JZ Cool Eatery and Wine Bar

Another nostalgia review for a place that took me too long to get my thoughts down on. Funny thing is I’ve eaten at and reviewed Mataro, the Italian place that took over the space. I remember on a nice sunny day you could get a decent steak sandwich sit outside and people watch. Guess I’ll have to make my way to one of the other Cool Café spots now

UPDATE: New restaurant is here! Ristorante Mataro opened Aug 31, 2009. See our reviews for this new spot.
CLOSED! After ten years JZCool has closed the restaurant. Their catering service CoolEatz is still available.
And such a shame. Our first trip there 2 yrs ago was not so hot but went back for the music and discovered the food was pretty good after all.

Went to grab lunch TOGO. It was much nicer inside then expected.
About everything from salads, sandwiches, and the Lunch specials on seems to be $ 10. Got a chicken sandwich on the Panini Roll and it was very good. The bread was fresh and the chicken moist, yeah for me! Also tried a Chinese Chicken Salad and the dressing was very good. The salad was very small.
It was a little pricey for lunch but the whole organic sustainable thing made me feel good about giving JZ a try.

I have been to JZ Cool twice now – once for lunch and once for dinner, and both times I was extremely impressed. For dinner in particular, as I was reading through the menu, there were hardly any dishes that didn’t sound appetizing to me, and every dish that we tried was really good.
Recently, I went to a restaurant in Chicago that featured the same sort of philosophy re serving sustainable, local, organic food. I hated it. The food was boring and bland. When I went to JZ Cool afterwards, I couldn’t help but think that this was what the other restaurant should have been – lots of interesting flavors offered, prepared beautifully.

I think other less enthusiastic posters have nailed it – despite the prices and overblown focus on organics and sustainability, the restaurant fails to impress. The décor seems like a sad attempt to be overly hip. The food had literally no flavor (we ordered a vegetable stew and a pasta/​fennel/​cheese dish). Both of the dishes we ordered were the ‘specials’ of the day, so we were pretty surprised to see how un-​special they were. The kicker was the band playing in the corner, which was extremely amateurish.
I’d say a bright spot was the chardonnay, for somewhere in the Russian River area. One other thing that was great was the Med Trio appetizer dish, which was actually full of flavor. It’s too bad that the rest of the meal was not very memorable.

I think with some refinement, the food could get really good. Some of the dishes here are very good, others are fair, and from time to time I get something that seems like a strange combination of flavor. I really like the wine flights and a lot of the wines are very tasty, and I have a few pet-​favorite dishes. I completely understand the range of reviews here (from piss-​poor to good and even excellent), there is enough money being charged where the flaws in execution become a real issue. The live music is a lot of fun, I found the bands to be above average. The Boccalone «Tasty Salted Pig Parts» sausages they have are very good.
I’m usually picky, and might even want to give 3.5 stars, but I do go back here.

I tried this place for lunch once, and I thought it was pretty yummy. I had the roast pork sandwich. The ingredients seemed fresh and the portions are «cute» — ie. on the smaller side. The cost is a little pricey for lunch (around $ 10.00 bucks or a little less for a sandwich and a little side dish that comes with it). The atmosphere is California casual.

I went here when was not so hungry but I think they have best grape juice-​Gewüztraminer from
I am juice crazy person. I drive 35 miles to SJ to get sugar cane juice… so for me it is real good option for my sugar cravings.

We went for brunch on a Saturday.
The food was OK, nothing special.
This may be a good place for dinner, as they seemed to have a pretty good selection of wines.

