Nestled discreetly up against the mighty Fox River and constructed in 1853 of area limestone and massive wooden posts and beams inside, the once proud and stately Gray’s Gristmill was completely renovated as of 1998. It is now known as Jason’s Steakhouse.
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The Potential to be Number One
I had literally stumbled upon it in the summer of 2005 when I had the good fortune to have been invited to attend a wedding and reception there. The food was excellent – especially for a wedding reception – and the place was oozing charisma. It had been on my list of places to try ever since.
I was almost nervous with anticipation as Lauren and I ascended the front steps, for I had heard good things about Jason’s and I was this time bound and determined to order a steak. In fact, I had already decided that I would begin a comparison of local steakhouses to see who had the best. Jason’s had the potential to be number one.
How Difficult Can it Be?
Something about the Midwest has never changed since I briefly lived here as a young child. There is the undeniable desire for a good martini, a tender steak, baked potato and a salad with Thousand Island dressing. I have never been quite sure about that particular fatal attraction, yet it did and still does exist – almost like an urban legend.
At this point in my life I can do without the potato, and I choose to substitute Bleu Cheese for the Thousand Island dressing. But I must admit, the rest still sounds pretty darn good to me, and I was ready to partake! Unfortunately, it seems that were it not for bad luck, I may not have any luck at all… Then again, it may have nothing to do with luck – for it would seem that skill is more the question here. How difficult can it be to properly grill a steak?
Mouth-Watering Specials
The dining room was austere yet warm and inviting at the same time. Perhaps it was all the wood and stone, or perhaps the black table cloths and napkins, heavy silverware and oil candle on the table… Maybe it was the combination, but the anticipation grew. The Grey Goose on the rocks ($7) was a good-sized libation and Lauren’s Level vodka was served in an angle-stemmed up glass. Very classy – albeit very pricey at $10.
The many specials described were mouth-watering and included both Blue Fin Tuna and Lamb Osso Bucco, either of which would have been a great temptation on any other night. But doggone it, I was going to have a steak! (Dinners were described as being served with whipped garlic potatoes, veggies and soup or salad, so keep that in mind when considering entrée prices.) We had almost decided to forgo an appetizer, but they, too, sounded excellent and we ordered the Baked Sonoma Goat Cheese and Tomatoes ($6.95 – shallot compote with basil oil on rosemary flatbread).
Not in the Menu Description
Actually, the Goat Cheese was not on the dinner menu we were given. It was on a smaller version that I had gotten earlier. When we asked about it, we were told that the menu had “just changed today… but I’ll ask the chef – maybe we still have some left.” Presently, the appetizer was served and was truly excellent. It really didn’t register then, but in the center of the dish was a small scoop of salsa – not in the menu description – and it did not have the described basil oil…
For dinner I ordered the 8-oz. Filet ($24.95 – roasted pearl onions, jicama relish and cognac sauce) – medium rare – and asked for the Wedge ($3.95) with Bleu Cheese dressing as a substitute for the house salad. Lauren debated among several choices, but finally decided on the Veal Scaloppine ($18.95 – with lemon, capers and a bourbon sauce), which sounded a bit strange with bourbon sauce, but different and very likely a refreshingly different choice.
Veal Scaloppini That Included… Salsa?
Everything was going along just fine… until the dinners were served. Although the plate presentations were interesting looking, they essentially consisted of the entrees being piled atop spinach, which was piled atop the vegetables, which were piled atop the potatoes. This I really didn’t mind… too much, although the flavors were not separate and distinct. However, my first cut into the filet revealed a well-done steak instead of the medium rare one I had requested. Lauren noticed that the veal in her entrée had not been prepared as most scaloppini dishes are. In the middle of the pile was another scoop of the same spicy salsa that was in the appetizer!
I have seen many variations of Veal Scaloppini but never one that included salsa. It was co-mingled with the capers and provided a very strange and mostly unappealing flavor. (The sauce was thick and dark brown instead of light and piquant and, upon examination and taste, was exactly the same as the sauce on my steak.) When the server came to the table to ask how things were and learned of my over-cooked steak, she exclaimed: “I’m surprised – the steaks are usually undercooked!” At this point I’m wondering if any of the steaks get cooked correctly at Jason’s.
Yet I Yielded
For the uninitiated, you may have a pretty good idea of yet another reason that I do not generally order a steak when I go out to eat. I now had the unpleasant dilemma of deciding whether or not to succumb to the server’s urging that I allow the chef to cook another steak for me. Do I eat the over-cooked meat and try to enjoy the meal (Lauren has not yet told me that she does not care at all for the flavors on her plate), or do I roll the dice ?
At least the steak I had on my plate was a tender one. Having worked in many kitchens and having observed the reactions to returned plates, I was not really in favor of sending the steak back. Yet I yielded, realizing that Lauren would either finish her meal by the time my steak came out or, wanting to be polite, would allow her meal to get cold.
Salsa and All
Eight to nine minutes later, another steak arrives and naturally is now undercooked and extremely rare. It has been re-plated and looks nothing like the first. I take a bite or two, and notice (1) how rare my steak is, (2) that Lauren has not eaten any more of her dinner and (3) discover she does not care for the salsa-caper caper.
A busboy asks if we would like to have the remainder of the meals boxed and we politely say “yes please.” We ask for the check, pay the bill and the server bids us farewell, reminding us to “enjoy your lunch.” She obviously knew that neither of us had eaten much of our dinners. By the way, upon arriving home, we discovered that the remains of both meals had been shoveled into a single container – salsa and all.
In fairness to the server, she did bring us a glass of wine “on the house… for the inconvenience.” However, it was a single glass of wine and when she arrived at the table with it she sloshed half of it from the new glass directly into my wine glass and gave the rest in the glass to Lauren. What can I say? This was either (A) True Showmanship or (B) VERY Tacky. You choose the correct answer. Thus far, my adventures into having steak when I go out to eat have ended in two dismal failures (see my review of FoxFire in Geneva).
Major Disappointment
More importantly on this evening, Jason’s Steakhouse has been a major disappointment. So much potential exists there. The location is tremendous, the building has heaps of character and the menu has plenty of temptations with well-written descriptions. The food just doesn’t come out of the kitchen as described and is not prepared well at all. One thing that I did not mention earlier: we arrived at 7:15pm. There was only one other table there at the time.
No one else came to Jason’s for dinner that evening, at least while we were there. We left at about 8:45. The emptiness of the restaurant tells a lot about a place. And just how difficult can it really be to prepare two dinners on a night when the whole evening consists of a total of eight diners??
Just Average
I give Jason’s Steak House Three Zins, and that may be overly generous. On this particular evening, it was average fare… and that is all. A well-known axiom states that “on any given night, anything can happen.” I am certainly hopeful that Jason’s is generally much better than our experience on that given night, and that our particular dinners were unfortunate exceptions. As always, I welcome your comments.
Your Table is Waiting…
Ralph Pancetta
Jason’s Steakhouse was located at 211 N River St in Montgomery, IL. They are now permanently closed and the area converted to The Gray’s Mill Estate which offers a biergarten, a speakeasy, live music as well as private halls and event space.
Lauren’s Links
- Omaha Steaks – Ralph & I will occasionally order steaks when we see a good offer. We also use Omaha Steaks to send as gifts to family and friends! We especially enjoyed the Deluxe Burger Experience which consisted of burgers made from various cuts of meat – New York strip burgers, Porterhouse burgers and the like.
- Zwilling Steak Knife Set (Amazon)
- Nordic Ware 365 Indoor/Outdoor Sizzling Steak Server
