JT’s Bar and Grill

Came here to watch the big Mayweather/​Pacquiao fight. Didn’t eat dinner ahead of time. Called ahead to make sure there was a place to sit and eat and watch. Was told unequivocally that there was a place to do just that. Showed up approximately 15 minutes later, was informed there were no seats after paying a $ 20 cover charge. Am hungry and angry. Will watch the fight here but will not be spending any additional money, since I was already cheated out of $ 20. Will never be coming back here for obvious reasons.

they said we can only order nachos or wings, so we got nachos. Service is terrible, and this food is stale (chewy nachos? lol .) This is crazy. they even messed up my drink, I wanted no ice and I got a coup of ice splashed with vodka.
Bad drinks and 711 quality nachos.
I’m about to cry… this is all bad

The food? Atrocious.
The Atmosphere? Miserable.
The staff? Unhappy.
But hey, they large groups play aggressive drinking games and trash the back room, which is more than can be said for any other bar in Evanston. And hey, Rene is a pretty friendly guy too who works hard to make sure everyone is having a good time.
If you know about this place and are going there for the right reasons (i.e. with a big party) then game on. If you’re not, then I’d suggest going to Bat 17 for a better sports bar experience.

Pretty big place, with a great location. It was empty but I also went on sunday. Service was good but that’s expected since we sat at the bar and we’re the only 3 people there. This place had a great location but it lacks an identity, very forget able, nothing special.

So incredibly disappointed in this place. I planned to go for the Mayweather /​Pacquiao fight so I called ahead to find out the cover charge and make sure I showed up at the right time. They told me it would be $ 20 at the door. Upon arriving the guy at the door told me $ 25 even though I asked him twice about the original $ 20 price. I paid it and asked all my friends how much they paid only to find that I was the only one charged the extra $ 5. I then asked one of the bartenders and they also said it was $ 20, but after pointing out who it was that charged me, she said «well that’s the owner, so I guess that’s what the price was for you then.»
This is NOT how you treat customers. The $ 5 is no big deal, but the arbitrary hustling of patrons is. On top of that, the nachos were soggy and the drinks weren’t all that great. The rest of the wait staff was friendly, but they were obviously understaffed.

Food is so bad! Haven’t had such bad food for a long time… My salad was not dressed at all; we received four sad strips of chicken tender for $ 6.99… seriously? And our sweet potato fries were raw… My recommendation is… DONT GO!

When we first walked in, it was clear that JT’s was understaffed, which was odd considering that it was both a home football game and Parent’s Weekend. When we received our food, one of our orders didn’t come. We also received the wrong kind of fries, wrong patties on the burgers, and wrong toppings. The burgers and fries were undercooked and cold. After complaining, the management offered a twenty percent discount. When we asked to speak to the manager, we were offered a thirty percent discount to not speak to the manager. We were given a fake number for the manager, who refused to comp our entire meal (which any other restaurant would have done). The manager, who was very rude, insisted we pay 50% of the bill because we ate some of the food, which later gave us food poisoning.

Each time I update my review the number of stars goes down.
I don’t understand why this place can’t do better. It’s located in the middle of downtown Evanston, surrounded by businesses and (hello!) a college campus full of students. The food isn’t bad, although my last few visits have resulted in just okay meals. The service. the service seems to be the problem. The people that work there are very nice, but, they just can’t quite seem to get the whole waitress/​waiter thing. It’s especially confusing because JT’s is never crowded. I can’t speak for the evening crowd, but, lunchtime? Dead as a town overrun by zombies. If they don’t make some serious changes this place will be out of business by the end of the year.

