Dear John's is a classic steakhouse with an old-school vibe. The steak was cooked to perfection, and the sides were simple yet delicious. The service was outstanding, and the ambiance was charming and nostalgic. read more

We decided to try this steakhouse recommended by our friends. The service was very attentive and fast! We tried the ribeye steak and a few of their sides. The steak is medium rare but the outside was too charred and dry for my taste. The sides were all delicious, especially the creamed corn. The restaurant itself is super dark and cozy. I had a hard time seeing the food I'm eating. The food was great but the environment personally wasn't my vibe. It was a bit too dark and feels tight and squished inside. But overall the restaurant was great! read more

$$$$ patio experience was dismal - food was mediocre , dirty martini was tepid, olives were lame.

I came in for the rib eye... I was sold that the rib eye had a lot of fatties.. it was a round cut and what I got felt more like a strip.... it had some fatties... but this girl likes her fatties! anyway, steak was delicious (though it also needed a wee more salt). the wedge iceberg blue cheese tomato salad looked like a beautiful crown w/ all it's diamonds.. That was very good! the chopped salad was also very good... that one is very filling I don't know why?! might be all the chicpeas and mini cubes sopressatas. both salads I'd say are very shareable. mushrooms, broccolini and mashed were good- good 'ol classic sides. The desserts we got was that peanut butter bar whose bottom layer is a think wafer or ground up rice crispies, that was a REALLY good dessert aaaaand the hot / warm croissant bread pudding situation.. mmmmm... good desserts! place is dim, cozy, dark... and overall fun place. read more

I loved Dear John's - the look, the vibe, the food the cocktails just mostly perfect! I didn't even mind the close dining:). However, here's the rub: i specifically asked our otherwise great server if they put a large presence of mushrooms in the Lobster Thermidor.He said " Definitely NOT". I emphasized I really disliked cooked mushrooms. I was served 2 servings, each in their own shell. One, I ate there, pulled out two large pieces of shrooms and gave them to my husband. My Birthday dinner, trying to be nice, so I was O K. Here it comes. We had a doggie bag and the next day warmed up a piece of steak, the other Thermidor, potatoes and Bill's mushrooms,. I began eating the Thermidor and pulled out 1/3 cup of large piece of shrooms. Very little lobster. Was the waiter unaware? Looks to me like the humongous shroom pieces were a filler. Not cool - Dear John's ! AND you ignored my Birthday! Just disappointed! Your staff should know what they are serving! Would have been 5 stars! What a shame! Almost worth the ticket:). read more

The clam chowder was delicious, just how Ilike it, and the atmosphere was nice & cozy, But the SERVICE BY DONNA was EXCEPTIONAL! Not only did she begin promptly, but she continued to be very attentive throughout my experience there! read more

This place is a one way ticket to nostalgia. A modest exterior but walk through a floor length black curtain and bada boom, you are in 1960's steak house bar. Get a table inside or sit at the bar to eat. Don't bother with the outside, the magic is indoors with the red walls and candle lit tables. Dear John's is what is missing from the 'fast paced flash in the pan' restaurants of today. Loosen your necktie and perhaps your belt because the food is big taste, lots of sauces, nothing subtle about these flavors. I recommend Chicken Parm and Frank's Spaghetti with clams. For dessert, a croissant cherry bread pudding. Great cocktails, well appointed wine list. Be prepared to open your wallet, things are pricey, but for an experience that will guarantee your ticket back in time, it cannot be beat. Outstanding items: Head Waiter - Hank - The man knows his business, will tell you what to order and will be right. All the waiters here are professionals, period. Rush to Dear John's before the place closes. Currently scheduled to remain open until End of May 2023. Just cross your fingers the owners get a clue and allow this place to stay in Culver City. It should be a historical landmark. Period end of sentence. read more

fantastic atmosphere, classy wait staff. you have to try this culver city classic. fav place in town for classy date nights out

