Get it Right the First Time

e finally made it to J. Mark’s Restaurant and Bar! It was my mother’s birthday and this is the restaurant she wanted to go to. Of course as a food critic, I am always alert for an opportunity to do an undercover dinner review, so I did! I had my Nikon with me and my spontaneous nature took over.

J. Mark’s is an attractive eatery, with a lovely outdoor dining area surrounded by lush foliage and shaded by smart looking umbrellas. Much to my surprise, there were people dining outside in the 90 degree weather! I can never figure that out! There are two types of people who dine outside no matter the weather, and they are cigarette smokers and people who think it is too cold inside every restaurant they go to! You know who you are. Smoking is allowed outside at J. Marks and it was pretty cold inside, so there you have it. I rest my case.

The pretty hostesses were super sweet, and walked us to the booth of our choice inside the pleasantly darkened restaurant. I really like the interior of J. Marks, featuring lots of wood and comfortable booths galore.  The casual, relaxed atmosphere was verified by simple table settings of roll-ups and salt & pepper shakers. No tablecloths in sight.

J. Marks Interior

Our server approached offering drinks, and didn’t tell us his name until we asked. Drinks arrived and I was already noticing that in order for us to get what we needed we would have to ask for it. I mention this because within a few minutes I can usually tell if a server is going to take control of a table or not. If not, then the host, and in this case it was me, has to take control to insure that his or her guests have a good time. A server should always take the initiative and lead guests through the dining experience before them! They are supposed to be the experts about the place they work at! We eventually got the information we needed to order our dinner, such as the specials of the night and recommendations from the menu.

My sister ordered a second glass of wine before dinner arrived, and it was never brought. Once dinner appeared, our server offered my sister another glass of wine. I looked at her and we laughed silently as she said yes. She has as much restaurant experience as I do, so we didn’t have to say a word. Dinner was being served along with the second glass of wine, but unfortunately, the servers had no idea who got what! This is one of my pet peeves, and there is no excuse for it. More staff training would fix issues such as this so easily! To some customers it might not seem like a big deal, but to in-the-biz people, it is inexcusable. The servers proceeded to auction off the food out loud, until I actually began taking the food from them and placing in front of my guests who ordered it. Purely pathetic.

J. Marks Chopped Salad

We were eating light this evening, so my sister and I shared a Chopped Salad. It was made up of fresh romaine lettuce, tossed with lime-marinated chicken, diced apples, tomatoes, avocado, roasted corn, bacon, crumbled blue cheese and finished with balsamic vinaigrette. For some reason a chopped salad always tastes better! This one was good, but very predictable and not really memorable at all. Mom ordered an end cut of Prime Rib cooked medium. It was thick, cooked perfectly and served with horseradish sauce and garlic mashed potatoes. The potatoes were not served with the dish for some reason.  She was given a choice of side dishes, and she picked broccoli. This was a good dinner but lacking in originality, and of course they forgot the potatoes. It was a special this night at 25% off, making it a very good deal...maybe that's why there were no potatoes!

Prime Rib End Cut...Presentation was not too special

Ahi Tuna Appetizer

Another guest had the Ahi Tuna App, which was Cajun crusted sushi grade tuna seared rare and drizzled with wasabi pesto. It was served with pickled cucumber, ginger and Soba peanut noodle salad. Soba was misspelled on the menu as Sobe. It was a generous portion and tasted quite good. One of the best dishes we tasted this night. We also shared an excellent Parmesan Spinach Dip with artichoke hearts. This was served with salsa and hot white corn tortilla chips, and I would recommend it.

Best Carrot Cake for 2010!

Lastly we all shared what I determined to be the best item of the night. We surprised Mom with a giant slice of a multi layered Carrot Cake with a birthday candle. This dessert was super moist and the cake’s flavor and frosting was phenomenal. I am a carrot cake aficionado and this was the best I have had in 2010! They definitely saved the best for last. I want to know what the green pieces are in this carrot cake though.

J. Marks does offer a decent, albeit limited, wine list, and I would return to hang out at the sexy looking bar to watch a sporting event and / or meet friends for drinks. I like the atmosphere of this place as I stated earlier, but they need to get more serious about staff training, food presentation and flavor. This is a perfect example of a restaurant that is NOT chef-driven as we say. There is no mention of a chef on their website and I am not surprised. When J. Marks grows up and becomes the restaurant it could be I will be happy to return and give it another try, By the way...my Mom thought everything was fine, and that made me happy!

Although we did not experience a large amount of menu items on this visit, eating at any restaurant should be a consistently good experience. The hospitality industry is like show business. The "performers" are the servers, chefs and management and the guests are the "audience". When the doors open, it is show time! The old saying “You never get a second chance to make a first impression” is so perfect for restaurants because often people won’t come back if their first visit was disappointing. For years I would eat at places several times before writing a review, but I'm not always going to do that anymore. That’s like going on a date with someone, having a bad time and agreeing to go on a second date! Get it right the first time and not only will I return but so will thousands of other people on a regular basis.