Jeffrey's Grill & Bar - Cajun Cuisine
Bland Babies Beware -
Jeffrey's is Hot Hot Hot
(from Nov/Dec '04, by Andrea Clark)

Despite its non-Creole name, the menu for Jeffrey’s Grill & Bar has a definite Cajun theme with its Bourbon Street steak, Louisiana gumbo, Mardi Gras jambalaya, and my personal favorite – shrimp Creole. If a restaurant can do that dish well, they’ve won my heart (and tummy).

I called to find out how late they were open on Friday and was informed that a reservation would be a good idea. That surprised me since the Jeffrey’s – located in the old Buddy’s space on Market Street – had only been open about a month or so when I called. To think that a small, new restaurant had already built a following impressed me before I walked in the door.

My high expectations were met and exceeded. A quick glance at the wine list revealed a good number of quality wines available by both the glass and the bottle. I settled on the Shiraz, which was just perfect with the shrimp Creole. It was. The dish was spicy enough to know that it was true Cajun but not so spicy that all you tasted was the fire of the dish. The flavors of the shrimp and tomato were allowed to come through and blend fabulously with the piquant seasoning. The portion was generous as well. I carried half of it home with me and enjoyed it again the next day.

Setting my expectations even higher before the shrimp Creole arrived was the appetizer of burgundy mushrooms. The button mushrooms were sautéed with onion and simmered in a burgundy and beef wine reduction. The leftover mushroom juice was so flavorful that I found myself sopping it up with the sliced French bread that I’d been trying to ignore since it was placed on the table at the start of the meal.

My dining companion enjoyed his grilled gulf shrimp served over dirty rice. He found it a tad spicy for him but acknowledged that it was supposed to be that way.

Jeffrey Fuller, who owns the restaurant with his wife Lisa, says that the Cajun and Creole recipes are not only prepared from scratch but are authentic too. One of his chefs, Mike Elkins, cooked in several restaurants in New Orleans.

With so many tantalizing options I wondered what other people enjoyed. Fuller says he and his customers have similar tastes.

“I’m a big crab cake fan and the ones we do here are from the recipe I use at my house,” says Fuller. “Last week we went through seven pounds of jumbo lump crab meat. The guy that puts the crab cakes together has been dubbed the Crabman.”

In addition to popular items such as the Louisiana gumbo and the crab cakes, Jeffrey’s offers specials that don’t appear on the menu including Cajun roast pork loin with a homemade cornbread stuffing.

The menu isn’t the only big change from the previous occupant. The décor is more mellow with dim lighting and a beautiful bar – handcrafted by Fuller’s brother-in-law.

Aside from the shrimp Creole, my favorite thing about Jeffrey’s was the price. The most expensive item on the menu was an eight-ounce filet at $25.95. Everything else was pretty much in the $11 and $16 range, which is reasonable for dinner especially if the price includes a salad, a potato or rice and a vegetable.

Lunch is even more affordable. The lunch offerings run from the most expensive at $10.95 to only $6.95 (for the popular gumbo). They also offer a children’s menu titled, “For the little Cajuns” that includes hamburger, chicken nuggets or popcorn shrimp that even the pickiest little one will eat.

As for the grownups, Fuller has live music on the weekends with live blues or jazz.

“We’re going to try to dedicate Saturday nights to jazz and mix it up on Fridays,” he says.

Jeffrey’s Grill and Bar
214 Market St.
344-4313
11:30 a.m-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday
11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday & Saturday.