Jack’s Café

Food was good! My food took way too long over 50 mins. If you come here be ready to expect your food almost an hour later… Rate ⁷⁄₁₀

Big portions, but there’s so much potato and starch in their chorizo dish. Would have liked more tomatoes and salsa in there to balance it out. Mushroom swiss burger lacked flavor. Designated coffee-​pourer kept asking if we wanted coffee, but we hadn’t ordered any.

Just visiting from out of town… AWESOME good and AWESOME service!
We had the French Toast special-​could be shared, it’s a huuuuge plate of food!
The Eggs Benedict was just right.
We had a toddler with us, the staff was awesome. Totally accommodating and very friendly. They offered crayons to keep her busy and had no problem with us ordering random food items for her.
Overall, I was very pleased with the experience and would love to return again!

Good breakfast selections and well prepared. Plenty of seating, service and prices are far better than other breakfast places in the area. Have tried the others, keep coming back here.

I first went to Jack’s in Sparks, and was sad when I moved so far away… their food is amazing! Then one day while exploring my new neighborhood, I came across this Jacks. EXCITEMENT! My daughter and I stopped for breakfast one day, and we’re immediately greeted by a super friendly hostess who seated us. Right away the waiter came and got our drinks going, and like the hostess he was very friendly. The other staff that passed us were all happy and nice… we could hear and see the chef in the kitchen singing up a storm in Spanish, and truly having a good time back there. The food… WOW! Huge portions, and just as with the other Jack’s, the food is WONDERFUL!
The ONLY thing I could even possibly criticize about this piece of Heaven on Earth… Is the décor. The building looks new and nice outside, but inside it’s very dingy and 70’s décor. Walking in, some people that haven’t eaten there might have a strong urge to walk out. DON’T!!! LOL

Solid place for breakfast!!! Huge portions an cheap. Great place to go on a Sunday morning!!!

My boyfriend and I had breakfast here before he went to work since he lived and works in the area. I had a simple 2 eggs and potatoes breakfast and he had the Joe’s scramble, which is a new item. The food was really good and the service was super fast and our waitress Shannon was awesome. The biscuit was probably the highlight of my meal. Seriously that thing was great. My only complaint was that there wasn’t very many options for me to eat as a vegetarian. Now I totally get that breakfast tends to be a meal for meat eaters but I was hoping for a veggie benedict or the option to have fruit instead of the standard bacon/​sausage or something a long those lines. But overall it was a great breakfast and I would eat here again.

This is my FAVORITE place for breakfast in all of Reno and for good reason, too. I’ve been at least couple times every month since they opened in Reno. I visited the original Jack’s in Sparks and went crazy for it, but was bummed that it couldn’t be closer to where I live. Still, I always made a point that it is so worth making a special trip for awesome food. Now, I got my wish and this new Jack’s is closer to my home.
I have never had bad service, let alone a bad meal from here. Like ever. That’s saying a lot because for as often as I go, you’d think that there could’ve been a time where I could’ve griped about something. Knock on wood that this never changes!
As soon as we (the bf) walk in, we are always greeted and seated right away. Within a minute, we get our hot coffee. Now since we’re regulars, we usually give our order right away. They seem to recognize us as regulars by this point and from time to time we have had some pretty cool conversations with the wait staff. I love this about them — it’s so great that they are outgoing and want to chat for a few minutes. We have been when its busy and they never make us feel rushed or a nuisance.
I order bacon and eggs. Very simple, but very good. I can’t get enough of their home fries! I’ve had their fiesta omelette, too — wow! Pretty delish. My bf orders the country scramble with biscuits and gravy. The gravy is super rich but sooo good! This place is a hit and I can’t wait to bring my family here someday.
I know a lot of other people favor other breakfast places, such as Peg’s or Squeeze In, for example, and they good, but this is my place! I hope they stay at this location forever and never change their ways. They are perfect as is.
We love you, Jack’s!

Excellent hearty portions… Food is good.

Great food, friendly staff, warm and inviting environment.

Good solid food with a few stars. I really like the pork chop and their bacon. Good solid breakfasts and good value lunches.

Lunch today 3÷17÷13
We this time we sat in the actual restaurant not the back room. We had a booth which was fine; it fit me well.
I ordered the fish and chips, my sister ordered the corned beef hash eggs benedict.
Well it was delivered and the eggs looked fine but it turned out to be quite mushy and no texture to bite in too. Only half was eaten.
When the fish and chips arrived in front of me I was quite disappointed and my sister said, oh how sad. I was actually given a good sized portion if not too much, but too much of a burnt fish is not something one wants. Honestly if I were the wait person I would have not delivered this and told the cook to remake the order. One redeeming factor was the cole slaw, it was quite good.
If a restaurant can not get the food right what is the point of its existence?
The service was good and friendly, well that is if good can include serving something that should not be served.