My friends took me here for my birthday because I have always wanted them try this place since I was kid driving by this place. Great ambience, service was great and the food was AMAZING!!! Everything we ordered was so delicious but the filet mignon and spaghetti with clams was my favorite! I highly recommend especially if you are a local! I will definitely be coming back. read more

Came for the first time the other day. Valet parking is a little pricey but the attendant was nice and welcoming. The atmosphere of this restaurant was great had a jazz lounge feel to it very dark with candle light at every table. It is a small place so it gets loud with all the people in there but still great atmosphere. We sat at the bar and our server was the sweetest girl ever! She was so attentive of us even though the place was packed! Our food was amazing! Steak was cooked to protection and potatoes were excellent!!! read more

An absolute time warp and that's the point I'd guess. Old American steakhouse fare, elevated but not pretentious. The vibe was perfect with darkness, red tablecloths, and golden candles while jazz classics mix with the weird LA tables conversations mixing. The Ribeye was perfectly cooked and the mashed potatoes make me sad I try to do them myself. Also, don't sleep on the cheesecake it's something else. It was everything I wanted it to be. read more

1) This place is WAY too fucking EXPENSIVE! If you enjoy getting ripped off in a dimly candlelit room where it's hard to discern the prices on the menu, by all means be my guest. For what you pay here you could get a much better meal at Lawry's in Beverly Hills. 2) The food isn't even good. It's B- food at best. You know when you eat something in a bad restaurant and leave thinking, "I could've made something better at home." That's the quality of food we're talking about here. 3) OVERPRICED DRINKS I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that the drinks are horribly overpriced when the food's this bad. Still, caveat emptor and again, be sure to double check the prices of what you're ordering or you may be in for a nasty surprise when the bill shows up. 4) The atmosphere is C- If you're into dives, in that quasi hipster sense, yeah this place might satisfy your sense of scene. But there was a reason it closed down, and reopening it with flashy lamp shades isn't going to cover up the fact that this place is a second class shithole -- it's just in this place's DNA. In summation, DO NOT EAT HERE. It's like a bad scam I feel I need to warn people of. read more

We went to Dear John's for our Valentine's dinner, a day late. We were seated outside and it was freezing; the heater wasn't throwing out any heat. We seldom saw our waiter. While we were trying to get pepper, a car backed into the wall where I was seated. Everyone on the patio jumped up in response. No one from the staff came out. After some time the manager, I assume came out asking if we wanted a free dessert.our steak was good but the sides were terrible. It took forever to get another glass of wine. The food is way overpriced and the service was terrible. We won't be going back! read more

Went for the currently-running Dine LA. Not a good experience. First, when we were seated they basically seated us at a table with another couple. Not literally, but imagine a banquette 4-top with a 1" slice down the middle, and a partition built into that slice that sticks up maybe a foot above the table top, and stops at the edge of the table. I would have been basically bumping elbows with the guy next to me. Fortunately there was room to slide the table away from them without impinging on the one on the other side, so we did. As for the rest of the ambience: Music is too loud. This may have been because we were at the banquettes, and it seems that every one of them has a speaker mounted over it that is tuned to the full size of the restaurant. So, too high if you're underneath it, and of course as more people roll in the conversation has to overcome the music and everything gets louder. Also under lit. I know this is the ambience they are going for, but a handful of 10w bulbs in the ceiling doesn't cut it. The main light is from the candles on the table, and since they are not shaded in any way the light from them forces your pupils to close up, and then when you look away it's so dark that you can't see the food. Which may have been the point. My wife had the shrimp cocktail, which was okay except the basic red sauce had so much horseradish in it that it was choking. My caesar was all right but nothing to write home about. She had the sand dabs as an entree. They were edible but not the freshest, so much so that she didn't bother to take home the leftovers. I had the Steak Diane. No place that attempts to call themselves a steakhouse should have been serving a piece of meat this bad. It was difficult to cut through, full of gristle, and, well - if your mom was one who told you to chew your food at least 20 times before you swallowed it, she would be happy here. That was the minimum to make it swallowable. The flavor of their sauce wasn't bad though, although I'm not an expert on Steak Diane. I did not take home the leftovers either, needless to say. As we were both disgusted by this point, we got our desserts to go - mascarpone cheesecake and "chocolate crunch" cake. The chocolate crunch cake wound up actually being a chocolate/peanut butter combo (kudos to the server for warning us ahead of time). Normally my wife loves this. She took one bite and threw the rest away. I did the same thing with the cheesecake - it had a kind of industrial chemical flavor to it. Service was friendly but spotty. Our waitress was the only staff member in the entire restaurant not wearing a mask (okay, that we saw, but it's a small restaurant). Also they had apparently assigned her to some inside tables and some outside tables, so she would disappear for quite a while, and in fact someone else wound up taking our order because she couldn't get back to our table. But to their credit, it wasn't because we had to ask, they knew the issue. Also they were good about noticing things like empty water glasses and getting to them right away. Oh, and parking is a disaster. They appear to have taken over a bunch of the parking lot for outside dining, so a lot that was designed to service the inside of the restaurant now has insufficient spots for the inside, plus there are now a bunch of outside tables. You're left cruising the surrounding block(s) looking for open spaces. (We did manage to find one within a hundred yards or so on a residential street, with one of those only-in-LA (well, Culver City) sets of parking restrictions that takes at least 3 signs with multiple restrictions on most of them.) Give this one a hard pass. read more

