The Dining Room at Jack's
7863 Girard Ave.
La Jolla, CA
Prospect Street
858-456-8111
Strolling through the village, window-shopping and watching Lamborghinis and Ferraris growl slowly by, you can work up an appetite. Fortunately, there's a terrific spot right in the center of the action. You'll recognize it by the cunning canopied banquettes on the sidewalk. Passersby stop for espresso or an Italian soda.
That little coffee stand is part of Jack's La Jolla, a restaurant complex that opened late last year. Inside the huge, open and airy multilevel space are four bars, among them a wine bar and a raw bar, plus three restaurants: a steak house (Jack's Grille), a casual spot looking over Girard Avenue and the ocean beyond (Jack's Ocean Room) and a special occasion spot, the Dining Room at Jack's.
— Leslie Brenner
Sept. 27, 2006
Hours: Sun.-Tue., 5:30-9 p.m.; Wed.-Sat., 5:30-10 p.m.
Venue Details
| Cuisine |
California
,
French
|
| Rating |
|
| Ambience |
Quiet and elegant dining rooms within a three-restaurant, four-bar complex. Noise spills over from the adjacent bar when it turns into a club Friday and Saturday nights at 10:30.
|
| Best dishes |
Poached Maine lobster with risotto, apple and kaffir lime broth; sautéed Sonoma foie gras with pickled plums, shiso and litsea cubeba; Muscovy duck breast with white peach, radishes and ginger-spice jus.
|
| Best table |
The corner banquette in the dining room off Jack's Wall Street Bar.
|
| Of Note |
A good jazz trio plays on Sunday nights.
|
| Prices |
Appetizers, $10-$22; main courses, $28-$40; desserts, $10-$12. Five-course tasting menu, $65 per person (or $89 with wine pairings); seven-course tasting menu, $85; nine-course tasting menu, $110.
|
| Service |
Usually friendly and professional, but it can also be clueless.
|
| Wine list |
Pricey, with some interesting French selections, a lot of expensive Piedmont wines, the usual California suspects; lip service to Spain, the rest of Italy and the rest of the new world.
|