So we went to JTs on a whim after work. I called them to ask what time they were opened til. The gentleman picked up the phone loterally saying just hello. It threw me off guard a little so I asked what time they were open to and they said 5. I was first to arrive and ordered a tap beer. Nasty NASTY beer lines. I am very well aware of what revolution brewerys Rosa tastes like and this wasnt even a shadow of what it tasted like. It was warm and tasted like five different beers together. So when the rest of the crew arrived I immediately warned them not to order drafts. The bartender, a belizian woman asked them what they wanted. After delivering the drinks, then asked if we wanted to settle up our tabs. Umm no why? It’s 1:40 am. She then tells us they are closing at two, but literally whispers that to us. I stopped a manager I think to ask if we would even be able to finish our drinks and he says that they are open until 3. it didn’t take long to figure out what was going on. The bartender had met a customer at the bar and intended on leaving with him. WE were the only thing stopping her so she was lying to us about last call. Upon hearing this conversation I had with the manager, she began ignoring us.
On a side note everything done there is done in a very cheap way. Watered down, store bought soap, no cue ball at the pool table, etc. Their main attraction is a folding table in which beer pong can be played from.
So we enjoyed each other’s company for a while and the second 230 hit, the bartender started handing us our bills. My friend asked for two more beers in which he was told no. Out of no where, the intoxicated manager comes up and in a very snarky way goes, these are on me, to my two friends. He was walking away shaking his head as though mocking them. Ohhh I’m sorry buddy for trying to give your business money. Never again. This place is lkiterally straight off of Bar Rescue before the rescue. Awful service awful drafts. Stop cutting corners financially and make this place a decent bar.

My friends and I were on a hunt for a game of pool. As we crossed JT’s, we saw in the window not only a pool table, but also a somewhat shabby looking game of foos. Much like a red light district prostitute, they called to us through the glass. We could only say yes.
There was nothing but disappoint in store. The pool table was broke, and the foosball table might as well have been. Do not come here for your table-​gaming needs. Aside from that, what sense does it really make to visit this place?

I went with two other friends for brunch on a Sunday. This was my first brunch experience at JT’s Bar and Grill and I honestly had no idea what to expect.
I hadn’t realized that there had been so many complaints about JT’s service until much later, when I checked it’s Unilocal page.
Fortunately, my friends and I received excellent service. We were given water within 5 minutes of being seated, and our waiter checked in with us frequently throughout our meal. Granted, there were maybe 10 customers in the entire venue, so the place was pretty empty.
We ordered the Spinach and Cheddar Skillet, the Strawberry Shortcake French Toast, and some Sweet Potato fries to split. The waiter was extremely helpful and offered to get us some extra plates to make the splitting easier even before we asked.
The food was on par with what we expected, and I’d definitely visit again for another round of satisfying brunch.

One of the worst experiences I’ve ever had. The service was atrocious for myself and everyone seated around me as we all waited and waited for: a simple glass of water (1 hour for the gent to my left), silverware (10 minutes after receiving my then-​cold food), the food itself (40 minutes for me, 45 for the gent to my left and another 5 minutes for his companion), a drink order (15 minutes for the guy standing to my right’s bloody mary, another 5 minutes to tell him they were out of orange juice).
Note that it wasn’t especially crowded, maybe 30 covers for 6 staff during the two hours I was there, but there was never anyone nearby to ask what was causing the delays in service. It was clear that somehow they were overwhelmed, but no explanation or apologies were given for the numerous mistakes and delays I witnessed and experienced («the manager’s not here right now»). Maybe it was everyone’s first day? Again, they didn’t seem to be short-​staffed and the staff themselves were fine, very nice when you caught them, and it looked like they were working hard – we all felt for them. But the section I was in seemed largely ignored and sporadically serviced by four or five different servers. Note that this was all right up front near the entrance and the host’s station too – not in a dimly lit back corner.
But the most frustrating part was that the staff, however willing to help, was often nowhere to be found and incapable of providing a basic level of service. There is clearly something very wrong with the staffing organization here and I would not recommend trying this place out during any time you may expect to find the bar occupied by more than a handful people, or else be prepared to witness mass chaos.
Otherwise the food was fine and there’s booze. Can’t complain there.

So I made it out to J.T.‘s at around 1:30am and had a pear martini, which was just okay. The first sips tasted a lot like a pear jelly bean, but I honestly didn’t enjoy it much after those sips. Our bartender, Jay, however, was incredibly engaging and very friendly, and my friend and I ended up having some really interesting conversations with a few of the other patrons. Overall, a good experience, but I might just stick with beer next time.

