Jack Fry’s

I love Jack Fry’s!!! It’s one of the few expensive restaurants that is really worth the price. This is where I like to go for me and my husband’s anniversary dinners and for my birthday! There are a few other fine dining restaurants I enjoy that are as consistently delicious as Jack Fry’s. Do not, I repeat DO NOT skip dessert! Trust me. The only downside at all is that the restaurant is small and popular so for weekend evenings, you will likely need a reservation after 7. I even go earlier at 5:30 or so because I enjoy it less crowded. The staff is super friendly and helpful (sometimes I really need the menu spelled out for me) and I have never been disappointed. I even took my grandmother, who is a bit picky and not easily impressed, there for lunch for her birthday and she loved it. It is rare my grandma enjoys food that much!

Must have… Burger with cheddar and Carmelites onion with the Brie salad. Great place

Kills me to only give 3 stars to Jack Fry’s but I have to base it on my experience there. I went as a party of 4 on a Wednesday night. The seating was cozy, the front of the house was great… welcomed us, seated us right away. We ordered the shrimp and grits as an app, which was amazing, and highly recommend!
Now onto our entrees… we ordered the Pork chop and Chicken entrees.
Well my friend ended up with a long black hair entangled in the potato hash that comes with the Pork Chop… Show stopper right there!!!
They did address it immediately, apologized and re-​fired another one, but that created an awkward dining experience, as all 3 of us had to either let our food get cold while we wait 15 minutes for her dish or we eat and she watches us. I was really surprised to have had that issue at a place like Jack Fry’s where there is great reviews, but because of that whole debacle It will be on the bottom of my list for places to go.

If flavors are what you want, flavors you will get. The chef and his staff really know what they are doing.
I started off with the charred beet salad which while the portion was definitely under-​whelming, it was packed full of flavor. It was truly a delightful. But for a $ 9 salad I expect more than 1 beet cut into quarters placed on about 5 green leaves. I can’t tell you how delicious this salad is. But for a salad that costs almost nothing to make, please add in another beet or 2.
On to the main course. I had the lamb which was cooked to perfection. The star of this show was the perfectly poached egg atop the creamy mashed potatoes. It may be the most perfectly poached egg I have eaten in my adult life.
After finishing my entrée I was still hungry. Which is why I’m leaving four stars. I felt the portions where all just a bit small for the prices paid. Don’t get me wrong every part of this meal was way above average taste wise.
So being left hungry I decided to try my hand at the dessert menu. Ordered a chocolate tart, which was basically a chocolate Grenache with a delicious whip cream and an alcohol infused cherry. I am not a drinker and driven a commercial vehicle to dinner (zero tolerance) and had no idea that I was going to have a mouth full of alcohol when I bit into that cherry. Mainly out of my own ignorance in not understanding all the words on the menu.
Overall meal with tip was about $ 60. This was with no drinks.

Guess it was a long time in coming but I finally got into Jack Fry’s. 9:45 reservation it’s a tough place to get in but now I see why. This is an old time classic sort of place.
Got there about an hour early hoping to snag a table (good luck with that)-the bar itself is tiny maybe 8 – 10 seats so sitting there with a drink was not really a possibility (most people at the bar were dining not actually waiting for tables). The hostess showed us a spot where we could sit and hide out with a drink in our hands. The Mouse got her house Cab while since I was in KY I opted for a Bulleit on the rocks instead of my normal Jack. They do pour a pretty heavy handed cocktail in here.
Ok there was a special appetizer tonight-​and it was absolutely fantastic! A ravioli stuffed with beef short ribs. Great idea and pulled off with great skill. Four per order, big and tasty. I highly recommend.
Salad– I had the warm Bibb and Brie-can’t say the gooey warm cheese on the Bibb lettuce did it for me. The lettuce was well (lightly) dressed and would have been fine on it’s own-​with the cheese it was sort of a case of reinventing the wheel. I mean it wasn’t terrible but I will not order it again. The Mouse got some pear/​pomegranate salad which I tasted and called it A-​OK. She is not much of a salad person but she wolfed it down. The girl is tiny but she can pack it away!
Entrée/​pork chop for me. Done medium and I mean perfect. Just a hint of pink to it-​juicy and tasty and BIG! Couldn’t finish half. Came with new potato asparagus mushroom mix that suited the pork.
The Mouse got the chicken breast-​what I call Airline Chicken-​boneless breast with just a knob of wing bone on the corner. Served with potato gimmicks she wolfed that down as well. I got a taste-​juicy and the gnocchi and broccolini went well with it.
Now I had heard this was a romantic place-​well it was late Saturday night and the booze had been flowing-​there was a piano player and he was good but it was as loud and noisy as World War 3 in there-​I mean people having a good time, and we certainly enjoyed ourselves, but even in a booth not exactly a «mood indigo» type of place on a Saturday night. Well we were not complaining, we had a good time and any place can get raucous and loud –it’s just folks having a good time.
Not an inexpensive place but you know that coming in. All the old pictures on the wall and the old architecture only add the the atmosphere and charm of the place. Been a top restaurant in The Ville many a time, I’m sure it will be for years to come.
Will be back soon!

