Categories: Culture

Five Things to Do While in Five Points

By now, most Jacksonville residents have had a chance to check out everything offered by Five Points and its surrounding area.

But maybe you’re new in town, or are just finally getting around to exploring the city. And if that’s the case, you might not understand what all there is to do in such a tiny stretch of the Riverside neighborhood.

So what all is there to do in Five Points?

GET A BITE TO EAT

The Five Points area has some of the best food options in all of Jacksonville.

There’s Hawkers Asian Street Fare, perhaps the city’s best Asian restaurant. There’s bratwurst-‘n’-beer favorite Hoptinger, behind which you’ll find The Bread and Board, a trendy new sandwich/deconstructed sandwich spot that’s drawn great reviews. Derby on Park, the restaurant located just to the side of the Five Points Beacon, was recently taken over by The Bread and Board’s owners as well.

And a little further down Park Street you’ll find Mossfire Grill, named in reference to the Great Fire of 1901 and perhaps the city’s best Southwestern-style offering.

GO ANTIQUING

Are you always on the hunt for thrifty finds? Do you have a love for all things retro or vintage? If so, you’ll find yourself in luck in Five Points.

5 Points Vintage is located along the main stretch of shops and features a vast selection of offerings from over 20 antique dealers. And if you walk across Park and head to Lomax Street, you’ll find a second antique shop, Fans & Stoves Antique Mall.

Both are known for their great inventories, especially if you’re looking for some vintage Jacksonville or Florida memorabilia. Examples of items spotted in the past include historic city postcards, a Jacksonville Super Bowl selection committee commemorative necklace, and train tickets from the former Union Station.

GET YO DRINK ON

If you like alcohol, you’ll LOVE Five Points.

The area offers several bars to suit many different lifestyles. If you like your bars to be smoke-filled, The Wall Street is probably your scene. Hipsters will love Root Down – I mean come on, it has no sign! The rooftop bar at Hoptinger skews younger, and Black Sheep and River and Post’s bars are hotspots for the young professional crowd. Birdies rounds out the selection as more of an everyperson’s joint, complete with pool tables in the back.

And if you want to grab something to drink at home later, Alewife is one of the city’s finest bottle shops – and also has a small bar area of its own.

BRING THE PUP ALONG

Five Points, like most of Riverside, is very pet-friendly. It’s flanked on both ends by parks, with Riverside Park at the corner of Park and Post streets as well as Memorial Park at Park and Riverside Avenue offering wide-open green space for your furry friend to stretch their legs (while on a leash, of course.)

It also features BARK, a lovely little pet boutique featuring dog treats, health items, and a wide selection of accessories. If nothing else, stop in to give your pup a water break on a sunny day.

And if it’s Saturday, you can walk on over to Riverside Arts Market where there will be plenty of other dogs for yours to socialize with!

HIT THE SHOPS

Five Points also features some unique and diverse shopping options.

BARK, of course, specializes in all-things dog related. There’s Midnight Sun, which offers a selection of new-age items like crystals, incense, and candles as well as home décor items and jewelry. Edge City, Wolfgang, and Jane Doe offer curated selections of women’s clothing. Gloss Goods on Lomax offers women’s lifestyle items and specialty jewelry. Generation Us, also on Lomax, is a trendy contemporary furniture boutique.