405662 Sun May 27 15:45:21 -0700 2007 6 16 Mid-Atlantic 0 2606544 Everytime we go back home for a visit we drive pass this restaurant. Around holidays the sign out front will say "Make your reservations for <insert holiday> now. We have always wondered if that is a marketing ploy (over exaggerating need for reservation to get people to make them) or if it is really that popular. So what's its story? Thanks Sun May 27 15:45:21 -0700 2007 14495 viperlush 1 2607359 Jake's is a bar/restaurant. The bar area is a somewhat popular hangout. I have to admit DH & I have never eaten in the dining room, but the few times we have eaten in the pub room we thought it was very overpriced for what it was. So it has fallen off our radar as a potential destination. I can't speak to how popular the dining room is or how crowded it gets for holidays, but I suspect it is much more marketing ploy than anything else. That said, I attended a bridal shower there about a year ago, and the food served was pretty good. Nothing exciting, but tasty. Mon May 28 05:04:54 -0700 2007 2606544 63569 flourgirl 1 2619036 I've probably driven by Jake's hundreds of times and never gone in! When it first opened, it was the place to go and I heard some pretty good reports about the food. I remember being at a B&B in Spring Lake and the owner knew all about the "dynamite food" at Jake's. But that was 10+ years ago. With more and more good restaurants in and near Flemington, I doubt if I will ever make it to Jake's. Thu May 31 18:27:26 -0700 2007 2606544 57768 ambrose 1 2619199 Jakes is a long time local place, family owned by the Littles, who own Central Liquors and other liquor stores in the county. Story has it that Jack Little started out with a hotdog stand on Rt 31 back when it was a 2 lane country road. One of the stand outs of Jakes is the wine list by Carl Weber, who is the primo wine guy at Central Liquors--great bargains and varieties--and one that got an honorable mention in the Wine Spectator a few years back. I've always found the food pretty consistent. They always have FRESH oysters, great burgers, and a yummy veggie stir fry that you can have with shrimp, chicken, or salmon. One of the things I've always liked about Jakes is that you can get half-portions of some of the entrees. Oh, yeah...and KILLER mac and cheese. Thu May 31 19:48:26 -0700 2007 2606544 83375 pfarrell 2 2620038 Pfarrel, you almost had me convinced. Then I looked at Jake's web site. I'm afraid I get a little suspicious when a restaurant promotes itself as offering both fine dining AND a great sports bar. My experience with these places is that they fail at both. And I was more than a little put off to see that Jake's web site of the month is Modern Drunkard Magazine. I wonder how Wine Spectator would react to that? Jake's has clearly found its niche but it's not for me. BTW, I do agree that Carl Weber is a good go-to guy for wine. I seldom buy wines at Central Liquors, however, as their prices are unusually high (check various wines on winesearcher.com and you'll see what I mean). Interestingly, you can often find the same wines, at lower prices, at Little's other store on Church Street. Go figure. Fri Jun 01 06:59:33 -0700 2007 2619199 57768 ambrose 3 2621425 I don't profess to understand the vagaries of restaurant marketing--but I guess I never really considered Jake to be fine dining, despite the white tableclothed dining room. In my experience, it's always been a convenient local casual destination place with decent food. I'm not familiar with Modern Drunkard magazine...will have to check it out.Hope there is a tongue in cheek humor there. But now that I think about it, Jake's is often filled with modern drunkards for happy hour...:) But this discussion suggests a broader question of what defines fine dining...I think I'll post a new topic to get responses.. Fri Jun 01 13:25:10 -0700 2007 2620038 83375 pfarrell 1 2643279 Thanks for the info! Fri Jun 08 15:21:44 -0700 2007 2606544 14495 viperlush