Chez Jay

I was feeling antsy yesterday so I decided to check out Chez Jay, a dive bar on Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica that is rumored to serve up some delicious food. Their signature dish, the butter steak, is a 10-​ounce New York strip smothered in beurre aux fines herbes. It was magnificent – tender, perfectly cooked, and drenched in that rich sauce – and a steal at around $ 29.
Chez Jay has been around since 1959, and seems a curious mixture of old-​school beach bums, Mercedes-​driving silver-​haired foxes, and foreigners. (Perhaps, also, Foreigner.) It makes for good people watching.
Someone was waiting for his dinner companion, and had brought a bottle of Stolpman «Hilltops» Syrah (an excellent Santa Barbara winery, and probably a better accompaniment to a butter steak than my Bud Lite and Maker’s Mark, neat). There was an Australian couple that fell into spirited exchange with another Australian gentleman at the bar. As I was eating dinner, three Russian youths sat to my right and ordered that most American of beers: Corona.
There were bowls of peanuts, and peanut shells everywhere. The Stones were playing from the jukebox near the door; a giant preserved fish hung on the wall behind the bar. Was it kitschy? Sure, but kitsch accumulated honestly and organically over the years, not purchased from some wood refinisher in Brooklyn.
Chez Jay is across from a motel called «The Hotel California», but unlike that song, Chez Jay deserves multiple revisits. Highly recommended.

One of the dearest finest homey restaurants in Santa Monica, I’ve been going for there for 35 years & the food, appetizers & ambiance makes you feel like your home– the waitresses are efficient, funny & loving.
If there is ever a issue — they will fix it– no questions.
There is always a line, so grab a drink at the crowed bar, the finest cocktails, enjoy, talk, people watch the fine ladies & have a great attitude & it will be one of your best times– the prices are so reasonable, the food excellent, but just remember, your eating at a landmark, that’s been around since the 1940’s, Chey Jays is not only a dinner, it’s a experience. If you don’t love it, you must be a negative, unhappy person.
Go with a positive attitude, hv a few cocktails while waiting to be seated.
I’ve always found, give a little tip right when you get there & you may find yourself, sitting down a little quicker, it’s not needed, but well worth it.
Have a few stories to talk about, with your company & you may think your around your on table @ home.
All the appetizers are fresh, cooked well & starts your meal of perfectly.
The key is to have a smile, be prepared to smile & laugh often.
There motto is to enjoy, laugh & enjoy.
Remember don’t drink & drive, so walking from Chez Jays to Main Street &is the perfect thing to do when finished.
You will want to come back– so remember the name of your waitress & next time you may hv a better choice with your seats. Oh — there are great private seats that are available so you and your partner can really enjoy the privacy.
Some seats are extremely close to another party, so just remember that & if your smiling & enjoying your self, you may feel like your sitting down to a old friends you have not seen in a long time.
Enjoy one of the greatest friendliest, finest, home cooking restaurant in Santa Monica that you will not forget.
Sincerely,
Joey Aroesti

A Real Dump! But a special one. I only met Jay once many years ago, so can’t claim him as a friend, but his dump was always a magic place that served an honest drink in a clean glass and plated the best inch and a half steak in this city, and that includes the duded-​up train car that charges you a benjamin for a slab of tough, tasteless cow that in my opinion could have come from Ralph’s freezer an hour ago. Sure, it’s a dump, but a little of Jay’s magic still lingers on.

Short, sweet review because we only went there late night for a night cap. It was nice –beers were cold and tasty, bathrooms were a little eww — but it was late night and to be expected by the local drunks. The other little pet peeve was that the booths were tight! Guess that would be a good thing if your single looking to mingle LOL.
Would go back again when I am not already toasted from a holiday dinner (yup.).
Curious to try the dinner, seems like it’s superb based on the reviews… next update yet to come:)

This has become my weekend go to place for breakfast. From Jay’s scramble to the weekend specials… all great. But the Crab Benedict has to take the crown, fresh crab and a great Hollandaise makes for a tasty Sunday. With the Reggae Music and Jeff making killer Bloody Mary’s…great!

Came here for happy hour, cool historic spot, wings, drinks, nice atmosphere. I would come back.

Divey bar. I only go where because the rat pack went there and because there is no other bar worthwhile around that area. I have never eaten there. It is always packed for the most part and hard to move around with the tables. It is a bit pricey as well.

I really do get a kick out of this place! While the name connotes «fancy» like most things Santa Monica, once you step inside the dutch door, you know that it really doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Had the surf and turf combo on this visit and it was great! A large NY strip paired with a lobster tail served with some scalloped potatoes, garlic bread and salad. .it was delicious! And another benefit? We brought a special bottle of wine to share and there was no corkage fee! How great was that? Of course when that was done we also ordered some more drinks and some of their sticky pudding for dessert which also was surprisingly good.
Make a reservation as this place only has 10 tables. And don’t plan to linger. We laughed when the owner came by and asked us if we wanted to «see a breakfast menu». Ha! Yep. We got the hint. It was time to go, so we did.
See you Chez Jay the next time I’m in town.

A Santa Monica institution! Chez Jay is what Santa Monica is all about. You can have your fancy shmancy new restaurants give me Chez Jay! Old school perfection with a fantastic local vibe! Food is good and the prices are reasonable! Viva Chez Jay!

Came in for dinner on a weeknight by accident on the way back to my hotel and ate in their patio in the back which is Pug friendly. We ended having the entire patio to ourselves which is usually open in the am and lunch with a totally different menu than dinner.
I requested my waiter to get me a dinner menu since I wasn’t in the mood for fast food. Started off with the steam clams entrée which was large and delish. Followed with the steak entrée which included salad, string beans and rice pilaf. The steak was cooked exactly to my medium rare request and was generous in size. Service was spot on and I checked out the bar and dinning room which was packed as I departed.
Chez Jay has been around for decades and I can understand why It seemed like a locals joint — good food, reasonable prices and solid service.

18:19 PST: Lord Antimatter has arrived. He’s drinking a warm canned beer in the parking lot.
18:39 PST: Lord Antimatter enters the building, takes a seat at the bar and orders a Bombay Tonic.
18:41 PST: Lord Antimatter contemplates the nature of peanuts, food allergies, and strippers.
19:29 PST: Lord Antimatter recalls a sexier time when wind instruments, electric guitars, and miniskirts ruled the air, sea, and land.
22:30 PST: Lord Antimatter has left the building.

Mellow, kind people and staff.
I ordered the steak and lobster tail. Top notch.
Chef Memo personally came to my table. An amazing person.
No pretense, local and good.
Damn. Please come check it out.

Came here on a Saturday night with a group of eight people.
I was waiting outside when I saw the owner ask a group of people” you staying, or are you going!?” The group said they would be leaving and the owner responds in a rude tone, «hate to see customers leave!». o_​o
We had made reservations so we were seated right away. Our server was incredibly rude.
First, he elbowed a girl in our group to get out of his way as she tried to sit down.
Second, when he brought out our salads he would just hold the plate in front of your face waiting for you to take it from him. I was confused as he held it in front of my face, so I said, «yes, that is my salad.» He said, «I know! But there’s no room for me to put it!» All I had in front of me was my napkin and utensils to the side.
Third, as we were towards the end of our meal, he came to our table and would aggressively point at the finished plates and utensils and would command us to hand them to him. It made us feel rushed and uncomfortable.
The food was ok. Ordered the walnut crusted chicken that came with a pesto sauce and some over salted broccoli and rice for about $ 23. Hard to enjoy the food when you’re being constantly bothered and pushed around by the server.

I bought a groupon for $ 25 for $ 40 worth of food. I must say it was nice to try something new but at the end of the day, the food was just ok to me and it was pretty pricey so the groupon was useless.
They have a parking lot but you have to pay if youre coming after 5pm which is silly to me. We didnt make a reservation and it became clear why it was necessary. They literally have 10 tables squished in their little venue. Theres also a rowdy bar so definitely not an ideal first date restaurant.
We got steaks and they came with veggies, potatoes, and a side of soup. The steak was overcooked but pretty good for what it was. The veggies were well seasoned and the potatoes were the best part. I did enjoy the veggies and garlic bread that are complimentary. Ask for ranch to dip your carrots!
The waitress was ok but the busboy really stole the show. He was super attentive and really fast.

I’ve passed this place so many times in the past (since 2008) and never thought twice about stepping in. One night my bf and I walked in to kill time because we were waiting on our reservation for the restaurant across the street, so we had only ordered drinks. As we sat there, we noticed the food looked delicious, so I always thought one day I’d eat here. Well it only took like another 5 more months before I walked in. My friend and I had took a nice long bike ride and worked up an appetite. By far the best food I’ve eaten In Santa Monica! I ordered the wedge salad, the steak and shrimp, and the sticky toffee pudding! I had a glass of wine, but their cadillac margaritas are yummy too! Not only was the food super yummy, but their service was excellent! Sure there are peanut debris on the ground but hey, its a dive bar in one of the most upcoming communities in the area! 5 stars all the way and I’m definitely coming back!
Keep in mind its in a busy street. You know the place is yummy when its packed, so definitely call in a reservation! But there is a bar so you can order food there and they have a back of the restaurant open seating area which looked nice too. Especially now since the city built a nice park. Anyhow, its definitely worth the wait. Everything I ate, I just wanted to take a deep breathe and breathe out in contentment!