The service was god awful, I’ve never had such a terrible experience in an Evanston restaurant. This is the first Unilocal review I’ve ever written, and it is solely for how disastrous this place is. I will say the food is okay… Not great, but okay. Let me document below what went wrong.
–Didn’t get water until 20 minutes later, even after asking for it multiple times.
–Couldn’t order until 40 minutes later
–Didn’t get food until 1.5 hours later
–Didn’t get the right food the first time
–Our strawberry shortcake French toast didn’t come with what was advertised
–Didn’t get the right sides, proceeded to ask them for the right ones and didn’t get them until we were done eating
–Didn’t get syrup for the pancakes until we got the check
I will definitely never come here again, our entire group was aghast with this experience.

Came here when almost everything in Evanston is closed (10:30pm hah!) looking for a burger. We wanted the farmhouse burger, but ended up coming here since the food would be a bit cheaper.
My overall verdict is that it’s definitely better than Clarke’s, the only other late night diner option in town. I mean, JT’s already won just by the restaurant not smelling like moldy bleach.
I was eyeing the turkey burger and steak fries. Well, JT’s has got a lot of learning to do when it comes to a nice, flavorful, juicy turkey burger. The addition of bell peppers in the patty was interesting and helped keep it more moist though it was still on the dry side. But overall the toppings were fresh, which made the burger nice and light, but the burger wasn’t seasoned enough to withstand all the toppings. It was okay, but so underwhelming compared to my favorite turkey burger at Poochie’s.
Bf thought his patty was extremely bland, and the egg wasn’t runny, so basically it added nothing to the burger. He wouldn’t come back based on that burger, but mine was alright.
Service leaves a LOT to be desired. I didn’t expect greatness, but I also don’t like to be snapped at with «WHAT?!» because you couldn’t hear my order.
Overall, I was not impressed. We concluded that we weren’t so repulsed and would be willing to come here in a pinch for late night food (over Clarke’s, BK, McD’s, Cheesie’s). But I’d probably walk 10 more steps to Naf Naf any other time of day.

Really surprised this place doesn’t have 5 stars.
Service was excellent. Was here on a Sunday afternoon and our waitress Katye was AWESOME.
Food was also really good. Might become my new breakfast joint.

Still a decent joint, but not 5 — star worthy (I think I was a bit star-​struck with the free minestrone on my first visit). I always get the lean and tasty egg white + veggie omelette when I come here because it’s a filling and healthy meal.
However, I don’t like the vegetables they put in, and the price you pay for health is pretty much non-​existent flavor (use lots of hot sauce and ketchup). Plus the $ 10.99 is a bit steep. Food can come out a bit slowly as well.

I can get down on some breakfast here.
Liked: My omelet with mozzarella and tomatoes. It was nice and well done. Angie Approved.
Liked: The option to get pancakes instead of toast. Cause sometimes you just need to eat that fat.
OK: Service was sweet, but disorganized. I felt like I was running our poor server when asking for simple things like syrup and coffee creamer.
Disliked: It’s SUPER quiet here on a weekend morning. I’m talking hardly a soul in the place and no background noise or music. It’s a little disconcerting.
So yeah. I’m cool with you, JT.

This place has a pleasant outside eating area. Inside the atmosphere is more sportsbar-​ish. The menu is weighted towards burgers, and there didn’t seem to be any salads. The veggie burger I had on a pretzel bun was delicious. The Greek fries were soggy. So, one for two.
Although it’s called a bar and grill, half the menu is breakfast, so I’d return to try that.
Service was friendly.

After hours Friday night, outside seating off limits, noise level inside explosive. Not so much a place to grab a later dinner. But we were starving! Menu is standard fare. Burgers were VERY middle of the road, burger on one half of the plate, french fry filler other half of the plate.
Prices seemed reasonable, crowd swelled, wait service was pleasant despite. Eat fast and escape into the solace of the beautiful summer night leaving the roar of the crowd behind.
One note on this particular evening, VERY impressed with all the ladies in their summer dresses and the gentlemen in their biz casual attire.
Perhaps at a normal time and place, eating would be tolerable here, but late night is no time for the hungry ;-)