Redlands Grill by J. Alexander’s

I love the fried red fish sandwich and orzo. The sandwich isn’t always on the menu but they always have made it if I ask. The fish is a sweet mild fish … not fishy. The orzo is pretty and a great mixture of flavors and textures.

As another reviewer noted, when this place opened as J. Alexanders years ago it was noted for good food and outstanding service. Things have changed, and not for the better. At the point where I’ve just ordered a $ 32 steak and a $ 12 Manhattan, my server refused to allow me to drop the salad and substitute the roasted carrots in its place. The only thing she would do is charge me full price for a «side item.»
The «manager» offered no help, merely saying, «it’s corporate policy not to let people get free salads.» I said, «Wait a minute, I want to lose the high-​priced salad and sub in the carrots which have a food cost of about $ 0.20 per pound.» Nope. Didn’t have the authority to make the change.
No other restaurant I’ve visited in Dayton does this. We frequent The Oakwood Club, Pine Club, Carvers and Flemings and I get steak at all of them. The only place that refuses to allow you to substitute the seasonal veg for the salad is the Redlands Grill.
Don’t waste your time with this place. Instead, try one of the restaurants mentioned above that still value their customers.

Outstanding service. Great food. Love the Bayou pasta. The Redland salad is just as good as the Alec salad from the past. Will be back again soon.

Our server ruined the whole experience. Against our better judgement we decided to eat out on Valentine’s Day. Arrived around 230 – 300; open tables and not busy. Pleasantly surprised to be seated within 5 minutes. The server walked up to immediately take our order – we hadn’t even looked at the menu; so we ordered drinks — my husband asked for a IPA on draft, I ordered a Hendricks gin and tonic plus a glass of water. A bottled IPA arrived and the cocktail; no lime and water. We then ordered dinner. I ordered the prime rib sandwich he turned to my husband who ordered the seafood pasta — we had to stop him to order salads. We also asked for limes. My now empty water sat there… Salads came… My husband actually got up, went to the bar to see what was on draft. Dinner arrived, my husband ordered an IPA on draft. A beer arrived and it wasn’t an IPA-​we flagged down our server who it became apparent was a beverage illiterate and gave no apology, blamed it on the bartender turned tail and ran. The manager arrived with the draft IPA. Still no water refills. I believe I knew more about the bubbly server for the next table then my own. I became keenly aware his other tables were having similar problems-​meals being sent back, looong waits for items; he seemed completely inexperienced. The other waitresses around us were turning tables at about 1.5x faster than he was. Don’t get me wrong the food was good. But our simple dinner was well over 2 hours. We had our coats on waiting for the check; credit card on the table. He dropped the curled up bill on the table and left for 10 minutes before he returned to swipe the card. Other wait staff and servers began busing the table and i finally got a water refill. No cute carafe on the table for us. Another 10 minutes expired before we got the final bill.
So if this is to be an upscale establishment why would one employ a terribly inexperienced non-​social introvert server and believe me this was more than just having a bad day…

Great prime rib, better bartenders, and great atmosphere. Had dinner tonight with one of my best friends. Could not have had a better time or meal. Just like Arnold sai, «I’ll be baaack.»

Diners beware!!! This place has really gone downhill, so much that I’d gladly pay 3x my bill to get back the 1.75 agonizing hours I lost at this place last week. What was once one of Dayton’s best dining experiences, is now one of the worst restaurants in town (no easy feat). When they 1^st opened 20~ years ago, J Alexanders distinguished themselves with great, well-​prepared food with fresh ingredients, and terrific ‘over the top’ service where all the dining room staff worked as a team to ensure a great experience. Fast forward to 2015, they now employ an apathetic and seemingly lazy dining staff who could care less about the most basic service and a kitchen staff that goes out of their way to serve poor quality food, giving ‘cafeteria food’ a run for it’s money. The sign outside still claims «J Alexanders» but the Manager’s Business Card at the hostess stand states «Redland Café». The Manager was nowhere to be found, so instead of providing him with our feedback I am sharing it on Unilocal!
We were surprised by how empty the restaurant was when we went in to order appetizers, drinks, salads, sandwiches, and entrees. Even though they only had a handful of tables filled it still took 10+ minutes for multiple hostesses to sit a party of 5. After another 10 minutes a server shows up and we order martinis off their menu. Sadly, these were so poorly made you would think the 3 ingredients were too exotic to master so they opted to mix Vodka + Crystal Lite instead. The server then sells us hard on her favorite appetizers and entrees (without a single mention of their Prime Rib house specialty) and unfortunately we took her up on most of her suggestions, all of which bordered between mediocre and just plain gross.
The appetizers took forever to come out and made it to the table cold, greasy, and tasteless. When I told the server they were not good, she shrugged an ‘oh sorry’ and removed the full plate, but not the charge from the bill. The salads were forgettable other than the fact that they also took forever to get served and mine had something chewy in it. Considering we were all still hungry 75+ minutes after sitting down, I was crossing my fingers that the sandwiches and steaks would come out OK, Wrong again!
In addition to the overcooked cheeseburger that was so grainy it fell apart in granules, J. Alexander’s new specialty is a $ 32 steak where 50% is ‘meat product’ and 50% is pure fat/​gristle. Needless to say, it matched the rest of our absolutely terrible meal. What would they try to sell us for desert, the house favorite of stale graham crackers topped w/​3 sugar-​free chocolate chips? We waited for the next 20~ minutes for our server to come back, she never did. Everyone at our table packed up and left their mostly full plates (and no need for to-​go containers) while I waited for the bill. Eventually I had to walk back up to the hostess stand to get a copy so I could get out of there and find another place to eat!
We always used to look forward to eating at J. Alexanders and its a major disappointment that they’ve fallen so far. I’m assuming they were bought out by Redland, that or they are cutting corners to save money and remain open as they are surely not investing in quality ingredients, training their kitchen staff to prepare a basic meal, or hiring service staff with common sense or the ability to display basic courtesies.

