Have been here for lunch and dinner.

Some of the best meals in lower hutt.

Pros:
-Great Food (From what we have tried)
-Great Service (Lunch service seems the best)

Cons:
-Some of the meals get let down by the sides (Microwaved veges/salad with no dressing)
-Bit of a mixed bag with the prices of the food (The food is fantastic, however the decor/atmosphere of the place does not match the price of the meals/experience)

Overall highly recommended

had 7 of us girls have dinner here on sat night, have not been before.
first impressions, busy but not noisy.
Service was very friendly and atentive, no complaints about that, and food was good too. Everyone like this place, we will back again.

We went with high expectations and were not disappointed at all. What sets the seen is the smell of fresh meat when you walk in the door. Just what you want at a grill!

Our starter of garilic lime prawn was fantastic and we followed it with the 600gm steak to share. The wine matching was spot on.

Overall, a really enjoyable experience and would happily head back again in the near future.

I have never left a restaurant feeling this disappointed or ripped off. Their meal prices are on the mid to high range, so it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect the standard of food being up there too.

The pork belly was dry and the mash you could cut with a knife. Ordered the duck for the main, which was good, but the kumara chips were dry as if they were a day old and reheated.

Wait staff were slow. I wasn’t even afforded the opportunity to politely say that the meal was well below par because no-one asked how our meal was. Perhaps they know it’s crap.

First and last time visiting this place.

Jackson Cafe & Bistro is fun and different. There are many different cuts of beef prepared in various ways, lamb, pork, and fish. The servers, in what I imagine are traditional costumes, cut the pieces you wish.

The combination of quantity and festive atmosphere more than offsets the inconsistent food quality, though some of the meats are quite good. When we went with friends the top-round and lamb were very good, the skirt steak and chicken also good. The fish was dreadful, but hey–it’s really a meat place! And once you find things you like, you can pile your plate high. We’ll definitely come back.

Second time we have been here,still not that good. Wait staff had trouble getting orders correct,Our table had people eating while others waited. Angus steak was stringy & overcooked. Maybe we expected more from the reviews we had read on Adam Lee.

We went on a Friday night and it was busy. The food was good but not to the highest standard. We both had the duck, very nice but served a little cold. The vegetables were obviously microwaved, a bit too “al dente”, which let down the dish. Two of the wait staff were good, but two had impersonal manner and did not come across as warm or friendly.

We went to Jacksons last night and had a good time. There weren’t that many people there so not that much atomosphere as the place is quite big. Our waiteress was a little odd, seemed very robotic throughout the course of the evening and didn’t really seem interested in being there. As for the food we started with prawn and scallop entrees which were presented beautifully but lacked in seasoning. I then had the Rib Eye for my main which as cooked perfectly, however, the mashed potatoe was way over salted and lumpy, my partner had the 600g All Blacks Steak – ordered rare but came out over cooked – mosting medium. A little disappointing. All in all though I would go back as it is local and reasonably priced.

We go here often and love it! The food is fabulous. Everything has always been up to standard and beyond. The only place they let themselves down a little is with the waiting staff. They are enthusiastic but seem very disorganised at times and we often need to get their attention for service. Lucky the food is so great and the lady that does the front desk is outstanding.

My husband and I had dinner at the Jacksons Cafe and Bistro on the 23rd July 2011 being a Saturday night. I had the Lamb and my husband had the steak, both meals were delicious and very tender. Then for desert we shared the sticky date pudding, this desert was so mouth watering with the rasberry sauce and ice cream and wonderfully presented as well.Staff very good also. Prices were very reasonable for such a lovely meal. We will definately be back soon.

I have been to Jackson Cafe and Bistro couple times with friends, compare to other cafe and bistros, they have good dining environment, quality food, and reasonable price, especially their dessert, I really enjoy it.

I come to their place, they always offer excellent service, no queue problems, and always provide quality food, no disappointing. Good job.

Will come again for dinner with friends.

Went here for Dinner last night. They had a special of a large Scotch fillet on the bone – 600 grams which I had to get as I was after a good steak in the first place. It was the most beautiful piece of meat I have tasted. Subtle hints of cumin in there and it tasted like a full roast and the best part was it was all mine! (well I did share with my partner as there was plenty to go round! We also had a great entrée / starter which was good value. My partner had duck medium rare which looked and tasted amazing. I was smiling the whole meal. It might just be a Wellington thing but the desserts were a little overpriced for the portion size. The portion size was small and that’s OK, just not $12 worth. Overall, I would go back just not for dessert.

Have been to this excellent restaurant twice now, both times i have found myself stopping half way through my meal and declaring just how good the food is. This is a well rounded dining experience with excellent wait staff and fantastic food. A small menu can make deciding difficult if you have a preference for a meat before you go, but be open to suggestion. This chef is very very good

If you are in search of great food and don’t mind about the service, then Jackson’s would be a good choice. The food is well presented and very reasonable. Desserts were a particular highlight.

