Jack Allen's Kitchen

My wonderful hubby found Jack Allen's Kitchen last night, and it is a just a gem nestled in the Oak Hill area of south Austin. This place needs no hype, though, because the owner hails from Z Tejas, and he has brought his crew with him. This place definitely does not disappoint. There are no fancy napkins here at the wooden A frame building that has seen many a restaurant come and go. The acoustics aren't awesome, but the dark woods and candle light make up for slightly noisy atmosphere. I daresay it is slightly on the romantic side for a place that rivals most mid price family dining establishments.

My husband and I had a wonderful time, and our server was fantastic.(Although as a rule, I never judge food based on the waitstaff, and you shouldn't either) He was attentive, but never hovered. He also gave us real information about the food, such as proportions and consistencies, that often come as a surprise when you get your meal. I don't know about you, but this girl rarely likes surprises with her food, unless it is a birthday cake.

Oh, but the food. First off, they have an excellent wine selection and their drinks are fantastic. My husband got a margarita that just might be the best one we've ever had. Yes we, I helped. He was driving, so safety first. I had a wonderful Cabernet that was so smooth and delicious, it would convert a non-wine drinker. We skipped the appetizers this time, but they bring you complimentary crackers of some sort with a small ball of their homemade pimento cheese. I know, pimento cheese, but this is not the stuff that your mother half hazardously made a sandwich of and threw in your lunch box. This stuff melts in your mouth. After eating our small hors devours, we were excited to see our entrees. And they did not disappoint. My husband had a delicious, perfectly cooked New York strip with the cheesiest potatoes you have ever seen. The waiter told us that they whip in some of the pimento cheese and bake them. Yummmm. I had the oyster special with a wedge salad. The oysters were fantastic with a sort of sweet chutney that was a perfect compliment to their savory flavor. But the star of my plate? The wedge salad. To my delight, the lettuce was perfectly crispy and sitting in a pool of delicious spicy homemade ranch dressing, and topped with a skewer of cheese and crispy bacon. OMG that stuff was delicious. I wanted to just order a whole other salad. We cleaned our plates and decided to order desert. We always get key lime pie because it is my husband's favorite, but they had a new seasonal dessert with ricotta nestled in a meringue that I am dying to go back and try. The key lime pie was perfect, perfect flavor, enough bitter to sweet, perfect crust and a delicious cream topping.

This place just got bumped up to our #1 fave, I think we will be going back often. It is so accessible, unlike many of your high end restaurants downtown, but the real kicker is, the prices are fantastic. We spent $75 on drinks, two entrees and desert. Rarely do you see that quality of food at such an affordable price. I just cannot say enough about this place. If anyone reads this, you should go to Jack Allen's right now! Stop reading, stand up and take yourself over there, you will thank me later, trust me.