Amazing steak! Wow! Hubs and I both had steak. We also eyed some amazing steak fries while at the bar waiting for our table. At the last minute we switched our fancy scallop appetizer to well… the French fries… the waitress totally looked annoyed with us but oh my… best decision ever! Sooo good and a fraction of the price of the scallops. Would do it again… and will! We will have to return for another steak soon!
Also…they are the BEST place to celebrate! We went for my bday… the pit streamers on the table, played happy birthday on the piano and brought a complimentary dessert… which was also yum… though would have been more yum if we could have picked what we wanted.

This romantic restaurant is tucked away in the highlands and has been a favorite of mine for a long time. I recently dined here for a friend’s birthday and enjoyed every bite of it.
I always like the salads at Jack Fry’s. They do a great job of using seasonally fresh ingredients and the tastiest cheeses to go along with them. They also serve yummy bread (two different kinds) with a sweetened, whipped butter. Yum!
I was not super hungry this past time so did not get an entrée but saved room for some beignets! OH MY GOD they were good. Served with a chocolate pot de crème these little beignets were perfect! A big hit at the dinner table.
Some other items I dig on this menu: the potato au gratin and the vegetable paella. I would like to try the cheese ravioli before it leaves the menu too.
I like that Jack Fry’s has a large enough wine list that you can have your pick but also reasonable enough that it doesn’t feel overwhelming picking a bottle. They have a fair amount under 50 dollars a bottle, which is where I generally stay. :)
I love the atmosphere here. Darker lighting, picture covered walls, and wonderful live piano to accompany your dinner. FYI, you can request tunes.

I thought about what to rate Jack Fry’s for a while. As you can see, I’ve given it 4*, but I still don’t think it’s 100% worth 4*.
LETS GO THROUGH IT SHALL WE LOL
The best thing about Jack Fry’s is the ambiance. It feels like what you would get if you threw the Art Deco Era, some creative chefs, and overly priced food into a blender and mixed it up. Has a cool feel. Nice lighting. Good tables. Neat pictures. The huge picture of the nude woman was unexpected.
The bar is really cool. It’s small, but intimate. Again — has that Art Deco look and feel. I shudder to think how much an old-​fashioned would cost, though.
I was really surprised at the lunch time price. My wife and I would spend more money going to O’Charley’s than we did for Jack Fry’s at lunch. I have to tip my hat to them there.
I wasn’t blown away by the food. I seldom am, but can honestly say that I’d rather have a burger from Bunz or go to Mellow Mushroom or Baxter’s 942 Grill or DiOrio’s (just thinking of places in the area). It was just good food. Nothing special. I got the salmon. Buddy got the special (scallops). His wife got the shrimp and grits. My wife got the chicken salad. My wife didn’t even finish hers, as she was somewhat disappointed. My friend and his wife enjoyed theirs. But they weren’t like OMG THIS IS INCREDIBLE.
For lunch, Jack Fry’s isn’t a bad option, because it’s surprisingly cheap. For dinner? Unless I was trying to impress a two-​legged deer or had money to burn (dinner is not cheap), I’d probably head somewhere else. To that point though — Jack Fry’s is a great date destination. Probably one of the best in the city.
Make reservations. Lunch or dinner.