First time here a few weeks ago and it's pretty iconic from what I understand. Food was good, ambience what you'd expect from an old-school Italian place. Reminds me of something out of an old mob movie. It was great. Service was a little slow but would still come back. read more

Absolutely charming yet darkly lit place. I had been reading about it most of 2023 and was grateful for a friend suggesting it for my birthday dinner. The old school waiters (he introduced himself as "I'm your Captain") and the comfort food was a perfect ending to my summer. We focused on the Italian influence on this visit. The table side prepared Caeser salad for two is a must. We thought perhaps the Captain was preparing the salad for our neighbors table because he didn't explain it was for us. We would have focused more on the show! Fortunately he repeated it for a near by table so we were able to see some of the great details like putting ground pepper directly on the plate before putting the salad on to the plate. The garlic bread is reminiscent of a good pizza slice. We had spaghetti and meatballs and the chicken parm. In recognition of the relative high prices, I didn't order one of the cocktails that seemed interesting. The place is really intimate and worth checking out. read more

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The service leaves a lot to be desired here. Though my waiter was much more pleasant in Oct than this past weekend, neither were great. I felt like they kept making jokes at our expense. Also, why did the waiter keep trying to make us feel bad? "You should've ordered your sauce when you ordered your steak." We forgot, sorry...? And why did he give me the just a moment finger if he didn't need to take a moment? I was so confused when he spoke to me immediately after giving me the finger. -Steak tartare: It was good, definitely needed more crackers for the amount of tartare they served. -Cesar salad: Standard, the mixing wasn't as exciting since there was no egg involved or anchovies. It was just dressing, oil, and lemon being emulsified. 1 order is plenty for 4 people. An order for 2 is overkill, if you want to finish your steak. -Oysters Rockefeller: 3 oysters per order, what an odd number to serve. I wouldn't order this again. -Wedge salad: It was more lemony than blue cheesy. Also good enough to share between 2 people. -Garlic bread: SKIP! This was pretty gross. Didn't taste like much. It was mostly chewy and greasy. -NY Steak: This was okay. Standard steak, the one I got had a lot of gristle. -Ribeye: Standard steak, a very hefty piece of beef. -Filet: A-MA-ZING! It was so buttery and soft both times we ordered this. ORDER THIS! 8oz is still A LOT of meat if you're worried about size. -Spaghetti with clams: Disgusting. Don't order this. The sauce tasted salty but not salty...probably because of the clam juice. The noodles were mush. -Mushrooms: The medley of mushrooms was okay. A bit disappointing and extremely salty. -Fries: Amazing the first time we got them but SUPER salty the 2nd time. I got a headache the 2nd time and had to send them back. They still came back salty but not as bad as the 1st batch. I wasn't about to send back the fries again, but I would have if it was our 1st batch, still too salty. -Creamed corn: Very disappointing, the corn wasn't very sweet and the kernels were chewy? What is that texture? Not snappy, dense, chewy, and mushy? -Cocktails: All tasty and you can ask for virgin versions! Also, don't expect anything comped for celebrations. The only thing I got for my bday was a, "What??? Not dessert for your birthday???" No, I already ordered many appetizers, entrees, sides, and drinks, I'm good. read more

Ate here last night with my husband and a friend, like many people when I lived on the west side I drove by this place a million times and thought it was just some dive bar. The food was absolutely delicious, my husband and our friend ordered the steak I had the chicken kiev which is the chicken parmesan. I had the midnight margarita, super smooth delicious and very well made. I will definitely be back. read more

Dear John, I wish I could give you zero stars. How can you screw up a $60 ribeye? Ribeyes are supposed to be marbled and juicy. They teem with flavor. But somehow, you gave me a ribeye that was tough, utterly flavorless, and even mealy in texture. I am baffled. read more

Reviews talk about the great bar. Our classic martinis came in a small champagne glass. Always disappointing as the pour is short. Filets were good but at $65? Not worth it IMHO. Inside is super loud and tight seating. We sat outside and with heaters blaring it was ok however we were sitting on an unimpressive parking lot eating overpriced meat 1st time there and no rush to go back..... read more

Classic steakhouse with that "old school LA" feeling from the boom times of the movie industry. The sear on their ribeye is one of the best I've ever seen in a restaurant, including more pricey establishments. Martinis were solid, Caesar salad was great, and the croissant bread pudding was an amazing dessert. read more

The bar is very nice, excellent cocktails. The food is surprisingly banal. Considering the reputation of the two chefs (Citrin and Rockenwagner) it's very surprising. We went with high hopes and great expectations and were VERY disappointed. Don't bother with the $34 tater tots - tasted like something at my mother's pot luck dinners (not good), same with the pigs in blanket, just terrible. The sirloin steak was mediocre and the creamed spinach was bland and uninteresting. The Caesar salad was OK, but the croutons should have been made with delicious crusty sour-dough - I would highly recommend stopping here AFTER dinner for a cocktail, but don't bother with dinner. We won't be back for food, maybe a drink. read more

Dated, dark, mediocre food. The cocktails and the German Potatoes are its only saving grace. People are all flocking here because it's a 2 year pop up. Overpriced steaks that are predominately choice cut (there's one prime steak). Save your money and hit up Mastro's or Cut. Our waiter only checked in on us once, but checked on all of his Caucasian clients at least 3-5 times in the 45 minutes we were there. Also, although my wife and I arrived first to check in for our reservations, all the old Caucasian couples got their tables first (they were also in pairs). Am I reading too much into this? Possibly... but I'm not the first reviewer to note the disparate treatment between different customers. read more

I was trying to accomplish the difficult task of a surprise large group dinner for my boyfriend's birthday and Dear John's truly delivered. At first, the events coordinator could only promise a table of 8 and a table of 5 both on the patio (which made sense with the reservation only 1 week ahead of time and a large group of 13). However, they were in fact able to accommodate my large group of which turned into 10 at one large table (thanks to our wonderful servers!) and we had such a fun time. The drinks were very good (my boyfriend got the gin martini and I had the Hemingway) and the dineLA menu was the perfect option for trying lots of sides (the broccolini was ok but the scalloped potato's were delicious). I was more impressed with the Chicken Parmesan and found the Ribeye to be too fatty for my comfort. The chocolate peanut butter dessert was amazing and the marscapone cheesecake were very good. Would definitely love to come back again to try the cool ambience of the dining room. Thank you, Dear John's for a memorable celebration dinner for my boyfriend's 30th birthday! We will be recommending your restaurant to our friends and be back soon to try more dishes! read more