The food here is excellent, however the service this year has been terrible compared to other years. Extremely rude manager. Service takes over an hour just for carry out! Lady didn’t put in our order until 25 minutes after we ordered. Absolutely unacceptable. Manager didn’t even offer to take off a discount. We had to ask for one because they messed up all of our orders. We got veggie burgers and they came out completely plain without any vegetables on top! Ridiculous! Good thing we checked entire we went home. Salad was also missing tomatoes and olives. Just awful service. Never order carry out.

Steaks were perfect, and service was exceptional! Jessica’s attention to detail, energy and engaging personality put her at the top of my list for favorite servers.

The food and the service are very good. I travel to our office nearby and always go to J Alexander’s at least once each trip.

Apparently this place is being rebranded to Redlands Grille. I’m guessing they don’t want to be looked at as a chain restaurant, but for those that love J. Alexander’s it doesn’t make sense.

After moving away from Ohio I have missed this restaurant. So decided on this trip I would meet a friend for dinner at this old stomping ground. We ordered an appetizer of chips and three different dips. It was really good.
For dinner I ordered the fillet mignon medallions over a bed of rice. Mixed vegetables came with the dinner as well as a salad. The salad was delicious. When I began eating the rice and steak however, I found it to be spicy hot. This was confusing to me because I did not order anything spicy hot. Really not enjoying this meal, I returned it and ordered a filet mignon with a baked potato. So much better! Their warm bread is scrumptiously delicious!

Hadn’t been for a couple of years, noticed the ribeye in the Steak Maui was a thinner cut, and the grilled asparagus had a definite petroleum taste to it. I don’t know how they grilled it, but I couldn’t eat it. Service was wonderful and professional as I expected. When the check came I noticed a different name at the top, have they changed hands recently? At their price point, I will not be back.

Going in for a Wednesday afternoon lunch, it felt like everything ran smoothly. I enjoyed the meal, and the steak rolls as an appetizer were awesome. The service was excellent and we had a great experience.

One of Dayton’s consistent fine dining experiences. Food is always prepared fresh and to order — Quality. No issues there. Service can have a few glitches during mad rushes; good thing that all servers assist one another if one is behind. Treat yourself to their amazingly sinful carrot cake. Enjoy.

I’ve been to j Alexander’s a dozen times. My go to is the prime rib. The au jus makes the already great cut just pop. It’s my favorite prime rib. Taste and consistent. Also I enjoy the bar even at hectic dinner hours.
What really makes me enjoy a great meal is the service. Just seems like they are engaged and knowledgeable. Dollar for dollar and proven consistency make this a staple. Other dishes of note rattlesnake pasta, pork chops, and the mash potato side.

Went there for NYE, called ahead for seating and was sat right when I got there. My wife said the menu was a little small however they had a special of a crab cake encrusted ny strip! We both got it and it was really good! Baked potato and salads were awesome as well. Service was friendly and management came around and asked how everything was. Overall a pleasant atmosphere and great food! Haven’t had a steak like that in awhile.

This is everything J. Alexanders USED to be in the Chicago area.
Excellent service, and their familiar menu that I miss so much.

The service was great and the food was pretty good.
The rattlesnake pasta was very good, the rotisserie chicken was just ok, the beer, wine and best chocolate cake was very good.

Seating area around bar was dirty from precious guest. Bar tenders busy but no excuse for food and kapkin on floor from precious guest.
Free appetizer courtesy of Holiday Inn was good although hostess tried to give it to another table.
Bourbon was 11.50 which is too much for a small pour.
Dinner was undercooked Salmon on a avg Caesar. Feedback met with bad attitude bar tender. So off went the tip. Overall left wondering why I ever went there. Definitely gone down hill from previous visits.
Bartender changed over for no apparent reason. First girl had a good attitude. She said she was knew and apologized for not knowing pricing. She was pushed out but more experienced girl that sent the experience straight down the hill. Won’t go back.

Excellent as always. The salmon was cooked to perfection. I opted for the broccoli as my side instead of the rice. Well done again!

I’ve been to J Alexander’s twice now and both times have been great! The menu is standard American but so delicious!
They have a speciality appetizer called Huevos Rolls and they are to die for! There are 6 crispy egg rolls that have a Mexican taste to them.
The house salad is also very good. It is a big portion so it’s not a bad idea to spilt it with someone before your entrée, it will be enough!
I definitely recommend call ahead seating especially if you come here on a weekend. It is very typical to have around an hour wait for dinner on a Friday/​Saturday evening.
The only reason I am not giving this 5 stars is because it is very similar to Cheesecake Factory (minus the cheesecake) and BJ’s brewhouse. It wasn’t anything I haven’t had before but I will definitely be coming back :)

Not my favorite, but reasonably priced and good for groups. Very noisy, large menu, decent service. Think a better experience than a large franchise like Applebees. Don’t take your girlfriend or wife here if you are looking for an intimate setting