Jax Cafe - Northeast Minneapolis

Searching for a good steak experience, Mr. C and I finally decided on Jax Cafe. Pretty much solely based on their $78 dinner for two special. It features an order of Jax Crab Rolls, A house salad, 12 ozs slow roasted certified angus beef sirloin, and a whole maine lobster with drawn butter. On the side come sweet potato or shoestring fries, and a grasshopper drink for dessert. We decided to substitute sweet potato fries for mashed potatoes.

I had a hankerin' for a martini, so I went out on a limb and ordered a grey goose one. I heart grey goose, but was al ittle disappointed with this one. It was like, an ounce, maybe 2.

But I sipped away happily, as grey goose never disappoints. Shortly after, we received our salad.

Pretty standard cesaer style salad. It looks overdressed, but it actually was fine. And the croutons....omg. They were coated with sesame seeds, and were nutty and delicious!

Jax Crab Rolls

I was a little confused about what these were, since the menu contains no description. From what I can tell, cheese, crab and...sauce (?) baked inside a crust, sprinkled with sesame seeds. The first few bites were gorgeous - velvety and satisfying. After 2 of them, they became so overpowering and rich that I could not eat more. I am not a wimp either - I can take a lot of cheese and a lot of richness. These were sickeningly rich. I was disappointed.

After that, they bring out the butter, cute and appetizing nestled in it's own melting mechanism!

We waited awhile and chatted over some wine and watched the butter melt. It wasn't too long before the steak and lobster arrived.

I realized it was coming whole, but look at the inside of the body. It was soooo unappetizing, and I am already squeamish so I had to make myself not look at it. The lobster was a mixed bag. The claw meat was meaty and moist in the center, the tip was extremely dry with a strong mineral flavor. The tails were juicy and sweet, but tough and chewy.

Meat

I wasn't expecting this type of presentation. I thoguht I would get a nice hunk of meat. Admittedly, I do not know meat well. Overall, this dish was perfectly standard. The meat was kind of lukewarm, but it was not dry and not overly chewy. The savory level was maybe a 2, and the gravy reminded me a little of pot roast. The potatoes were fine, because potatoes are usually always awesome.

We traded our grasshopper drink in for a Bailey's Chocolate Cake to go because we were so full. We split it later, and it was awesome. It had that sweet creamy Bailey's tatse, and a mellow chocolate cake that was fluffy and perfect.

Overall, I was quite disappointed with this meal. I have made better things at home. Not to be a negative Nancy, but once you have had something authentically good, it is hard to be satisfied with standard things, especially if they cost you $78.

http://www.jaxcafe.com/index.php?ni=1