Jonathan’s Bar & