Jack’s Tapas Cafe

Oh no! So sorry it’s gone.
The layered scallion bread was *excellent.*

I am going to miss their shaven noodles.

This place was pretty good. The food was decent, with the noodle soups being my favorite dish. It’s a shame this place is closed.
Only thing that was weird was the white guy practicing his chinese to his customers, even to customers that respond with English. Oh how cultured he is.

This place has the best Chinese food around!
That sesame scallion bread is a must-​have. It’s huge. just take it home for leftovers.

Food– simply put: AMAZING.
Service– ranges from downright upsetting to mediocre.
I’ve been here on a number of occasions as I live so close by. Having gone in with a variety of different groups of people and ordering a variety of entrees/​appetizers, I feel like I’ve gotten a fairly well-​rounded experience.
The food is always just what I’m looking for — flavorful, well cooked, and well-​thought-​out. My favorite? The eggplant with basil. Their handmade, shaved noodles are also worth the extra splurge, and lamb is always tender.
The service, on the other hand, usually leaves something to be desired. While the waitresses are nice and smile a lot, I’ve experienced anywhere from 10 minutes to get a takeout box when there were no more than 6 other people seated in the whole restaurant, to empty water glasses sitting un-​refilled, to receiving meals after parties who were seated after my party had already ordered (I don’t know if this was a function more of the things we ordered, or the fact that we were white and the other table was Asian — most of the women who work there are clearly first-​generation in the US and one can’t help but assume this plays a role… racism is often unintentional, but undeniable nonetheless).
Overall, I’m usually torn about this place. Maybe takeout would be the best option if service is something that matters. Still, just in writing this, my taste buds are craving some pan-​fried goodness.

If there’s a place called «Jack’s Tapas Café (Mostly Chinese)», would you not be confused? Especially in the U-​District? I certainly was, and inside the colourful South American diner was to be found decent mainland fare of pretty impressive quality. Their selection is quite Northern: stir fry lamb, beef noodle soup, beef tendon claypot, hand shaven noodles… all very tasty and priced fairly well. The servers are friendly and patient, but the fill-​rate of the restaurant says to me that this place is still a well-​kept secret, even from students yearning for something good close by. The menu board on the sidewalk outside advertising crispy duck and lamb soup noodle was what got my attention otherwise I would have put off trying this place out to a later time.

Well here is the deal. We were excited to try this because of the great Unilocaler reviews. Plus… I LOVE NOODLES! Anyway, we get there and its a total hole in the wall. which I normally love. Now I am even more excited!
We start with the Dumplings which come out quickly. The first bite is a wonderfully delicious homemade wonton wrapper… the second bite produces a mouth full of raw beef… Um…no thanks!
We also ordered the house special… shaved noodles. Again, the noodle lovers at the table… so exciting!!! Well here come the noodles… Life jacket please!!! They are drowning in grease and have a few not so decent vegetables served with them. The concept of the Noodles was good but it was ruined by all the grease and most likely frozen veggies.
I am sorry to say. this was not a good experience and we will not be going back.

There are two or three main waitresses there. The nice one, a petite lady with her hair tied up in a bun, a ready smile and little silver rimmed glasses works Sunday afternoon. So I usually try to only come in on Sunday afternoons.
After working, I will usually grab the boyfriend to come have a piping bowl of Beef Noodle Soup, extra spicy with a plate of A Cai. Everything else is still okay, but soup is like home to me. And so far, its probably the best place on the Ave that I can come for my fix.
(heart)

I’d been meaning to try this place for a while, but hadn’t gotten around to it until today. This is partly because Mandarin Chef is slightly closer to my apartment, but mostly because tapas doesn’t really lend itself to take-​out.
As it turns out, Jack’s isn’t really a tapas place (or, for that matter, a café). There are some appetizers, but most of the menu consists of vegetable, pork, beef and poultry entrees. I went in for a late lunch, and the place was mostly empty: a couple of people at a table, a guy at the counter, and an elderly man dozing on a couch by the window. Jack’s looks more like a canteen than a sit-​down restaurant: rows of tables, stackable chairs and so on.
I initially went with the stir-​fried noodles with beef, but the guy at the counter suggested upgrading to the shaved noodles instead. I am not an authority on shaved noodles, but these seemed pretty good; they were nice and chewy without being sticky or doughy. The meat was also rather chewy, but flavorful; it went well with the texture of the noodles. The dish was fairly mildly spiced, so I threw in a bit of sriracha and soy sauce to round it out. All in all, a good, filling meal for 10 or 11 dollars.

This is the best Seattle Chinese restaurant outside of the ID as far as I’m concerned.
Ask your server for the specials and recommendations. Vegetable options are excellent and so tasty. Silk squash, water spinach, eggplant dishes are fantastic. Not that I don’t like the meat either, but the vegetables are to die for.

«The best Chinese home cooking in Seattle»
–Jack
My first time coming here, the chef called a dish back to the kitchen because «it wasn’t good enough» for presentation. I hadn’t said anything. But it got me asking questions…
Unlike most of the restaurants we seek out, this unassuming family-​run eatery doesn’t emphasize decoration, branding, or inflated reviews – the food is made with love that’s been fine-​tuned through the chef’s long, expansive journey. Jack’s Northern Chinese-​Muslim roots combined with his experience cooking in Chinese communities in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, and Dallas make for home cooked Chinese like none you’ve had. Armed with trade secrets (e.g. sour napa) and a unique palette, I’m surprised this place isn’t more well-​known. Then again, its obscurity is part of its charm.
This isn’t a place to get General Tso’s chicken or some such American-​Chinese fried-​to-​hell dribble. Get the Chef’s Specials, they’re actually special:
— Shaved Noodles
— Layered Scallion Bread
— Lion’s Head

Jacks Tapas Café creates the best Chinese food in the greater U. District, and in my opinion some of the best in Seattle.
I have been there over ten times, and never have had a problem with my order, had slow service or have been disappointed with the meals. The shaved noodles are incredible, I love the lightly-​breaded General Tso’s Chicken and the Hot Pot is great as well.
Go early on a weekend evening as finding a seat can be difficult during the dinner hours.
If you’re looking for «atmosphere» you should go somewhere else. If you’re looking for cheap student priced fare, you should go somewhere else. This isn’t a teriyaki shop, but a pretty decently priced small restaurant that has become one of my «go-​to» Chinese places.
Farewell to Jack’s! You’ll be missed and I hope to see this family-​run business open again at a new location.

Fellow Unilocalers –you let me down! Poor location, dismal décor, bad service (took 15 minutes longer than promised for take-​out, and they forgot one dish I’d paid for.) The food was just bland, fatty, unappetizing. We were all looking forward to Chinese, yet no one finished their food.
On a positive note, the waitress paid us back for the forgotten dish, but had to do so with her own money because management refused to refund!
The whole meal just didn’t sit well with me.

*People were fairly nice, I ordered take out
*THey screwed me on my order even after I asked her if everything was there and repeated the # of items
*General’s chicken pretty much sucked, very runny sauce and the chicken exploded in dryness
*THe shaved noodles were pretty good, for WAY better chinese (and not americanized) do the Mandarin Chef down the street

I have no idea why this place is called «Jack’s tapas» since there are no actual tapas on the menu. Décor is pretty outdated and weird, with odd, out-​of-​place art. Service is not the greatest but not terrible.
This place was ok and I think I would’ve liked it a lot more if the food wasn’t drenched in grease. Beef soup was pretty tasty. Shaved noodles were delicious, but greasy. Same story with the scallion bread thing — we took some to go and by the time we got home they paper bag it was in was soaked with grease completely, so we ended up throwing it out. Too bad — if it wasn’t for the grease factor, we’d go there more often.

The first time my boyfriend took me to Jack’s, I asked; «Why don’t all Chinese restaurants make their noodles shaved noodles?» Seriously, I had found Noodle Nirvana.
This has been my squeeze’s favorite Chinese restaurant since his days as an graduate student at UW (besides Sichanese Cuisine in the ID, another notable experience), and he traveled for months across China, plus he grew up with a Taiwanese mother who ran a Chinese restaurant, so trust me — he knows his food. I’ve never had pan-​fried scallion pancake, but picture a deep dish onion pizza, and add eight times the delicious. The eggplant with basil melts n your mouth, and the chicken in every dish is tender not chewy.
But the best part of Jack’s is how nice they are. If you’ve been to restaurants where they slam down the food and look at you like you’re personally responsible for any torture of their ancestors in any country, you’ll love how welcome and warm everyone is at Jack’s. It’s like Cheers, with Chinese food. Which, now that I think about it, would have been a vast improvement.

Myself and three of my friends went to Jack’s Tapas last night. I’ve never had typical tapas before, but I got the feeling that there wasn’t a strong correlation to what Jack’s had on the menu. I recently read a write-​up in the Stranger about the place and decided to try it. Upon recommendation I ordered the Shaved Noodles Stir Fry with Vegetables. The meal was seriously the most delicious thing I have eaten in a long time. The spices and combination of vegetables were absolutely perfect and the noodles themselves were something straight from heaven. I could probably eat this meal every day of my life.
The only problem that we had with Jack’s Tapas was in the service. I’m sure what we experienced was nothing short of an isolated mistake, but was slightly disappointing nonetheless. Two of us received our meals first, and we waited for them to bring out the other two. A few minutes later the third meal was brought out, but was prepared with beef instead of chicken. It took probably 20 – 30 minutes for them to bring out the final two meals after making the initial mistake. My two friends were hungry beyond imagination, especially after staring at the food on our plates for so long.
This little blip in service wont keep me from going back to Jack’s Tapas. In fact, I am already getting cravings.

What a gem of a joint this is. I’ll admit whenever my parents find a good restaurant before me I get a little upset. My parents never eat out so when they are the ones recommending a place for me to try, I automatically put my judging hat on and am read to rip this place apart.
First of all… tapas? Really? Ok, get past the weird seemingly out of place name and you (just like I did) will find simple, authentic Chinese foods. There’s maybe only a few places in Seattle where you can get a pan fried layered scallion pancake (it’s Chinese name doesn’t make it sound so ridiculous) and most of those places fall short on making anything worth noting. However, Jack does a well above average job in putting this staple of a dish. This dish alone makes a trip to Jack’s more than worth it.
Don’t try eating it alone, you won’t get through it.

I like Jack’s Tapas, unfortunately I always forget it’s there when I’m craving Chinese food.
I think the name comes from the fact that Chinese people like to order family-​style and share dishes. sorta like tapas?
I’ve liked everything I tried — especially the bread and shaved noodles. I’ve even had hot pot during winter and it just hit the spot. I like the variety of food and the service is great at Jack’s so I look forward to coming back and trying out more dishes!

The sign reads:
Jack’s Tapas Café
— Mainly Chinese —
I skipped on in with visions of shareable plates of Chinese food dancing in my head. Unfortunately that’s not what the menu had on offer. It was your run-​of-​the-​mill Chinese food offerings with a couple of the appetizers being on the smaller side, but no tapas, or shareable plates in sight.
Oh well, let’s just order.
The hand shaved noodles were pretty darn good even if they did have an unidentifiable slightly fishy taste to them, it was a good unidentifiable taste. The tofu with mixed veggies was pretty tasty even if the only vegetable was four pieces of broccoli and the beef with asparagus was tasty but oddly in the exact same sauce as the mixed tofu with veggies.
Basically, don’t let the sign fool you, it’s not fancy, it’s nothing special, but if you want some mediocre Chinese food when you are in the U District you could stop into Jack’s or keep on lookin…