j. alexander's

very good. we went here after finding other restaurants closed sunday and were pleasantly surprised at the quality and quantity of food. the hamburger had that grilled flavor that is so good when you make them at home. i got the fish tacos which were excellent and substituted the rice/beans side with the orzo/wild rice - the tacos filled me up so i saved the orzo mix in a go box but tasted first and it was delicious!niceambiance and fast service. my only suggestion is to make sure the wonderfully thin french fries are cooked a little more. we will definitely go back.

service was horrible. the hostesses at the front were rude as soon as we checked in for our reservations. they sat my party of 13 in the back and 2 tables that were the worse ever. finally, after 20 minutes, they "cleaned" off a larger table for us. my reservations were made 2 weeks prior and we were told we would have the large table. i'm not sure why they didn't accommodate us sooner.

this was a very special occasion, ruined. the ladies at the front didn't even say "have aniceday" on the way out. ruddddddddde!!!!!!

second choice for dinner.... we tried to go to bahama breeze but it was so stupid-crowded, we left without even asking what the wait time would be.
we saw jalexanders and decided to give it a go. the menu was was quite varied to say the least. there's a little bit of everything-something for everyone. i tried the rattlesnake pasta with chicken-it was a little bit spicy but very tasty. the misses tried some salad with chicken and that was really good too. the portions are huge!! we could only eat about 1/3 of what we ordered-took the rest home.
the feel of the place was very warm/subdued. it wasniceto able to have a conversation and not raise your voice in doing so.
i'd go again...

portions as big as your head!. it was a weekend to try new restaurants. first bowl of pho on saturday and then j. alexander's on sunday. once again, neither my husband or i was sure what to expect. we'd both viewed the menu online when they first opened, and didn't seem too impressed. the menu appeared to be like a high-end tgifridays or bennigans's. when we arrived we forgot it was mother's day, so we had about a 20 minute wait. we didn't mind waiting though. the atmosphere wasniceand we managed to secure two seats across from the bar. otherwise you had to wait outside, because i didn't see much seating other than the bar. we were then seated in a very comfortable/roomy booth. my husband and i are on the chunky, so we like the extra room. a lot of places try to cram as many booths/tables as they can together, which doesn't leave much room for comfort. we were immediately greeted by our waitress who took our drink order. we quickly zeroed in on the colossal onion rings and ordered some to try. our waitress said it was a good choice. when i saw the word "colossal", i just assumed it meant those oversized onion rings you get everywhere else. when they were brought out they were not only stacked about a foot high, but they were also the biggest onion rings i've ever seen in my life! they were almost the entire outer layer of the onion in size, breaded in panko with herbs (mostly rosemary from what i could taste) and served with a chile mayo and ketchup. the onion inside was still slightly crunchy and not cooked to oblivion like other places. they were not greasy at all, and they were super crunchy and packed with flavor. my husband & i both agreed that they were the best onion rings we've ever had. for the main course my husband ordered the french dip and a caesar side salad and i had the club sandwich with the alex side salad with blue cheese dressing. neither of us knew that the sandwiches came with fries, we thought you had to purchase everything separately, so that is why we opted for the salads. when everything arrived, one of the runners told us we could have swapped the fries (they're shoe-string which i am not a fan of) out for onion rings or even ordered just a half order of the rings. we had no idea, and our waitress never mentioned that. i would have beenniceto know! the salads were huge. the side salad is as big as one you'd normally get as an entree elsewhere. mine was not lacking for any of the toppings it was overflowing. the blue cheese dressing tasted homemade, and had a slightly sweet flavor. you can tell the blue cheese they used was very high quality. my sandwich was also overflowing. my favorite part was the bread. it was whole-wheat just chocked full of nuts and grilled in butter and stacked with all sorts of meats and cheeses. my husband's dip was stacked full of roast beef. i had a bite and it was very yummy too. we had so much food to take home, we decided to get dessert too and have it all again for dinner. we ordered the white chocolate cheesecake, which the waitress said was very good and that they didn't have very often. when we tried it later, neither of us cared for it at all. it was definitely lacking flavor. it was served with a mystery sauce that we couldn't determine if it was strawberry or raspberry (or both?). it completely over powered the cheesecake, which wasn't that good to begin with. overall we will most definitely be going back. it's a tad pricey, but defintely tasty! and the portions are humongous! i'm just wondering why a place like this doesn't offer more dinner items. everything appeared to be lunch type meals (sandwiches etc). i would be interested to know what they're steaks taste like. are they as big as your head too? maybe i'll have to give that a try next time!

cloud bounce daycare.niceof j alexander to sit us next to (behind) a table of 5 children, 4 of which were under 10, while the table of 10+ adults was around the corner and out of sight. my wife and i spent over 100 dollars for our evening out, only to be constantly annoyed by the daycare seated adjacent to us. my wife felt like she was on the cloud bounce due to the kids jumping up and down in the booth behind her.

thanks a million for seating us there and ignoring our requests!

while i'm not a vegetarian, i often choose meatless options when eating out. while there are many positives about j alexanders, their meatless options are very much lacking. besides a simple salad, the only option was a veggie burger. it is said to be made "in-house", so that is great, but a veggie burger is not an alternative to a hamburger. it should not be dressed like a regular hamburger with mustard, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, etc. a veggie burger is usually made of black beans, chickpeas, veggies, etc. so i find it bothersome and thoughtless when restaurants (especially finer dining ones) treat the veggie burger as a hamburger alternative. please take note of how othernicerestaurants allow this option to stand alone by treating it like its own meal. add a special sauce that compliments what it is made of instead of mustard and ketchup. take a minute to consider what tastes good. that is all.

