Excellent service by a professional waitress though food was overpriced for its quality

Great evening with friends. Service was top notch. Food was very good including thing's recommended by our server.

We have been coming to this location for 8 years, and used to look forward to eating here. During the past year, things have really gone downhill. We have had several bad experiences in a row, and tonight was more of the same. We ordered drinks, and waited for almost 15 minutes as we watched the bartenders talking to each other rather than making them. Then we ordered salad and entrees. We waited for twenty minutes, and then our entrees came. We mentioned that we hadn't gotten our salads yet, so they brought our entrees back. Our salads came five minutes later. After we finished our salads, we waited another 15 minutes for our dinners to come. Needless to say, they had simply put the meals under the heat lamps during the 30 minutes they had originally brought them out. The prime rib was dry beyond words, and the sandwich was also over cooked. Nobody came to ask us how things were, and people could not have seemed less interested. Simply getting silverware seemed like a chore to the manager. This was towards the end of the night, so the restaurant wasn't even busy to use that as an excuse. Sadly, after many consecutive bad experiences in a row, we are going to cross this one off of our list as places to go. read more

This place is guilty of tax fraud, beware! I bought a full pie to take home. They charged me $34 for the pie and $10 deposit for the pie dish I had to return after eating the pie. They charged me tax for the $44 total but when I returned the pie, they refunded me $10 and would not return the tax for the $10. They said this is their policy and that they will not refund the tax. So basically they are scamming their customers and skimming tax dollars. Who knows what other shady ways they're stealing money... read more

So me and my boys had a few drinks and dinner. We all had the veggie burgers and they are pretty decent for veggie burgers. Had to eat healthy, So I could enjoy being wealthy! lol Basic food, for basic peeps. No one told me that I need to to cut it in half first saw I looked like a fool when my food fell apart. "Pity the fool" see pics Good to chill with my boys read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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Bartenders always make great drinks. The Prime Rib ... is fantastic. Had pumpkin pie .... very tasty. A great place to go to. Very clean restaurant. read more

We love the food, the atmosphere, and especially the staff. We love sitting at the bar for dinner and drinks and of course watching sports on the fantastic TV's!! The service is prompt and always with a smile. "Shannon" is one of the main reasons we continue to frequent this establishment. I think she is a manager, but her personality & professionalism is beyond approach. She and her staff have done a superb job with carry outs & "tent" dining during COVID. We appreciate this so much & we can't wait to return. David Engelke read more

Consistently quality! We dine at Redlands/J Alexander's frequently. It is perfect for a business lunch or dinner, date night or family meal. Nice bar too with multiple screens to enjoy the game. (It's not too loud, so other parts of the restaurant can easily talk.) Everything on the menu Is quality and the service is alway good. read more

Went on Thursday night for anniversary celebration. Started with the spinach con queso appetizer, had the Chicago ribeye and filet mignon for the entree, and finished the meal with carrot cake and chocolate cake a la mode. All of the food was excellent, especially the carrot cake which I make a point of ordering every time I come. The only thing that keeps me from giving it 5 stars is being seated at a wet table (both the booth seat and the table), having some sort of small leak above me causing me to feel occasional drops of water on my head, fairly underwhelming service, and the noise level. read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - Fantastic carrot cake! - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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Came back tonight for dinner and I'm so glad I did! This place is quickly becoming my go-to place if I want a solid meal in the burbs. Had the Redlands Crab Cakes as well as the Baby Back Ribs with the mashed potatoes and the 'Not Your Ordinary Mac and Cheese'. Everything was delicious! We thoroughly enjoyed the food and will most certainly be back again! read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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Had not been in awhile. Food and service were excellent. Had the 12oz. prime rib and it was delicious

Decent food inconsistent service and prices way too high for what you get. We live behind the restaurant and did a lot of carry out during pandemic. My husband ordered crab cakes last week. Market price. But $42 for two SMALL cakes is absurd. read more

Love the wait staff here. Went to dinner on 5/26/22. I ordered a $43 filet to be done medium. When the steak arrived it was raw in the middle. I asked for a brand new steak. The manager came over and wanted to put the steak back in the grill. As anyone knows that just makes it taste bad. The manager (don't know her name - blonde woman), gave me an attitude and said my steak was medium. I simply asked for a new steak. The new steak they brought was somewhat well done with a little pink. I decided to just accept the steak. I will never order a steak here again. I will return but stick to the trout. read more

