Jackson Street Brewery
THE ATMOSPHERE:
On a recent blustery late winter evening we met at the Jackson Street Tavern (1125 Jackson Street #3) in Omaha. The entrance is a bit confusing, because as you approach the Tavern all you notice is the closed patio (for the winter), and a door that appears to open to an adjacent store. There was an OPEN sign in the window and there was a crowd enjoying the Happy Hour in progress, so we knew we needed to find the correct entrance. Oh well, eventually you, like us, will find your way inside. The business is a large open room with wooden tables and chairs. The hostess seated us and we were quickly waited on for our drink order.
Jackson Street Tavern has daily specials and live music. T he singer playing his guitar added pleasant background music which enhanced the dining experience.
THE FOOD:
Patty and Rick tried the Brickyard (Omaha craft brewery) Stout and both agreed it was delicious and would require a visit to the Brickyard soon for further tasting. Sarah chose from the extensive wine list and Jim chose his usual Diet Pepsi. A full bar allows for a wide variety of beverage preferences.
We tried the Bruschetta Capris ($8.50) as an appetizer. The garlic bread base was rather soggy with the generous balsamic and olive oil dressing. The fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and basil were delicious and presented well. The flavors blended well and were presented attractively. The balsamic drizzle was good and the basil had great flavor. Our only suggestion would be to figure out a way to present it so the bread didn’t get soaked. Off to a great start.
The menu itself was extensive and varied, with hand cut steaks and chops, several poultry and seafood offerings, as well as pasta, entrée salads and many delicious sounding sandwich options. Quite a bit of time was spent making selections as we all had multiple entrees and sandwiches that sounded tasty!
Did I mention the dessert menu? it looked great-but we did not try any desserts
Jim chose the ground chuck Tavern Burger on a toasted Kaiser roll ($12.75) with a side of sweet potato fries. He ordered the burger medium; however he felt it came out medium well. Despite being cooked a little past his preference, it still was juicy and flavorful with the delicious beef flavor coming through. The fries were soggy.
Patty chose the Milwaukee Melt ($13) with a side of sweet potato fries. She said the grilled chicken blended well with the Wisconsin cheddar, Applewood smoked bacon and house BBQ sauce served on the side. The Wheat berry bread was well toasted, not soggy, despite the generous portion of gooey goodness of the sandwich. Patty loved her choice.
Interesting that Patty felt her sweet potato fries were fresh, crisp and delicious, as Jim thought his sweet potatoes fries had been held under a heat lamp, resulting in limp and soggy fries. Perhaps it wasn’t the fries, but do you think this couple is one where she says black, he says white? He says potato; she says po-ta-toe? Or was there actually two different batches cooked out of the fryer?
Rick chose the Texas Turkey Wrap with a side of tavern fries ($12.75). Rick debated whether the roasted turkey, bacon, pepper jack cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato and chipotle ranch wrapped in a tomato tortilla would be too spicy for his wimpy taste buds. He had nothing to worry about as he thought that it could have used a little more zip and spice. The wrap was well made and presented attractively on the plate. His fries were freshly made and Rick said he would order this combination again.
Sarah chose the Chicken Diane ($21) which was served with saffron rice and freshly prepared green beans. The combination was delicious! The Chicken Diane sauce of mushrooms, tomatoes, garlic and white wine was generous and appropriately made and plated. Three generous chicken breast fillets were tender and browned well and blended well with the sauce. Another excellent choice!
THE SERVICE:
Most of the service was attentive and quick other than quite a lull (30 minutes) between delivering our appetizer and taking our order. I believe our waitress was trying to get several tables of Happy Hour customer’s food out before she got back to us. But once her rush was over, she was once again attentive; re-filling water glasses and retrieving additional wine and beer as requested. The wait staff was friendly and hustled to serve the customers.
WE WISHED:
The service was faster and more attentative
SUMMARY:
There was a full crowd but we never saw anyone waiting for a table. Our meals were generous and fairly priced. The entire group agreed that this was a pleasant dining experience, which we would eagerly repeat.