Jackson Hole Diner…
Jackson Hole • 362 Grand Avenue • Englewood, NJ 07631 • 201-871-7444
Category: Diner
Rating: (3)
I went to Jackson Hole in Englewood, NJ today for lunch while my car was being serviced. Jackson Hole is a chain of diners throughout NYC and NJ, known for their 7 ounce burgers.
I’ve been to Jackson Hole several times in the past and have always ordered their burgers or their various breakfast menu options which are basically the same as any other diner. Their burgers are quite good and a cut above other diners in the area.
Today, I decided to try something off the beaten path for a diner and ordered their Philly Cheesesteak sandwich along with a side of steak cut fries.
Let’s get the good stuff out of way first because the rest was a disaster. The steak cut fries were obviously cut in-house and were fried to near perfection being crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. However, they were unseasoned, leaving the customer to season it themselves with salt and optionally pepper. The problem with trying to season fries about five minutes after they’ve come out of the fryer is that there is no more oil for the salt to stick to. Even worse is that the salt shaker on the table is typical iodized table salt which doesn’t taste very good. It would go a long ways to season the fries with at least kosher salt as soon as it comes out of the fryer.
Pickles are served at each table in a small bow and they are cut into bite size pieces. I would wager that they are using Batampte Kosher Half Sour Pickles as I am a huge fan of these pickles and they are quite tasty.
Now onto the bad stuff. Before we get into the Philly Cheesesteak itself, the cole slaw that was served with it was minimally dressed and therefore was bland but also had the inherent bitter taste of cabbage. Whether they decide to use a mayonnaise based or oil and vinegar based, it should be more thoroughly seasoned.
The Philly Cheesesteak was a complete disaster. Although I didn’t expect a Pat’s, Geno’s or a Tony Luke’s cheesesteak sandwich, I figured it would be very hard to screw up a cheesesteak sandwich. I was wrong. The meat was dry and tough. The cheese, which was cheddar, was melted but half of it was off of the sandwich and on the plate. Then there were sliced tomatoes on the sandwich. Who puts tomatoes on a Philly Cheesesteak??? The bread was grilled but with butter slathered on and the taste of butter was noticeable with each and every bite. It was the worst Philly Cheesesteak I’ve ever had and probably will be for quite some time because I can’t imagine it getting worse than this. A “Steak’Um” is better than this.
I still give the place 3 stars based on their burgers and other decent diner fare. Don’t ever order the Philly Cheesesteak though.
hamatama 