So a group of six of us ate here last night. Overall it was a good experience. The young server was apparently new and mixed a few things up, had to check back with the table on a few orders, but nothing major. She was very polite and professional. As for the food, we had an order of the deviled eggs as a starter. I am not normally a fan of deviled eggs, but these were good. Great flavor and topped with a piece of candied bacon. What made them really good for me was they were served cold. For some reason that made it much more delicious. I had the Crispy Chicken Platter. What was not clear on the menu was that theses were chicken tenders, I somehow had it in my head it would be bone-in chicken. While I was surprised, and a little disappointed, they were tender, juicy, and well seasoned. The French fries were French fries. The coleslaw was a more vinegar based, not a creamy mayonnaise based coleslaw. I tend to prefer the latter, but it was good. The rest of the dinners had the Prime Rib and all enjoyed it. Bonus, they asked how they wanted the Prime Rib cooked. I like that instead of assuming everyone likes it mid rare. read more

I hope my four star review brings up their low rating. This place deserves some credit. We went to the Chicago Botanic Gardens last weekend and wanted to have lunch afterwards. While waiting at the red light to turn onto 294S, at Lake Cook, I spotted what looked like a restaurant in the distance. I pulled up Yelp just in time to find them on there before the light changed and we headed over. I knew that I wanted a sit down place and where we could enjoy a nice meal and visit, so I was surprised when we stumbled upon this placed. We were all hungry and this was just perfect. We noticed a sign on the side of building when pulling up about a free app until 3 or 4 so we asked about that and the server informed us that, in fact, they offer a free app for customers prior to the 3 or 4 o'clock hour. Total SCORE! We opted for the trio which consisted of a spinach and cheese dip, a very fresh salsa, an excellent guacamole and some (what appeared to be) homemade tortilla chips. It was light and fresh and delicious! Just hit the spot. I was tossing around the idea of a Prime Rib sand and the French Dip and when I asked the sever which was better, he informed me that he would pick the French dip...its just shaved Prime Rib. Sold! My fiance chose the Fish Sandwich with the sauce on the side and was very pleased that he did. I didn't taste it, but it looked awesome! My gal pal chose the crab cakes, which we learned were pan seared instead of fried and if I liked crab, I would have been tempted to order those. I highly recommend them. Her daughter chose the shrimp caesar salad which also looked great and she really enjoyed it. All good choices!! We skipped dessert because their portions were quite large and we didn't have room, but man, did I want to try their desserts. Service was unobtrusive, yet attentive. Great restaurant for any group of people, families, romantic dinner date, friends, collegues. I wish it was closer, but they do have a restaurant in Oak Brook we can certainly try out sometime soon. Cheers! read more

I've been going here for years. And never once have I had a bad meal. The service has always been high end professional. Where they take good care of you, and make sure your drink is always filled. Now with that being stated: Top five reason to keep coming back here. #1 Filet Kabobs #2 The side of mac and cheese (and I'm a snob about mac and cheese) #3 The Cheeseburger #4 Prime rib sandwich #5 Their fries are great... Normally I would order something other than fries. read more

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This place is run like a machine...literally. The staff keeps moving constantly with no eye contact and no personality. They take an order and walk away before you are done speaking. They drop food off and walk away without speaking to you. Their sole purpose is to get people in and out. Cold robotic service aside the place is worth going to. The food is quality and it's a busy lively environment. They take reservations and good for groups. They must have an in with the local hotels cause they seem to pack them in here constantly. I would recommend coming here for the food and a lively environment just don't expect personalized service or a warm environment. read more

Excellent service and great food!!! And the Long Island was how it was posed to be!!!

