Paula Deen’s though!). The sides tonight were green beans and yellow squash, plus a roll, cornbread, and salad are served alongside your main dish. We also had the fried green tomatoes which were very good. The green beans were some of the best I’d ever had and the squash and roll were also great while the corn bread was soft, moist, and almost more like a spoon-​bread than what I think of as corn bread, but very, very good all the same. I got coconut cake for dessert which was sweet, buttery, moist and quite good.
The staff is attentive and as I said, while the atmosphere isn’t exactly how I would have done things myself, it’s fine and the location has a good amount of seating. Have I had better Southern-​style food? Yes. The Beaver House in Statesboro, Georgia is probably better, and for seafood Robinson’s near Cedar Key may be better, but overall the Ivy House is pretty good. If you like this type of food, you’ll enjoy The Ivy House.