NOTE: This review is for brunch
After some nagging from the GF over the past few days about going to JZ Cool for brunch i finally gave in. We went this morning after a bike ride. We showed up around 10:30 and after walking in i honestly thought they were closed. There was NOBODY there. We walk up to the register to order. After we tell the girl behind the cash register what we want, she just stares at us blankly. She obviously had no idea what was on the menu. Someone came out of the kitchen to help her out because she just couldn’t handle what was going on.
We ordered the Chilaquiles, the Niman ranch pork tacos, a side of grits and water to drink.
They brought out the chilaquiles and the tacos a few minutes later. We asked about the water and the grits and were told that they were on the way.
Both dishes tasted really good. I’m kind of a fiend for chilaquiles (i’m from Texas, where they are pretty prominent), and while these were a little atypical (they had green salsa and no tortillas), they were very good.
The pork was a a little bit fatty, but otherwise very good. The potatoes that came with both were fantastic, but i could have gone for just a touch of ketchup. I also appreciated that the portions weren’t huge like they tend to be at some brunch places. They weren’t tiny, but i didn’t feel totally stuffed after i was done.
With only a few bites left of both dishes we still had no water or grits. Since both of our dishes were pretty spicy, our mouths were burning a little bit, so i had to go in and get my own water.
The grits came out like 10 minutes after we finished all of our other food, and after we asked about them 2 or 3 times. To be honest, they were more polenta than grits. They were square like a brownie, obviously having been baked in a pan and then cut into squares. Not only was it a weird way of doing grits, but they just werent very good. They were supposed to be cheesy, but i only tasted gobs of butter. They were also really grainy and undercooked tasting.
The 2 dishes we got (chilaquiles and pork tacos) were very good, but the service was so atrocious that i don’t really see us going back for brunch any time soon. The worst part was that we were the only people in the restaurant, so there is absolutely no excuse for our food taking forever and them then forgetting parts of our order. What gives?
I’ve been wanting to come here for dinner, but now i’m not so sure.

We were pleasantly fed by our small plates and a few entrees, WHEN our server decided to acknowledge that we were there.
It was apparent that the staff was ready to close up for the day, as no one seemed interested in seating my guest and I when we walked through the front door.
We had three servers throughout the evening because the staff kept leaving during our meal.
I was so happy about the food: the presentation, the ingredients, and the taste. We had the Potato Pea Cake, local grass-​fed sausages, pasture-​raised chicken lollipops, pasture-​raised lamb riblets, niman ranch braised pork and the fish of the day.
If take out were an option, I would suggest it.

We had quite the roller coaster ride of a dining experience at jZ Cool last night. Avid fans of Flea Street Café (sister restaurant), we’d had a visit to jZ Cool on the list ever since they converted from a more deli-​style atmosphere to the current «Eatery and Wine Bar» incarnation.
We arrived post-​rush; the café had been dealing with a steady deluge of people all night on account of a street fair event. We were seated promptly at a private, tall table near the window. The atmosphere is comfortable and attractive; tables well-​spaced, mellow lighting, warm colors and a long bar for enjoying a drink or meal.
We waited a while for service– it seemed the staff was having a hard time recovering from the earlier crowd. Subsequent service throughout the meal made us a little dizzy– first a mistake, then an apology, then another mistake, another apology, an explanation, a check-​in, an explanation, some free food, some forgotten food… yikes. Needless to say, here’s the gist of it:
— Fabulous food– particularly liked the stuffed chicken dish, made to order, and the brown rice side– fluffy with veggies. Brisket also very tender and served with perfectly cooked squash.
— Strong wine selection– lots of local wines, well chosen.
— Crazy yet very well intentioned service– example: they brought a free appetizer as an apology for the wait but it was not the appetizer we ordered (which we never received)
— Staff not ready for the level of business they faced last night. Two people mentioned it was their first night, and you could tell.
We will be returning to jZ Cool sometime soon to test the waters again– but we’ll wait a few weeks for the new staff to settle in.

Came here with a large party of about 10 after work for happy hour and a little celebration. Loved the company… the food… ehh. Had fun picking a wine flight. I really liked one of the cabs… can’t remember which now.
Unfortunately, the food just did not deliver. The calamari was overcooked and very, very tough. The portions were tiny and not outstanding. When you serve small portions the food better be damn good! Anyway, I’d come here again with a smaller group (no more than 4 or 5) and get another flight of wine. That’s about it.

