Jax Burgers and Brews
Quick review:
Family Friendly: 3 out of 5
(no boosters, tight seating, no high chairs at u-shaped booths)
Food: 3 out of 5
Price: 3 out of 5 (a la carte sides)
Location: 4 out of 5 (Lakeside Live, near to Joseph-Beth, duck-feeding)
A few weeks ago, we decided to try something new and tried out Jax Burgers and Brews at Lexington Green. Lakeside Live was also going on, and since it was such a nice night, we gave it a try. My little man loves going to Joseph-Beth and playing with all the toys there, riding the elevator and feeding the ducks outside, so we figured it was probably a win-win. We met up with some friends that also have a 2 year old.
We got there around 5:30pm and the place was already pretty busy. The lower parking lot was packed and we got one of the last spots. But, they do have a super cool trolley that takes you to other parking. My son LOVED the trolley, by the way. We were thinking that my son could feed the ducks for a few minutes not realizing that the music had scared all the ducks to the far end of the water (duh). So, he played inside Joseph-Beth with my husband while I ordered food.
Jax Burgers and Brews (link here) is a order at the counter and they bring your food to you type of restaurant. They have a counter to take orders to your right when you walk in. It was pretty backed up when we first headed over since the only menu was above the counter. So, you need to either order fast or stand around and block traffic to see what they have. They have a number of different burgers, some salads and other sandwiches.
Probably half of the restaurant is taken up by a large bar in the middle of the room. Then, there are maybe 8 large u-shaped booths and maybe 8-10 tables in the front of the restaurant, where they open the doors so you can enjoy the outside and the music. We tried to find the booster seats for our little ones, but were told they didn't have any. Really? They may have corrected this, but they did seem to look at us funny when we asked, so who knows. And, the high chairs are not high enough to get to the large booths, so if you have kids that can't sit in the regular seats, you have to sit at the front in a high chair. Not very kid-friendly.
The food was pretty good. Not great, just good. I got the Jax Burger ($6.90) and my husband got the Beerconator ($8.90). There was a pretty large difference between the quality and quantity of meat on the two burgers. Mine seemed like a frozen burger and was pretty thin and well-done. My husbands burger was much thicker, seemed fresher and cooked closer to medium. You also have to order the sides separately ($2.90-$4.90). We got an order of the haystacks and they were pretty good. Thin, crispy fried with a garlic parmesan topping. My son LOVED these, but was up all night with an upset stomach, which was probably due to the fries. They are pretty heavily seasoned. I hear they have milkshakes, but didn't see any on the actual menu. We didn't get a kids meal for my little man, and just had him eat some of our food. But, the kid's meals seemed pretty generic. The options were a burger, corn dog, nuggets, or grilled cheese for $4.90 a piece with chips and drink. It didn't look like you were able to get something else as a side (like apples, fruit, fries, etc).
Overall, it is a decent choice, although I think there are better places in Lexington to get a burger. The location is a huge plus, especially during Lakeside Live events. It also seemed a bit expensive, especially for a larger family. Hopefully they will get some booster chairs since that will really help with how family friendly it is.