The number one thing that I have to say J Alexanders has perfected is their consistency. Every single time I have gone I get the grilled chicken salad and every single time it is perfect. A large round plate towering with the lettuce, chicken, black olives and other deliciously fresh ingredients is absolute heaven. The only thing I have to say that is a downfall is the customer service. Our waitress came to the table once, only to take our orders but never came back to ask how our food was or if we needed anything additional with our meal. Other times I've gone our service was extremely slow. But overall the atmosphere, food and consistency are huge points to go back. read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - Grilled Chicken Salad - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

Went to this place on a Saturday with my lady who is a much bigger fan of the layout of their place in Oakbrook. I was a first-timer so I thought the place was pretty nice overall with a clean if not exciting feel to it. The decorum is cool for a simple restaurant but notably better than say your Applebee's or Chili's. I'd venture to say a tad upscale is a fair assessment. We waited about 20 mins to be seated which is to be expected on a Sat night and once seated the service was very attentive. They use a team approach to serving so we never had to ask for anything. If a drink needed filling or a finished plate needed clearing a passing waiter/waitress was quick to address it without being asked. I ordered a medium-cooked 14 oz. ribeye with mac and cheese(pictures uploaded to yelp) to sub for the mashed taters that comes with. The steak was cooked superbly, very juicy and flavorful. It also had a great composition of marbling, with not too much nor too little fat. This place also does medium correctly, not too bloody and not too done. The baked mac and cheese used small shell pasta and featured a nice crust to the top and contained a mixture of what I would gather were at least 3 different cheeses that ranged from almost sweet to slightly sharp. It was very tasty, in fact, I did sop up the last bits of cheese residue from the sides with my steak just to enjoy every drop - don't judge me. haha. The best part of the meal was the dessert - carrot cake. I love carrot cake and this place has a flavor all it's own. The cake was warm, super moist with fresh bits of carrot and raisin topped with a richly sweet layer of icing. The good-sized portion was enough to share and that's good cause my honey ate more of it than I did! It was decadent, soothing to my tastebuds and absolutely sinful after such a heavy meal. I left that place full, satisfied and ready for a nap. read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - 14 oz. Ribeye steak with creamy baked Mac & Cheese. - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

Have been here a few dozen times and very rarely have ever had a sub par experience. From the appetizers, to the entrees, to the best dessert anywhere in town, you will find all at J. Alexanders. To start off you can't go wrong with the grilled artichokes, spinach artichoke dip, or the calamari. All are prepared exquisitely. For the main course you can't go wrong with a grilled chicken Caesar salad. Chicken is mesquite and grilled to absolute perfection. The filet kabobs are also prepared nicely with a sweet sort of teriyaki glaze, served over rice! And their turkey burger is also can't miss. You also cannot go wrong with any steak on the menu! For dessert, the best dessert anywhere is their carrot cake! A nice healthy portion, and it's served warm with a cream cheese sauce! Heaven!!!! Key lime pie is also a favorite of mine. Service is extraordinary! read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - Carrot cake!!!! - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

I know the three stars is mediocre and frankly while it's a beautiful space given the price point my expectations were barely met and certainly not exceeded. The food was decent but not excellent. The service was quick and professional but not friendly. Not a place I'd obsess over. read more

Oh...J Alexander's, what happened to you? My family used to LOVE you....your location in Oakbrook was our go-to for a fancy-ish dinner (for us, as kids, it was super super fancy!)... I loved the salads with the little rolls with sugary syrup - yum yum...burgers, etc. However, your menu has taken a dive over time...the first menu revamp took away the delicious rolls and changed a few things up (salads got a little less full of delicious extras, etc).... On my recent visit, to the Northbook location, I noticed the menu has been modified again (perhaps a while ago) and I thought things looked a bit better...but.... I ordered the special ahi tuna sandwich... it showed up in literally 5 min...5 min - did they not spend any time on my sandwich at all? No wonder it was soggy - I'm sure it was sitting on a table...the tuna pattie was greasy (I thought it was a piece of seared Ahi - not a tuna pattie!) The 'salad' was tasty, but a big huge amount of rice and cranberries, etc. It was clearly put on the plate with a scoop and looked unappealing. Overall, the sandwich was greasy and the ahi wasn't seared...flavor was ok, but too greasy. The rice salad was ok, but not appetizing looking. Service was fast and efficient and ok I guess, but I still can't get over the fact that I was literally served faster than a fast food restaurant...which shouldn't happen at these price points - I want someone to take a second of care when the price point is where it is. read more

I touted this place to my cousin as a great place to eat after a movie. When we arrived, the place was packed but the timing was good for immediate seating. Our server could not have been more apathetic when she learned that we weren't ordering cocktails (BECAUSE YOU STOPPED SEVERING MY FAV - Manadrin martini) or appetizers. So, we basically didn't see her for the rest of the evening. Literally, no water refill, tossed the check on the table and was never seen again until I walked the check to the hostess stand-after asking a hostess to find our server to pay the check. Now, the food. My burger was cooked to perfect medium. However, I think the cheese should be melted and the burger should be HOT!!! neither the burger nor the fries were hot - barely warm. My cousin ordered crab cakes TINY ones with huge servings of slaw and the same cold fries for $39.95. This was the worst meal that I've had here and I'm probably not going back!!! read more