I would give Jack’s a five star but they need to do a little reno and clean up the bathrooms, entrance, parking and visibility into the messy hall from some seating.
Ok the bad stuff is out of the way. Forget about all that! The service is always spot on, the jazz always makes me feel like I’m in a B&W detective noir movie from the 40s or 50s. At any moment Bogart should walk in a say something clever to a beautiful mysterious woman.
Ok maybe a bit over the top by Jack Fry’s always feels like it was trendy adventure into the past and I love that about the place. Last time I was there I had an amazing pork chop and all kinds of interesting appetizers. I also enjoyed the grilled waldorf salad which was nothing like most I’ve had before and had a lighter and more flavorful taste than one would expect.
I often hate trying to find a place to park and always fear I’m going to get towed away. I also wish they would spend a few bucks and clean up the outside but other than that and the aging and worn down bathrooms I always enjoy the food here, the place lends itself well to long dinners with friends over good conversations and wonderful food.

I’ve only had one thing here; the burger.
I have been on a journey to try and review all the best burgers in town. This is burger #3.
The «Jack’s Burger» is the only burger on the menu (as far as I can tell) and it is consistently on the «best of» lists for burgers in Louisville. I had to try it.
I had my burger with cheddar and bacon. And a side of fries. I carried it out to enjoy it at home. And it was absolutely amazing, even outside of the restaurant.
I see why people love this burger. It’s juicy without being greasy. It’s thick without making you feel stuffed. The tasty bun adds to the experience but allows the burger to take center stage. I have had more complex burgers (with house-​made sauces, special ingredients, etc.) at other burger restaurants but the Jack’s Burger was simple, and they knocked it out of the park.
I’ll definitely be back here to have it again, and try some of Jack Fry’s other items. Obviously, with the reputation it has, I’m sure other items will be just as wonderful. However, I am on a burger quest. And the Jack’s Burger definitely didn’t disappoint.

Going downhill. Not what it used to be, sadly. This was my absolute favorite place in Louisville for years! Now, bad food and bad service haunt me here.
My previous two visits I got food poisoning. Yes! One time from the legendary pork chop and another time from the appetizer of spicy oysters. I was violently ill both times but tried to dismiss it as bad timing or maybe I was sick, maybe it was something else??? After all, this is Jack Fry’s!
I had not been back in a while but decided to give them another chance due to the great food I had enjoyed in the past. This time, I ordered the salmon which was served to me completely raw inside. Disgusting raw, not sushi raw.
I do not even like raw salmon. Was this even sushi grade? Why is it so raw, is this a new thing for trendy chefs? I told the waiter it was too raw to eat and showed him. He took my plate for another round on the grill as I nibbled on bread as my guest ate reluctantly.
My salmon returned (the same serving) only to still be vastly undercooked. I wanted to tell the waiter the situation but he was busy for a long time and did not check in with our table, so I ate on the rice and spinach as I was starving. Ugh.
The sauce was delicious, I wish I had been able to enjoy it on my salmon with my entire meal.
When the busboy came to take my plate, I told him the fish was still rare. It sat as a goopy plop on my plate. Finally, the manager came by and was not helpful.
He asked why it was a problem and how exactly did I order the salmon to be cooked?
I was not aware to order salmon well-​done. Just steaks, I thought. The waiter never asked… How stupid of me, obviously. Sooo embarrassing! They deducted 75% off my meal. No comp or apology. I guess it was determined to be my fault.
Next, I ordered the fabulous cobbler to go, as I was still hungry… only to get home and it was not the berry cobbler I asked for but instead strawberry-​citrus. It was not a good combo of flavors, very tart and bland, not what I asked for or paid for — so I threw it out.
I called Jack Fry’s to tell them but no one was answering the phone after we left, about 11:30pm on a Friday. Horrible. Grrrrr!
I really miss the old days— the old staff and chef. Losing the chef has hurt them!
Additionally, new management/​ownership over time has diminished the experience.
For years, this was the very best dining option in Louisville. Now, they just ride out their recipes they purchased with the place which are very good, but without quality ingredients, proper cooking methods or decent service that just isn’t enough for me anymore.
Plus, it’s expensive. Not sure I will ever return.