The waitress was was very pleasant. We ordered the ribeye steak. When it came out, it was maybe the worst $65+ piece of meat that either of us had ever been served. When the waitress reported our sentiments to the matre de, he came to our table to argue with us about the quality of the meat they had served. His name was Hank, if you ever go there be sure to give him our regards. He is single-handedly the reason that neither of us will ever be seen at this restaurant again. Not only was he argumentative, but he offered absolutely NOTHING to assuage our concern. I've been dining at many of the finest restaurants in Los Angeles for over 40 years. I've never before written a review; however this experience was so exceptional that I felt the need to express just how unusual this experience was. 'Dear John' just like the letter a lot of men received during wartime is the perfect expression of what I have to say about this dining experience. read more

A little pricey. But, everything is expensive now. The gentleman who served us was really personable and good. The food was amazing. We sat outside because it is much quieter. Inside, for me, was loud and claustrophobic. Our friends like the vibe of inside. read more

Ate here a couple months ago and loved it. Had an excellent ribeye and caesar salad made tableside. There's an old school ambiance to the restaurant which I love and service was fantastic. Also reasonably priced. It's my new favorite steak restaurant in LA. read more

Wow! Best steak house in LA right now. The food is incredible, the cocktails are too, and the vibe knocks it right out of the park. The service is old school (think Musso and Frank's and Dan Tana's). It's great to have a place that feels fresh and classic all at once. I have eaten here twice and I have loved every dish on the menu. My brother flew in for my birthday, and he felt like this dinner was worth the entire trip. I hope they keep their lease forever. read more

When I was working at Hughes Aircraft in the mid-1970s, one of my co-workers recommended Dear John's. Now and then a small group of us would drive over for lunch. The place was basically a bar with a fairly simple, but reasonably diverse menu with about a half dozen choices. It was not what I'd call a "greasy spoon" selection. I've never seen scallops on a menu at a greasy spoon! But the standout attraction for me was the best Bloody Mary I've ever had. Recently, I read that Dear John's had been updated and restored, yet was doomed to closure sometime soon. I decided that it was time to visit the old haunt once more while it was still in business. I dragged my girlfriend to dinner there a few weeks ago. The first thing I ordered was a Bloody Mary. I was informed that they don't serve Bloody Marys. We should have left immediately, but it was a long drive back home and we hadn't eaten yet. So we settled for wine and dinner. In the old days, the place was quiet as a library. When we came recently, there was loud music and conversation abounding. Neither of those were conducive to a good dining experience. After a mediocre, but expen$ive, dinner I paid the check and we left disappointed. As the saying goes, you can never go back - and I'll never try again. But I can make a decent Bloody Mary at home and fondly remember the good old days. read more