I was sooooo ready for the Alex Salad, a Chicago rib-eye and a good glass of wine, but after only being served water then waiting almost 10 minutes for my server to come take my order, I got up and left. Unacceptable, especially when they were not busy. Before leaving, the hostess did apologize for the lack of service and asked me to stay, but I was irritated at that point, so I left. read more

I've been here only 3 times and I have always ordered different things from their menu, everything that I have tried has been good so far. Last night, my boyfriend ordered the snapper and I had the pasta with cream sauce and peppers, both were delicious. Their wine selections are fantastic as well! We've also had the very yummy, rich chocolate cake for dessert and it's not just really good, it was huge.. so it's totally something to share. This place is always busy from the business establishments around the area so call for reservations if you plan on dining at the dining area. The service at the bar area could be very slow and frustrating when the bartenders get super busy making drinks for the diners at the dining area too. read more

I came here for lunch with one of my co-workers as I haven't been before. This place is a bit more upscale than I imagined for a lunch place. This seems like a place where you go for a power lunch on a corporate expense account as sandwiches were between $13-20. Regardless, we showed up around 12:20 which is prime lunch time and the place was packed with all sorts of folks. We ended up sitting in the bar section as that was the only space that was available otherwise it would have been a thirty minute wait for a seat. I ordered the Redwood Salad, which had chicken, pecans, avocado, tomatoes, bacon, cheese, croutons and I subbed out the ranch for a cilantro vinaigrette. The salad was very flavorful and came out pretty quickly from the kitchen which was nice. Our waiter was very attentive with beverage refills. The salads are fairly large, but can be on the pricier side. The salad was $17. Overall, the salad was very good, but the experience was nothing memorable. I'd probably come back in the future to try more things, but there are so many great lunch options in the vicinity as well. read more

A little overpriced for the quality but decent meal. This particular J Alexander's focuses on seafood. Bartenders make a great old fashioned (many varieties on the menu) and the fries are delicious. Ambiance is marginal but I love that it is close to Northbrook Court and the highway. read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - Sweet old fashioned with southern comfort and muddled with extra cherries - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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Alexanders is basically a steakhouse chain. That sums up the entirety of anything interesting or non-generic about them in a nutshell, sadly. Going to a lone star or any other place will give you a nearly identical style of menu, seasoning, and food options. It's just blah. Is that to say that it's terrible food? Nah, the fish I had was pretty good and well prepared, but nothing about it was unique or better than every other steakhouse. Overall the food was about as good as you'd expect for a not-famous hotel restaurant - average. Blandness gets -1 star, the other one is for noise/location/ambiance. This Alexanders is primarily used for business meetings due to the location being very strategic for tons and tons of businesses. So it's constantly busy, to the point that there is a significant delay in trying to get a table and enough noise to not be able to hold a conversation and/or hear your server as they are telling you what the specials are for the day. It's enough that it turned my experience from "Eh" to "No thanks". read more

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I knew this place was a little pricey but still I wanted to come for an after work dinner with a colleague. I will write a brief review and then return again once I have gone again... Our server was 'tired' and it showed. She messed up by bringing me a full glass of wine when she said she was bringing me a taste -- I kept the wine and then was sorry I did... But overall, the restaurant was comfortable for 2 people - not a lot of TVs or boisterous noise. My friend ordered a dinner salad and soup, I ordered a small salad and a chicken sandwich. Not anything to complain about here except maybe the prices. A salad at about $16 and chicken sandwich for about $15. My bill with 2 $7 glasses of wine was almost $40 with tax and a 20% tip. What I appreciated was that the quality of the food was outstanding. I had red ripe tomatoes on my chicken sandwich - and it's not quite Spring yet so good tomatoes this time of year rule. Also, I was able to swap out french fries for broccoli and it was green, fresh and well steamed. I will take quality over quantity any time -- so as for that I am a fan. I will return, but still if I had to compare it to Kona Grill I would choose Kona over this place. read more

