Jam's: An American Grill

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Jam’s: An American Grill

101 Harney Street, Omaha, NE

Where we went:

Just one year ago we ate at our first restaurant for this blog. Over the next twelve months we ate at and blogged about forty different locations in and around the great City of Omaha. Now into our second year, we still have so many more places to eat! We decided to start of year two of blogging by heading back down to Omaha’s Old Market to a very popular restaurant, Jam’s.

Jam’s markets themselves as a melting pot of many styles of dishes. Jam’s can be found in two locations, their flagship location in Beverly Plaza, around 78th and Dodge and in Omaha’s Old Market on the corner of 11th and Harney streets.

With spring in the air, we thought a nice walk around the Old Market, followed by dinner at Jam’s was a perfect way to spend a Saturday evening. However, spring is the time for another popular event, prom! When we arrived at Jam’s we were asked if we had a reservation. Turns out, thanks to prom season, Jam’s was fully booked for the night. However, we were able to grab a couple of seats at the full service bar. So despite our poor planning, it worked out. We do hope all the happy prom couples enjoyed their meal too.

What We Ate:

Sitting at the bar, the first thing on Eric’s mind was trying a signature cocktail. The Ginger Jay was the first to catch his eye. Eric then decided to try an item off the special featured menu: The Berry Bruschetta Chicken Alfredo. With Eric’s decision already made, Kyle took this rare opportunity to order a Chicken Parmesan Sandwich for himself, as Eric has quickly devoured this dish at many other places we’ve tried over the last year! The meal was capped off with Jam’s signature Maker’s Mark Chocolate Cheesecake.

The Food:

Jam’s calls itself an American Grill and specializes in a “melting pot” of various dishes and styles. While “Grill” may conjure up images of generic bar food, this was definitely not the case with Jam’s. Eric’s pasta dish, for instance, was an interesting spin on the traditional chicken alfredo. Eric wasn’t entirely sure how the berry flavors would mix with the italian ingredients, but he was gung ho about trying it anyway. The berries actually complimented the sweetness of the roasted tomatoes really well. Eric was also really intrigued about the tarragon alfredo sauce, but, unfortunately the pasta seemed really light on the sauce. He couldn‘t taste the tarragon, or even the alfredo base itself. It seemed more like pasta coated in olive oil, which actually allowed the berry and tomato flavors to really shine in the dish. The chicken was cooked perfectly and it’s tender juiciness was another highlight of the meal.

Kyle expected the chicken parmesan to be a simply chicken parmesan sandwich as he’s gotten at many other places. However, Jam’s chicken parmesan was an explosion of unique flavors. Kyle originally didn’t notice bacon in the list of ingredients, and didn’t even notice it was on the sandwich until he was several bites into it. He was initially weirded out by its presence, but it didn’t dominate the other flavors like he expected. Everything fit together complimentary, especially the basil aoili, which had its own flavor, but also was the delicious stickum that really brought all the flavors together.

The cheesecake was a definite highlight of this visit. Oreo anything is delicious, so it made for a fantastic base for the crust. The cheesecake itself is made of dark chocolate with some cherries baked throughout. The red ganache topping actually resembles the red wax that caps off bottles of Maker’s Mark Bourbon! Not only was it delicious, but it was also a very cleverly crafted dessert!

Oh! And Eric’s Ginger Jay cocktail was delicious, with the ginger, curacao, and cucumbers combining to make it sweet and refreshing in all the right ways. Halfway through the meal he realized the blue drink is likely a reference to the Creighton Bluejays, the mascot of a local university near the Old Market.

The Atmosphere:

Don’t let the crystal chandeliers fool you, you will be just as comfortable in Jams in a t-shirt and Jeans as the prom attendees were in their tuxedos and gowns. The exposed brick walls, rafters and ventilation systems showcase the historic structure Jams is housed. Kyle noticed several art works on the walls that were similar in style and color, upon further inspections they turned out to all be by a local artist (who’s name we sadly don’t remember), and they were all of Jam’s, and the surrounding area. Eric pointed out the uniqueness of the pendant lights over the bar where we sat. They were modern lights with antique looking light bulbs (clear with the glowing filaments inside). The bar in the center, where we were sitting, was clearly the most modern part of the restaurant. However, the number of televisions over the bar, all set to different sports channels, we felt, reduced the high end atmosphere of Jam’s, just a bit. But then again, Jam’s is an “American Grill” and what is more american than television and sports! Even the bathrooms have tvs set up in above the urinals!

The Service:

As we mentioned before, with Prom season in full swing, Jam’s was very busy for their saturday night dinner rush. The hostesses were very friendly and explained the situation to us in a very apologetic manner. With no teens at the bar, our bartenders were not bogged down with the large amounts of people at the tables and were able to take our drink and food orders right away, and were very prompt at asking us if we needed refills and checking in on us in general. We had a few different people come from the kitchen to give us our food, so there was no consistent wait staff in that regard, but we didn’t see anything wrong with that.

In the End:

Jam’s serves up delicious and unique menu items in a beautiful and historic building. If you are in the downtown area, Jam’s is a perfect location for both a quick lunch and a full formal evening dinner. As with any downtown location, parking can be a challenge, so prepare yourself to walk a few blocks to get there. However, being situated in the Old Market, there are plenty of things for you to do and see between your car and the restaurant. We do encourage everyone to make a reservation before you go. We were caught off guard by prom season, but after tasting their food we greatly expect that Jam’s is probably very busy every Friday and Saturday evening, so get there early or call ahead.