February 24, 2013 Sunday — breakfast 9:30 AM
2 adults
Atmosphere — 5 stars
Food — 4 stars
Service — 4 stars
Background — I had a livingsocial deal.
Atmosphere — The moved into Austin’s former location and has the same feel. The false ceiling with the antler chandelier going through it seems very odd. They should just get rid of their false ceiling as it does not have any tiles in it.
Food
Appetizer — It is breakfast.
Main Course — I had the country scramble. Not what I would call a scramble but very tasty. The scrambled eggs laid across the spilt biscuit then covered the sausage gravy. The biscuits were moist, not day old leftovers here. The eggs were fluffy. The sausage gravy had a hint of bacon in it. Their home fries are like a mix of what I think of cubed home fries and hash browns.
Dessert — stuffed.
Service — The only thing I will ding them on was the took our drink order and my wife’s coffee never showed up until we asked again.
Future — The food was great and the prices fair, so I would like to make this my breakfast place but it is the opposite side of town for me.

Came here for breakfast.
Big Portions, good service.
Breakfast potatoes are just that and not being a fan of potatoes, I found them the low point of my meal but if you like potatoes I’m sure you’ll like them.
Mushroom omelet was good but it was an accidental order as I wanted a Mexican omelet and the waiter misheard me. I was paying with a groupon and hate wasting food so instead of having them remake my food, I ate the mushroom omelet, I do like mushrooms after all. It was okay.
Their food and selection is a bit on a greasy side but it is a diner after all and I’m sure many would if disappointed if this wasn’t the case. Just a little too greasy for my taste.
Also, don’t rely on the sign on their window that says they are open for dinner. This is no longer the case.

Excellent, friendly service by our waitress, Rebecca. The coffee cups were kept filled by another server. My wife’s birthday breakfast. A Belgian waffle with fress strawberries and a little chocolate sauce added at our request. Not exactly the same as the Belgian waffle we ate in Brugge last week, but my wife was very happy with it.
I had the chicken fried steak. I would not have it again. I found the meat to be very tough. The biscuits and gravy were good as are the home fried potatoes. Being from Illinois, white gravy on home fries was wonderful.
Friendly service, prompt refils. We will probably go back again.

Jack knows how to make an omelette.
Unlike many breakfast eateries that just serve scrambled eggs in an omelette shape, Jack actually manufactured a Denver omelette the correct way, and it was constructed perfectly. The eggs were done but fluffy, not the dark, yellow, leathery skin offered in a lot of other places. The insides could have been sauteed a little more, but there was a wonderful, slightly smoky flavor to the ham. There were no hash browns available, so I asked them to jazz up the «home fried potatoes» a little bit with some onions and green peppers, which they were delighted to do. They were just short of magnificent. Perfectly done taters– not too mushy. My English Muffin was toasted to perfection, The coffee isn’t bad, but the level in my coffee would only drop an inch or two before the Coffee Man scooted by to refill it.
It took a while to get breakfast but not much longer than any other place. Perfectly tolerable. It was served well before I got to the «drumming-​fingers-​on-​table-​and-​making faces» stage.
All in all, a great breakfast and I will return again.

This latest Jack’s Café location continues to be a reliable place for food.
I got the Rio Grande for breakfast. It is a sausage enchilada with eggs and potatoes. The eggs and potatoes were pretty much standard eggs and potatoes.
The enchiladas were nice. One problem was the sauce. It was rich and greasy. At first it was fine but by the end it was too much and difficult to eat.
Service was friendly.
One small complaint: They listed that they had WiFi. I couldn’t get my phone to work on it.

Jack’s is a breakfast joint, that also serves lunch. Go there for breakfast, but skip for lunch IMO.
The first time I went here I had the biscuits and gravy. My though is, if you can make flour taste good and stand-​out from the crowd, then you’ve got something going. Needless to say, the gravy is excellent, which can be attributed to their use of bacon bits (and most likely bacon grease). Large portions, etc… it’s great. I seem to recall the hash browns being good as well.
I ended up walking here for lunch today, and after seeing the list of burgers offered, decided on getting a Monte Cristo. The Monte Cristo was pretty decent, lightly breaded (as opposed to the thickly breaded version at the Atlantis Casino café). There were some slightly cold points in the sandwich, but when you’re packing in as much meat as Jack’s is, I’m willing to give them a pass. Honestly I haven’t ever had a meaty monte cristo that was warm throughout. Jack’s fries the entire sandwich whole, then cuts it, as opposed to the cooking in 2 portions like the Atlantis.
Then there’s the large heaping of seasoned fries. The seasoning is fine, the fries are not. Limp, greasy fries that have that raw potato texture and soaked in oil. Out of the supersized order of fries (2 – 3 servings), I wasn’t able to seperate even a single serving’s worth of fries. I was running short on time, so I didn’t bring it up. I feel they would likely fix the issue if brought to their attention, but for those of us who are running on a tight schedule, I don’t have time for a re-​do.
Service was prompt, as was the kitchen. It’s pretty slow at lunch, so you shouldn’t expect to wait. I’ll probably come back for breakfast, but not necessarily with my wife. It’s more of a «man’s restaurant» in my opinion. Not a foodie joint, more of a casino café, without the casino.