However, if you are in search of ambience and professional service, avoid Jacksons. We were placed by the kitchen, which meant we were subject to waiting staff racing past our table all night, and shouting out orders and comments to each other. Add to this, we were seated and then had to wait for more than 15 minutes before anyone came to ask if we would like drinks, and then it was only at our request. Later, when we were keen on a dessert menu, we again had to ask the waiting staff to come over. When taking the orders the staff were either surly or disinterested – it was like they were doing us a favour. Quite uncomfortable.

What a shame – this could be a great spot for a casual meal.

Dined at recommendation and not disappointed. Delicate tastes and textures combined with grace most effectively. The white cheese cake a treat.
Outstanding, food and service great ambience, well worth a visit.

Supurb food and service, you pay for what you get and it is 5*. Is in the entertainment book (buy 1 main get one free) so ourbill was under $80 including drink. we didnt book on sat night but we havent had to wait long at the bar. They served up calamari which was the best I have had in a long time. We didnt get starters but they brought us out a wee cup of soup. Lamb shanks and steak mains were divine. Desserts was even better, I had the creme brulee. Great place to go, friendly staff too.

As a small group jackson cafe Bistro is a great choice. All the dishes look and taste amazing.We shared Bluff oysters to begin with, and ordered our choice of main course. I loved the shank which was a really interesting dish, delicious.
There were lots of ‘mmmmm’s and ‘yum’s all round!
we’ll definitely dine there again.

Lunch last week for farewell.
Ordered 1/2 doz oysters with chips and salad.

Disappointed with the cooking of oysters, burned and uneven battering. Would not recommend or order again. My local chippie does better oysters and cheaper.

The funny thing was when I went to pay for the meal, there was another customer that had complained, not sure if they listen to customers.

I’ve been to this place before and ordered steak and duck, both meals have been great but I’ve never been more disappointed in a meal.

Lesson learnt, order only what a restaurant specialise in.

We went there for lunch on Saturday. The food there was good at reasonable prices. I had Gurnard fish with hollandaise sauce and my boyfriend had the egg benedict. Very well cooked.

The service is not that good. They really need to put a smile on their face. I would definitely go back and recommend for the food but hopefully their service can improve then.

We were fans of Chow who previously operated from this site so were a bit suspicious when Jacksons moved in. We have taken two lots of overseas visitors here (American/Italian). They were very enthusiastic about the menu and the food that was served up which they felt compared very well to what they were used to. For us, we feel very lucky to live near such a reliable and reasonably priced restaurant. Probably lacking a little in customer service sophistication but who cares about that with such an enthusiastic and friendly staff.We will go again. Often.

We went to this place yesterday. The service was good but I struggle to rate it more than 3 stars from food point of view. I had the Roast Duck which was named a signature dish. It was ok not great. My wife had the Salmon … I would give that 3.5 stars.

We have been to Adam’s old place on High Street sometime back and really enjoyed the lamb. May be we should have stuck to Lamb or Beef which he seem to be good at.

We took friends from Sydney to Jackson’s last night and it was also the first time we’d been there (we live in Petone). We all had main meals, dessert & coffee – absolutely wonderful food, great service, relaxed atmosphere – we were most impressed. Friends are coming over again next year and said they’ll be dining there again for sure. We are going to recommend it to everyone we know! Thank you for a great evening & we hope you continue in Petone for a very long time.

Loved this place! The food was AMAZING! So good! We’ll be back!

We had a fantastic meal with absolutely outstanding service.

We were most impressed by the attention that the staff gave to an elderly gentleman dining on his own. A staff member offered to go with him by taxi (at a cost to the restaurant) to make sure he got home okay. This is FAR above and beyond the call of duty and is incredibly impressive.

Based on this service (as well as the incredible meal) – we will definitely dine here again.

Dine in here last friday with couple friends, we enjoyed the friendly service and the food is definitely outstanding, well presented, light and delicious! My favourite fillet prime beef ..Yum Yum! We will be back

We were lucky enough to get a last minute booking on Saturday night which was great. Was disappointed that there was no Southern Comfort on the drinks menu and had to choose something else. Great that it’s BYO wine though. Once we placed our orders, meals were served very quickly and couldn’t be faulted. Delicious.
However, I think the wait staff need training…. Drink orders were only taken once and the glases were not removed from the table when drinks were replaced. Our waitress insisted on staying in one spot and passing the meals across – there were 7 people at our table – not very pleasant having someone leaning across infront of you. Surely its not difficult to learn how to serve & clear up.

Had lunch here with a group of friends, al of us loved it. Friendly and smiley service. I had Chicken Pasta (fettuccini), the smell and taste made my mouth watery and i wanted seconds . Recommend this to restaurant to anyone.

Will definitely be back and try out the dinner menu.

Thank you heaps to Chef Adam and the friendly staff members.

anthony

Congratulations Adam with the opening of your Jackson Cafe and Bistro,a big welcome back,we enjoyed dinner last night @ Jackson’s,the starter we ordered was a big surprise,the breads,garlic butter and dips for two,and then our mains,steaks with all the trimmings,just done as we ordered them,and then the house wine,another surprise,very very nice,our compliments,and the other very nice thing was to see the lovely serving staff came with you to the new premises,well done!!!We’ll be back for more.Regards from Gerard