I'm in what can only be described as a happiness food coma from our sensational dinner experience at Dear John's which was recently reopened this last week as a passion project by the renowned Hans Rockenwagner, Patti Rockenwagener and Josiah Citrin. To say that I am in love and enamored with the food and the vibe at the restaurant would be an understatement. It's been quite some time where I've been personally transformed and moved by the food, the service and the ambiance. I had been to Dear John's a few times before in its original incarnation. We came for New Year's Eve dinner a few years ago and the patrons clearly had been loyal to the staff and the food for quite some time. The food was okay, moderately priced, the pianist and singer were entertaining and it was a solid, respectable night. Tonight's dinner extravaganza was not even the same conversation or the same crowd. The clientele seemed more established, more polished but not uptight. This reincarnation did not have live entertainment but they had lively music playing in the background. The restaurant looked like a more version of the original with a nod to its history. The food, however, was a complete 180. Everything we ordered just topped our expectations which is a sensational sign for the success of this "do-over" that our city, Culver City, is so incredibly lucky to have for the next two years. We started with the tableside Caesar salad which was a show in and of itself. It was creamy and delicious, perfectly and evenly mixed with the dressing. Our friends ordered the garlic bread, avocado crab Louie, shrimp cocktail and wedge salad to start, which all looked beautiful. The garlic bread was the only one I sampled of the four and though I try to limit my carbs, that toasted, garlic, buttery goodness was definitely worth the splurge. Each order came with two delicious breadsticks. My husband and I ordered the filet with cafe de Paris butter, chicken Parmesan and broccolini while our friends ordered the ribeye, lobster Thermidor, creamed corn and fries. We got a bonus treat of the spaghetti and clams from Hans and Patti. There are no words for how amazing everything tasted. For me, it's been a while since I've eaten at a top quality restaurant where everything tasted like they should and all the accompaniments fit together. Everything seemed like it was prepared and cooked by an Iron Chef but understated, and that is a huge accomplishment in a town that has so much competition. To top off this magical evening was the mind boggling chocolate peanut butter wafer dessert. It took 2 hands to cut through the dense deliciousness. I'm not a dessert person, but I somehow accidentally yet deliberately ate 3 very large teaspoons of the ice cream and the cake combo. If I had a dessert of choice, that would embody my ideal. It was moist, yet dense but not sweet. Each flavor came through with each bite. To sum, everybody must drop what they're doing and make a reservation on Resy for Dear John's Bar right now. We have met Josiah through our lovely friends Paul and Amber in the past but tonight was our first time meeting Hans and Patti who are just lovely people and were there to greet guests and make sure they were enjoying their dinner. Dear John's Bar is the place where one should go to treat themselves to a fantastic dinner, to meet some amazing people and to just enjoy the joys of eating. We will be back again and again and again and will bring friends. Many thanks to Josiah, Hans and Patti for an amazing, delectable dinner experience! read more

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Always appreciate a dimly lit, jazz in the background, stiff cocktail from a tuxedoed gentleman. Only thing missing from this spot is an ashtray. Retro, vibey and damn good service only outmatched by their steaks. read more

I am so happy I got to experience Dear John's for my birthday! The bougie tots were delicious and the rib eye was juicy and cooked to perfection. I'm happy the lease was extended :) read more

The chicken parm was promised to me as moist, and it wasn't. Additional anchovies were promised to my husband for the Caesar, and they never came. It was our fifth wedding anniversary, and I thought, maybe a tiny dessert wine pour or scoop of ice cream might come out on the house, but no. Our server was great, I enjoyed the noirish atmosphere, but my husband's company was the best part of the meal, followed by the garlic bread. And the reservation policy is not what I deem great hospitality. Life happens, you know? read more

I had driven past Dear John's for years and always wanted to try it. I had thought it was a piano bar a la Sinatra days. Entertaining my brother from out of town and a dear friend, I chose Dear John's. I was sad that they'd removed the piano and we could only get seating for dinner on the patio, but otherwise, enjoyed the place very much. I love the bar, the dim lighting, the music, the drinks...and oh my goodness, the food was out of this world! Highly recommend the garlic bread (it has grilled cheese on it), the filet, the salmon and the steak fries. We also tried the chopped salad, the German potatoes, the sautéed mushrooms and the sand dabs - all good but not nearly as amazing as the aforementioned recommendations. It was a little strange that they charge $5 for the bernaise sauce (or four other sauce choices for the beef) and were going to charge another $5 for more betnaise sauce for the leftover filet. Apparently they did not, and enjoyed having the delicious leftover filet for lunch today. The service was excellent both at the bar and at the table. I didn't catch the bartender's name, but our server was Yesenia and her service was A+. Highly recommend Dear John's for a great dining experience, and if you can't get a table inside, you can eat at the bar to enjoy the super cool retro ambience. read more