Reno must REALLY love breakfast. Perhaps it’s because so many of us enjoy the nightlife and need some protein & caffeine to get us home when the sun comes up?
Way back when I was working at Odette’s, soon after the eponymous Jack took over Elmer’s Coffee Shop (on Prater in Sparks), Odette asked the master to teach us how to make omelets and the like. A year or so after that he bought the former Sambo’s building and turned that into Jack’s Coffee Shop on Victorian. My wife and I have long felt that Jack’s is the only decent place for breakfast in Sparks, and one of the few restaurants worth driving to Sparks for.
So, we were really looking forward to trying the new Jack’s on S. Virginia, and although it was perfectly adequate, it wasn’t a stand-​out experience. I had heard they have a unique take on chicken fried steak, so my wife decided to order that. The gravy was just kind of there, not really bringing any flavor to the dish, and the egg battered cube steak was somehow less satisfying than the more traditional breaded or floured variety. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t amazing either. The biscuits served with this dish were quite good, as were the home fries.
I ordered that day’s breakfast special, a version of Eggs Benedict served on top of crab cakes rather than English muffins. The combination of the crab cake with the other ingredients was actually quite tasty, and basically a genius take on this dish. However, the eggs were a bit on the small side, or perhaps I’ve just been spoiled by the HUGE poached eggs and Peg’s.
Regardless, it turns out I apparently don’t care that much for traditional Hollandaise sauce. Jack’s version is pretty much standard, but I’ve become spoiled by the more delicate, herbed varieties in use at places like Peg’s and P.J.‘s (the two of which are neck-​in-​neck for best Bennedict in Reno). So, if you like the classic thick & golden variety of this sauce, you’ll probably love Jack’s version just fine. I will say it was a pretty good combo with the home fries, which Jack’s does as good as anyone.
The service was top notch: very friendly, attentive, and our food was delivered so fast I barely had a chance to drink my first cup of coffee. Nobody has faster service than this place!
I haven’t tried the lunch fare here, but I’m told it’s about the same as Jack’s in Sparks. With so many great options in Reno, I don’t know if or when we’ll venture back to Jack’s, but I’d certainly recommend it as one of the better breakfast/​lunch spots on the south end of town.

Wow. No reviews of this place even though they opened May 23? Ok, I am game.
Jacks is an institution in the area that I have only experienced once. But now they moved to my side of town. They focus on breakfasts and lunches.
Food — My wife ordered the Chilaquiles my daughter ordered the kids French Toast and I ordered the «Famous Chicken Fried Steak». All three meals were done just fine.
My daughter noted that she liked the sausage and how the eggs were cooked to her liking as well. She is a picky eater and is 8.
My wife didn’t really discuss her meal but she did like it and ate herself to full. I tried her meal as well and really liked the way it came out. Breakfast Nachoes baby!
And now for the stunner… A Chicken Fried steak that didn’t seem so «chicken fried» as instead was «egg fried». And boy it was tasty! It was almost as if they just dipped it in an omelet. I didn’t detect any breading. Just have to say I loved it and will return for this meal for sure. The gravy wasn’t awe inspiring or something to complain about. Just standard gravy.
$$ — Both the adult meals were $ 9. And the kids meal was $ 5 I think. With drinks our bill was around $ 30. We had more than enough, the prices are reasonable.
Service — We had a great server. She was pleasant and efficient. We also had our drinks filled regularly.
Atmosphere — Recycled Austins really works here. Lots of light woods and mid nineties «cabin» feel. Austins did a good job of maintaining it, I hope that Jack’s can keep it in good condition too. Here is hoping!
A few notes.
The wife did ask me to note that they have flavored creamers for the coffee on the table.
And they serve Pepsi products.
I would recommend this place to my friends, especially if they are on a budget. The food isn’t fancy, but it is quality.