Again, a 3.5 rating for what I will deem a 5 star restaurant. Teamwork everywhere. The north shore is a bitch. Service was on point. Red wine by the glass, chilled, love it. Food more than timely served and delicious. Deviled eggs, house salad and a burger for the ages. Not sure why they cut in half but again...delicious. The carrot cake is served warm with a cream cheese icing that is ladled on top. Forget about it, great. Great cup of coffee too. Not usually a fan of the big chains or even small ones for that matter, but this place impressed for sure. Thanks J! read more

I know it's a national chain but really it's EXCELLENT!! You can't go wrong with the Turkey burger or spicy chicken sandwich. Those are our favorites! Truly everything is delicious. Always great food & great service! They have worked hard during this pandemic. It is much appreciated. Keep it up. Definitely one of our favorites and in the area. read more

Went there for the first time with some clients from work. Had the fish of the day Grilled Bonito. It was perfectly cook, well browned with nicely crisp skin. the menu is pretty large and the service was good. hope to get back to try more of the menu. But what I had a Great Perfectly grilled piece of fish and ice tea were both good read more

This place is so great!! I got the salad with grilled chicken & it was so delicious!! I was also surprised by how filling it was because the portion looked quite small. We also got calamari as an appetizer and it was some of the best I have ever had!! For dessert we always get the insane chocolate cake with ice cream on the top which is very worth it. Great atmosphere, and a wonderful place to take friends! Extremely Friendly staff. read more

J. Alexander's Restaurant - Fried Calamari--Great!! - New American Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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My sister and I arrived mid afternoon for a drink and appetizer and so sat ourselves at the bar. The bartender was unfriendly, barely greeted us and was inattentive, left us alone for far too long before returning to see if we wanted to order our appetizers. He did nothing to make our afternoon enjoyable. Queso that we were finally able to order was good but would not recommend sitting at the bar! read more

All three members of our group enjoy salads at lunch today. While the service was just average, the food was very good.

Jessica is simply awesome and the ribs can not be beat, anywhere, guaranteed! Carrot cake is uniquely different and so delicious, enough to split with a great cup of their terrific coffee read more

Fancy, dark, good for talking. Good food and service. Have been there many times over the years. Never disappointed.

Hubby & I decided to J Alexander's for dinner on a Tuesday night. We arrived at 6:40 and was told the wait would be 15 - 25 minutes for 2 people. OK, that's not so bad. The 1st thing we noticed was that the noise level was loud - figured we were right at the bar so whatever. While waiting, we watched 4 booths in different areas empty out. They were cleaned and left empty. We ended up looking at 5 empty open booths while we waited for 40 minutes! INSANE! Hubby & I were dressed casual, yup - comfy jeans & a regular top (not to be mistaken for sloppy, but by no means dressed up or business casual). Anyways - we were finally sat at one of the 5 open booths after wondering who they were saved for for 40 minutes. Our server was nice, friendly and speedy. I ordered the scallops and hubby got the rib-eye. The scallops were really good, probably the best I've had in a while and we eat out a lot! Hubby said his rib-eye was just ok & after a couple of bites of it myself, I agree - just ok. Overall, it took us 15 minutes to have our order taken & be served. Less time than it did to wait for the darn table! The noise level was still very loud in the dining area, we had to practically shout to be heard from across each other. There were a few WHAT? SAY THAT AGAIN? and HUH? during dinner. The music was pretty loud so that's probably why people were louder - gotta be heard. I did order a carrot cake to go after reading all the rave reviews about it here. Ate it at home, in my nice quieter living room with my feet up. It was definitely very good! I may just order that to go next time & skip the dining experience. Overall - I think I'll eat a Pete Millers down the street or at Wildfire instead of paying the high prices at J. Alexanders & be able to enjoy a dinner convo with my dinner companion. OH! And they don't take reservations for parties of 5 or fewer. No thanks, I don't think I'll wait like that again. read more

This restaurant is trending towards 4 stars, but not quite yet. I have found this restaurant to be reliable for a whole host of entrees. Prime rib falls into that category. As of late, the seafood specials have been creative and properly cooked. Most, succulent--nicely spiced. I'm not convinced yet that it's a trend to rely on, but if it is, 4 stars for that. Oh, and I will say that the shoestring potato fries are the way they should be made--close, very close! read more