Great vibe, great staff. But unfortunately the parking situation is terrible. No valet. we expected the food to be amazing. We ordered the cesar for two that was the best thing we had. Shrimp cocktail also very good Onion soup was beyond salty Lobster Thermador we did not like. Rib Eye under seasoned not great the bernaise sauce was good Broccoili rabe not cooked well Creamed corn bland and watery Mashed potatoes good Creamed spinach so so We were not thrilled with our meal so did not want to get to get dessert our server was trying to steer to other dishes she herself was partly cloudy on some of the items. Should have listened to her. She was fabulous and made the best cesar salad ever. That was awesome I would go and get that Garlic bread a few cocktails and shrimp cocktails . For a light dinner. It's such a nice vibe. Go early so you can get a parking spot in their lot. Just go sit at the bar. Have a casual,night. It's more that kind of vibe. In our opinion. That's how the 3 of us felt. If we came back we would just sit at the bar and do that. read more

Look at this feast , my hubby brought me here for a early bday dinner and the food was incredible. This place has great outdoor dining, they follow Covid-19 regulations and hand sanitizer offered as soonest you come in. I grew up in Venice and as a child I would often drive by this place and always wondered about it. If you are in the area and you pass by this gem daily, I recommend you make a reservation. Thank you Dear John team for your amazing service, and to the chef ‍ as well for creating dishes with so much flavor. My tummy and I thank you! Looking forward to visiting back soon. read more

Chicken Parmesan with side of Marinara Spaghetti was delicious. We went with the JLC Bougie Tots instead of the table-side Caesar, probably a mistake. I've heard potato chips and caviar is a great marriage, but tater tots overpower the caviar here. read more

So glad to be in the email loop for Dear John's, after enjoying Melisse and the other offerings of Josiah Citrin. Would not have known about this gem otherwise. Excellent Martini, perfect Steak Tartare to start. The "Everything Crackers" were delicious and crisp. Nice change from toast points. The medium-rare filet could not have been better. Creamed corn was very fresh. And the chocolate ganache topped it all beautifully. Service was inviting and warm, actually starting in the parking lot when I was guided into a space, then to the lady who seated me, my server, and the two gentlemen who brought or cleared my plates. Party of 1, but was never rushed. Thank you! read more

Tasteless food, small portions Overpriced Nice staff Antiquated atmosphere Much better options read more

Yep, 5 starts, the old "Woohoo! As good as it gets!" review. If you can get a reservation, you should make plans to dine at Dear John's. While neither of these owners are the original one who were associated with Frank Sinatra, I believe he would be pleased with how they have resurrected his restaurant. There are only two things you may not be totally pleased with. One is the parking and the second is the price. It is pricey but it is a special experience, at least it was for us. Parking is definitely an issue unless you are lucky enough to get one of their 10 or so spots right next to the building. So, while I suggest you dress up a bit to eat here, make sure you wear comfortable walking shoes as you might need to huff it a bit to get there and then back to your car. As others have noted, it is dark, really dark inside. I probably took me 10 to 15 minutes before I could really get a good look at the place. This is especially true if you come in while the sun is still up. But, Tanya, the host, will guide you to your table and make sure your waiter knows you have arrived. The walls are filled with artwork from a private gallery and gives you the feeling you are in a speak easy from the past. If you are not able to get a reservation, there are about 10 seats at the bar which are first come, first serve and you can order a full dinner there. If you like a bit of a show, order the Caesar salad, which your waiter will prepare right at your table. I'd recommend asking for a few extra anchovies to kick it up a notch. As mentioned, it is a bit pricey, with their fabulous Lobster Thermidor going for $55. While this dish is excellent, it is the smallest portioned dinner offered. So, if you are really hungry and want this, you'll want to get an appetizer and/or a side. The chicken parm is excellent and presented "inside out", butterfly style. It does not come with pasta but you can get a side for $9. Cutting it right down the middle reveals the delicious surprise inside. The atmosphere is lively and loud, and seating is snug. But we were lucky enough to get the corner table, by the fireplace and had the entire restaurant and bar in front of us to watch the crowd, servers and bartenders do their thing. Just a great night, with great food and we were lucky enough to get a parking spot in their lot. :) For dessert, we split the banana split. They had three different desserts on the night we visited and this seemed like the perfect way to end the meal. Hope you get a chance to try it and try it soon. Because of some planned construction, it will close and be leveled in 2021. Get off the couch and get some food! Enjoy!!! read more