j. gilbert’s
The first thing we noticed when we walked through the doors was the smell of the fire. The full name of the restaurant is J. Gilberts Wood-Fired Steaks & Seafood, so this made sense and was very inviting. The lobby and the rest of the restaurant has brick walls which along with the smell sets the stage for a very cozy dining experience in the heart of winter. I believe the temperature outside was somewhere in the 20’s so it was definitely feeling like winter outside. They also have a fireplace inside, which we were “near” but not near enough to feel the heat from it.
We did have a reservation for 5:15pm, but as you can see from the picture above, I don’t think we needed it on this night. We were seated right away and were greeted before we even had a chance to look over the menu. The kids ordered their typical Sprite while I selected a nice Pinot Noir from the wine menu. They bring out a loaf of sourdough bread to snack on while you look over the menu.
Chloe did get a children’s menu, mainly because I think she was hoping for crayons to draw while she waits. It wasn’t that kind of place with that type of menu so she pretty quickly passed on selecting anything off of it. She spent some time trying to figure out what she wanted until I pointed out the fact that they have crab cakes. That is one of her favorites and she likes to get them anytime she can find them. She, as most kids do, changed out the vegetable, in this case asparagus, for french fries. She loved what she got but already talked about wanting to go back so she could get the ribs next time.
Alex took a while to decide, which I anticipated. As you know he’s all about wanting to try new things so I was wondering what he might pick. After he seemed ready I asked him what he wanted and he told me the Filet with Scallops. The only problem with this is that he’s allergic to shellfish! He wanted to try them so bad, I think because we’ve been watching Hell’s Kitchen so much and it’s a staple on their menu. If I had some allergy pills with me, I probably would have let him at least try them but I didn’t want to take any chances. Since that was a no, he just went with a bigger Filet. He did try a bite of Chloe’s crab cakes and when I noticed him taking a break from eating, he said his lips felt funny!! Allergy? We aren’t sure but I think it’s good we skipped the scallops.
Chloe is very similar to me, in that we have certain items that if they are on the menu, we always get them because they are more rare foods that we love. For her tonight it was crab cakes. For me, it’s swordfish. When I read on the menu that they had a Brisket Rubbed Swordfish Steak, there was no way I could pass that up. And then when you read about it having a fried egg on top, how could you turn that down? It looked so good Alex asked to have a bite of the egg as well. I made both kids try the swordfish as they had never tried it before and they both loved it as well. So if you’re looking for a good swordfish, definitely give j. gilbert’s a try!
The kids found the last item of the evening first when looking over the menu. Sure enough, they didn’t forget after they were done with their meals. They saw the Vanilla Bean Creme Brule and had their mind set on getting it. How could I say no? We went ahead and all shared it which I think was a good idea as it was pretty big for one person. It was delicious and hit the spot after all the good food we had. We all can’t wait to go back.