Went there with friends for breakfast today and food was really, really good. Crab Benedict was perfect (real crab fir $ 13.00), J scramble yummy and the 2 + 2 + 2? there was nothing left.
The only thing we would have changed were the potatoes which were pretty salty but other than that great breakfast and great prices. We’ll be back.

Giving this one a solid 4. This place has history — it’s been around forever and we’ve passed it many times, without really thinking about stopping. It has a dive type atmosphere. It’s loud and dark. They bring peanuts to the table and you throw the shells on the floor.
It’s that but more… they also bring veggies to your table along with the peanuts. The menu is fairly simple, and they brought over a board that showed tonight’s specials. Our table ordered the chicken quesadilla, a steak dish, the special steak Sinatra, chicken Chez Jay and chicken marsala.
We all ordered salad and the Italian dressing that came with it was great with a touch of parmesan. They brought garlic bread to the table too.
The stand-​out dishes of the night were the steak Sinatra and chicken marsala. The chicken marsala was excellent. I had it with au gratin potatoes and it was just great. The rest of our party liked theirs but weren’t as wowed.
They brought us a complimentary dessert at the end of our meal.
I’m not a fan of loud restaurants because I like to talk with the people we dine with, but even with that, we really enjoyed it.
Just a word of warning — it doesn’t look like the prices are up to date on the website.
We are looking forward to returning!

Was craving a big fat juicy burger, and that’s exactly what I got, and it was exactly what I was looking for!
Perhaps the fact that I did not eat breakfast, made me that much hungrier, made me think the burger was more special, but it was still damn solid, and regardless, I shall be back.
But I like the vibe of the place, casual dive bar, serves peanuts. You can tell it’s old school, been in Santa Monica for a long time, with the usual regulars that hop in and out.

I came here at the recommendation of my brother who used to live in Santa Monica. I was pleasantly surprised to run into this place trying to kill some time. I didn’t realize it was going to be so close to our hotel! What a score!
This is your consummate hole in the wall/​dive bar. Its dark, a little grungy and somewhat uninviting. When we first walked in, we were met by a tall, lanky bartender in a crisp white shirt who told us we could sit wherever we wanted. We chose a booth seat and immediately noticed the peanut shells on the ground (at first I thought it was hay! haha).
I ordered the eggs Benedict and a Bloody Mary. The hollandaise was perfect and the eggs were poached just how I like them — a little runny so you can dip your hash browns in the yolk. yum! The meal was on the greasy side but what do you expect for a dive bar. My bloody Mary was a little stiff but I wasn’t complaining. My husband had a couple of long island ice teas and said they were stiff just how they should be.
We came here a second time the night before we left and my husband had a couple more long island ice teas while I sipped on some bottled water. We both remarked that we wished we had a place like this back home.
The ambiance really makes this a great place. The walls are dated and covered with entertaining memorabilia. The music is bluesy — at least it was while we were there. The bartender was also the waiter and sometimes he was gruff or grumpy but it gives the place character and it’s not personal — he treats everyone like that. If you are in the area, you gotta check this place out but bring your thick skin with you.

I’ve seen this little restaurant many times. Really didn’t know it was a restaurant, I thought it was a dive bar. Of course, that would be of huge to interest to me. Unilocaler pal, Colleen G. gave it four stars and tipped me off to make a reservation. Open Table. Done.
Met up with my usual 310 crew, Chelsey and Tanya for our 8:00pm dinner date. The place was packed, not just with patrons, but a boatload of memorabilia. Sinatra, the Rat Pack, Steve McQueen, and many celebs from the Hollywood Walk of Fame adorned the walls. We were told our table was not quite ready. Tanya chatted it up with one of the owners who she knew. We were told we’d have a «special table» in a moment? Little did we know what was in store for us.
Our table was ready and all the way in the back of the store was the only booth. Kinda like an indoor picnic table. Cheesy Christmas lights illuminated the mood. Turns out the booth was the fabled Table 10, where the likes of the Rat Pack, Julia Roberts, Henry Kissinger (really) Mick Jagger, you name it, their butts were sitting where we were!
The stiff drinks began to flow. We received a complimentary «house appitaizer,» Peanuts-​in-​the Shell. We were instructed by, I think he was one of the owners to” throw the shells on the floor or we’re gonna tell you to leave!” Of course, we did what we were told to do.
On to a fabulous meal. The women shared Scampi w/​Fresh Garlic & Shallots and a huge bowl of Steamed Clams. I knew I wanted a steak and receive the house speciality New York Steak Fiondella. It’s marinated with olive oil, garlic, spices & bread crumbs, and was grilled a perfect medium-​rare. A delicious Sticky Toffee Pudding polished off our evening.
The service and the servers could not have been more fun and helpful. Such a night to remember, I can’t wait to return!