Jonathan's

Just had a fabulous dinner with my family to celebrate my parents' anniversary. Everyone's food was great. I ordered the sirloin which was a huge cut of meat. Perfectly cooked and tasty. I ordered a baked potato but when I saw my sister's mashed potatoes I got jealous. The waiter heard me and brought me a small side of them without asking him. Great service!

The meal was somewhat decent although this restaurant is very racist, took my family out for a random dinner horrible crowd was steered at our entire meal my daughter threw up after the meal which never happens, steer clear never revisiting this place should of chose your mommas house which isn't far from them.

Never again. Food was great but I was out with a friend and after an hr they started walking back and forth checking us out and then finally asked us to leave. Said they needed the table even though there were plenty open. For the price of the meal, it's not a place you want a rushed meal. Rude. If they needed the table they should have at least suggested we take our conversation to the bar. Not ask us to leave.

I’ll admit, Long Island isn’t one of my favorite places in the world. However, I recently found myself venturing out to the Farmingdale area to watch my dad cash in on a LivingSocial deal for flight lessons. A lunch stop was of course a must, and we decided on a place I’d previously been with Hailey and her grandmother, Jonathan’s.

Atmosphere

Jonathan’s is a big place. There is a large, main dining area with tables scattered about and booths lining one wall as well as partially separated areas which are often used for private events. The tables are all covered in white table cloths and, while you can get away wearing jeans and going more casual, it feels as if Jonathan’s tries to class itself up as much as possible.

We arrived at the restaurant for a late lunch (around 2 p.m.). Aside from our group of 7, there were only five other tables in the place, as well as a larger party (I think bridal shower) in one of the partially separated dining areas.

Food

The first piece of food that draws your attention is the bread placed on each table. Who doesn’t love a good bread basket? This one had a bunch of different varieties but the winners were the onion rolls. These were loaded with an incredible amount of onion pieces that coated the entire undersides of the rolls. The result was a heavily oniony flavor.

I was trying to be a little bit healthy this afternoon (after consuming four or five rolls of course) so I opted for a salad. I ordered:

Chicken Savannah Salad: grilled chicken breast with candied pecans, granny smith apples, crisp Applewood bacon and mixed greens, tossed in a country mustard honey dressing

A sliced grilled chicken breast as well as green apples were placed on top of the salad and sprinkled with candied pecans and the dressing. The highlights of the salad were the large amount of grilled chicken (major plus) that was very moist and seasoned to give it a nice flavor, as well as the candied pecans. (I’m convinced you can candy anything and it will be delicious.) Unfortunately, one of the major downsides of the salad were the mixed greens. I know is wasn’t eating a spinach salad but I would have preferred some more color from the lettuce. A great majority of the greens were practically white. Additionally, the green apples weren’t as green as I was hoping and this detracted from their overall flavor. I’m not sure exactly how healthy this salad was with the candied pecans and honey mustard dressing, but it tasted pretty good and did the job filling me up.

Service

The service at Jonathan’s was terrible. Our waiter, Caesar, disappeared for long periods of time and was the opposite of attentive. It took us forever to order our food and drinks. When we received the wine menu to try and order another bottle of wine before our meals came out, Caesar was nowhere to be found. He did return to see if we wanted another bottle, but it was well after everyone had finished eating. Sorry, Caesar but you missed your opportunity. We then had to flag another waiter in order to clear our dishes after our waiter disappeared once again. It turns out, our waiter was also staffing the private party being held in one of the partially separated rooms. This is all good and fine, but when the place is practically empty and a large waitstaff is roaming the floor, someone needs to pick up the slack or specific waiters need to be dedicated to the dining room so they’re not pulling double duty.

Value

Jonathan’s is priced around what I would classify as high-mid range. Entrees were in the low to mid $20s and my salad was in the high teens. The value is there though, with everyone at the table saying how happy they were with the quality and taste of their lunch options.

The Verdict

I’m not going out of my way to visit Jonathan’s. Yes, the food and atmosphere are good, but the service disappointed me and we weren’t happy about that. There are lots of options in the vicinity and next time I’m in the area I will be giving a new place a try.

Always a reliable favorite stomp for good American cuisine and excellent cornbread. The menu is extensive and the price is right. Don't expect a young crowd, especially in the early evening. Try Happy Hour on Friday night where drinks are half price.