Went here on a Friday night with our eight-​year-​old. We’re «older» parents so we loved it – excellent jazz playing just loud enough that we could listen to it or talk under it (if that makes any sense) without bothering our neighbors or being bothered by them. Definitely not a kids restaurant, but ours is well-​behaved and willing to try different foods. Reminded me of a little place in Soho … which is a bit odd for the rolled-​up main street in suburban MP.
We all ended up eating the rib dish my son ordered, which was excellent. Also enjoyed the vegetarian/​vegetable dishes a lot … and the desserts (though the three-​chocolate dessert was definitely too dark and grown up for an 8YO palate). Plates are small, which is nice, and the flavors are clear.
We’ve recommended it to all our grown-​up (50-​to-​70-​something) friends for a Friday date night (group was called Judicious Jazz, I think) and to friends with kids who are old enough and able to eat out intelligently. We ran into two sets of friends there, bit of a surprise, both eco-​conscious and involved with civic affairs … same folks you see at Café Borrone for coffee in the morning, but out for a touch more formality that night.

Interesting, fresh combos — sandwiches, salads, soup, etc. Presentation is great, portions are small, flavor is hit or miss.
My «ooey gooey grilled cheese» wasn’t ooey or gooey. Plus, I was still hungry afterwards.
+1 for all local/​organic ingredients.

Good concept, flawed execution
The wine bar concept is working for them. All the bottles have the same price: 3 tastes for $ 12, ½ glass for 5, full glass for 9, mix and match. The list is short and sweet — about 15 bottles on a given night.
The food menu is perhaps a little less than you’d hope for, given the price, but pretty darn tasty. The cheese plate is good cheeses, and a very nice chutney accompanying the blue, but with only three little slices of bread we had to call for more (gracefully provided). The sliders are excellent, with their strange biscut-​y bun, although I’d prefer more condiment action. The sideline «pea cake» was amusing. The surf and turf special — sliced steak and lobster was decent — the lobster was very flavorful, although the steak could have had more oomph.
An amusing dish that didn’t quite work was the lamb ribs — attempted in a slow-​cook tangine style. The prep was good, but there was so little meat on the bones that the dish didn’t hang together.
Friday night there was a jazz combo. Rather like the food, it was uneven — poor drummer, good keys, one good sax, average bass player. The friday jazz at Café Borrone is always far superior — and dinner there is $ 30.
How much you like this place will depend on your value proposition. For two, we pait about $ 120 out the door, because we ended up ordering about 6 dishes — is in the league of the higher end places on University Ave. What you’re getting is a commitment to local food, what you’re giving up is some food quality and a lot of server quality. The amature hour feel was charming.
The owner was there last night, and the place was fairly full. Jessie clearly likes all the attention, and seems like a really nice guy, too nice a guy to fire his jazz combo and get a better one.
I will likely be back from time to time, but greatly prefer iTapas when I’m in the mood for small plates.

So they just reopened, so I thought it would be better, but It wasn’t really.
They offer a range of sandwiches and salads intended for the businessman’s lunch break, but they’re a bit pricey. Their turkey/​avacado/​swiss is good, but at $ 9, why not just get it at Dragers for $ 7.50?

I would have given them a four star before. just cause they had my FAVORITE egg ham and cheese paninin… but then they remodeled and created a wine bar out of it. They GOT RID of the salad bar ad no more freshly made paninis. :(I still gave it a chance and ordered a classic caesars. they might as well just pour oil and some asaigo cheese together. it was bleh… and i looked at their wine list for the wine bar and there’s barely a selection. sighi miss the old JZ cool eatery

I drove by this place, then looked it up, then went to eat there… twice.
I really wanted to like it, but both times, was served small-​ish sandwiches that weren’t particularly exciting.
I hate to feel guilty like this, but if pesticides and bad-​for-​the-​Earth farming make food taste better, I’m all for them.
Reminded me of a more expensive, slower, and not nearly-​as-​good-​food-​wise Pluto’s… so I think I’ll just go there from now on.

Should be a 3.5-star rating. I love the Slow Food and natural wellness themes, but I agree with one of the posters – why are the sandwiches so tiny and not made-​to-​order? I like their salad sampler, though the bread accompanying it is of baby portions.
Bonus to dog-​owners as there is outdoor seating (= dog-​ok).