Borago is a classic trattoria with a contemporary flair serving homemade food that is the heart and soul of Italian cooking.
At Borago, you will enjoy hearty and robust Italian food in the trattoria tradition made by owner chefs while sipping on expertly made cocktails. Borago is known for their signature drinks, making it a local hotspot where you’re bound to run into old friends. Bartenders squeeze fresh juice daily and you can truly taste the care that is put into making each cocktail.
That same care extends to Borago’s dinner menu, which delivers an authentic take on traditional Italian cooking. Keep things simple for starters with Tomato Bisque, house made Focaccia and Arugula Salad with gorgonzola cheese and toasted walnuts. Or kick things up a bit with pan seared scallops with soft cheese polenta and roasted tomato butter sauce.
Traditional pasta dishes showcase the addictive Three Meat Bolognese with cheese tortellini, and penne with hot Italian sausage, roasted tomatoes, caramelized onions, portabella mushrooms and herbed goat cheese.
Grouper Nicoise blends influence from the Gulf while keeping it traditional with artichokes, Kalamata olives, tomatoes, haricot verts, whipped potatoes and a white wine butter. While roasted eggplant lasagna offers a nod to veggie lovers.
Borago’s Italian menu is a favorite among locals, and it’s consistently voted one of 30A’s hottest spots for Italian cuisine, for great reason.
Borago's Owner / Chefs Michael Dragon and Mark Anton
Michael Dragon
Chef / Owner
Michael Dragon is a native New Yorker who discovered an interest and talent for cooking at an early age. Michael grew up in Schenectady and attended a high school vocational program for the culinary arts where he became New York State's top culinary student in 1990. Following this recognition, he won a scholarship to the College of Culinary Arts at Johnson and Wales University of Providence, Rhode Island. Michael is not only a talented chef, but also a businessman schooled in the food and hospitality industry. As a student, he completed a fast-paced, 5000-seat banquet internship which equipped him with superior cooking as well as food service operation skills. Upon graduation, Michael moved to Charleston, South Carolina where he worked with David Barickman, a highly influential chef in the Charleston area. It was during his tenure at Magnolias in Charleston that Michael learned how to put a southern twist on classical Italian food and had the good fortune to meet his business partner, Mark Anton.
Mark Anton
Chef / Owner
Mark Anton, the son of a military father, was born in Portsmouth Virginia and lived in Greece, Panama and South Carolina. His own journey to Johnson and Wales University's Charleston campus came after employment at an island resort kitchen where he fell in love with preparing food. Mark took a position in Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, but was tempted by a call from Michael to return to the United States. Together, they worked at an American Asian fusion restaurant in Birmingham Alabama and dreamed of starting their own restaurant. Based on a friend's suggestion, they came to Northwest Florida and happened upon a for sale sign at Borago. They bought the business, kept the name, reinvented the space and the concept and opened in March 2000.