i love this place. it's cozy and dim, good for a date. alsonicefor a girls lunch before a mall trip :). the prime rib french dip sandwich is wonderful, as is their spinach and artichoke dip app. but my favorite item on the menu is the cypress salad. between th sweet croutons, perfect fried chicken, avocado, and pecans, it is just delicious. service is always good too. it is a little on the pricey side. the menu is not huge but has many good choices.

i have not been to j. alexander so when my friend suggested we meet up for a post birthday celebration, i was all in.  this is an upscale spot in the trendy town center shopping center, and has held it own against many of jacksonville best dining spots.  nice interior, dark wood, soft lighting, spacious seating, that creates the feeling of spaciousness.  the bar is equally as comfortable and if you choose your meal can be served there.  weather permitting the outside seating is equally as comfortable.

should i apologize for no appetite or should the chef for no flavor? as a chef i love to eat but i admit i wasn't that hunger but even a simple supper should be good. mitzi sat me promptly and john took care of me( i hate the label "server"). wine list is good and everything on the menu sounded good. the smoke grill smell definitely had my attention. i tried the grilled artichokes. there's plenty with dipping sauce and the grilled flavor is a verynicetouch. i was looking to see if the basics like a steak burger could wow me from this place. the presentation was ok but this burger needed serious flavor. theres a house sauce on it along with grilled onions and cheese. trust me, add salt and ask for extra sauce. the onions had zero flavor and found very little cheese. can't say i won't be back but i will definitely be trying something else. bon appetite!!

dog friendly!!. i love this restaurant! the food is okay, but what makes it great for me is that onnicedays, i can take my dogs!!! the wait staff brings out water for my dog and are so kind. be sure and enjoy the wonderful weather with your four legged friends!

not treated the same in the bar!. my friends and i go probably two or three times a month and when we go sometimes the bring free chips and dip and big green olives to us. so we are sitting there drinking three or four beers and wine each and not once did they even offer us anything. meanwhile others are offered or just giving. i see this go on all the time. why don't they treat all the customers to the same thing or at least make sure to ask if they want anything. i get so frustrated that they do this and it is not the same service for all. i wish they would straighten up in the bar area. i do like the restaurant because it is close to everything andniceatmosphere. i wish they would treat all customers the same that's all.


-----23 dec, 2012-----

appetizers. how come they give to some and not others. i never understand why i see some eating the cheese dip and not others. i have been there three times in a row and last this past week a bunch of young kids were sitting at the bar eating this and asking for seconds and got it. so i would like management to explain how this works. either you offer it to all sitting the bar area or not. i don't like to ask for stuff, but after drinking 3 or 4 beers it would beniceto have a snack. also, since when kids are allowed to sit at the bar too?

disappointed. terribly disappointed! i thought i would treat my teenage daughter to anicelunch while we were out shopping. boy was i wrong. the service was good, the salad was very good but the prime rib was awful. it looked and tasted more like a round steak (tough and flavorless). the server asked how i liked the prime rib (since it was her favorite and she recommended it) so i quietly and politely told her that it was a bit tough. her response was "sorry to hear that" and she walked away and then brought me the check.


-----11 jul, 2014-----

dissappointed. terribly disappointed! i thought i would treat my teenage daughter to anicelunch while we were out shopping. boy was i wrong. the service was good, the salad was very good but the prime rib was awful. it looked and tasted more like a round steak (tough and flavorless). the server asked how i liked the prime rib (since it was her favorite and she recommended it) so i quietly and politely told her that it was a bit tough. her response was "sorry to hear that" and she walked away and then brought me the check.

incompetent service, mediocre food. have dined there 4 plus times. service keeps getting worse.nicespace and has so much potential. dined there last night with my sister and mother after a ladies day of shopping. we were waited on by 6 different young ladies last night, none of whom knew what we ordered from the last clone that came to our table. had to ask for our side three times, had to beg for a second round of drinks, brought things we asked them to leave off of our plate. we were told the specials by three different people and finally we had to tell the last girl that we’ve heard them twice before and would like a drink and would like to order food. not the brightest people hired at j. alexander’s. they’re not rude, but just flakey. willing to pay more for professional service. was not a relaxing or good experience. if you’re not expecting to be busy on a saturday night, then maybe the restaurant business is not your calling.

best steak ever!. we went there tonight for the first time to celebrate our anniversary. please let me tell you this: if you want the best steak you have ever eaten, you need to look no further than j alexander's. yes, it was a bit pricey, but worth every tasty, juicy bite. did i mention the key lime pie? omg.
the staff was excellent. it was raining as we left, and i was walked to my car with an umbrella! verynicetouch.

well, the restaurant is beautiful inside and the atmosphere is great. i enjoyed the spinach con queso dip and the alex salad was really cold, fresh and crisp with delicious croutons. those are the only good things i can say. the entree menu is very limited and the prices are ridiculous. i settled on fried shrimp, mainly because i didn't want steak and there isn't much more to choose from..$20 for a mound of small to medium sized shrimp, with soggy batter that just fell off the shrimp when you touched it. i really couldn't believe what i was seeing. i told the waitress who sent the manager over-he wasniceabout it and agreed it was unacceptable and had more made for me, which i had to box up to go because my friends were finished eating by then. no one at my table was happy with their food. i would say the entrees are priced more in the $20-28 range..and totally not worth it.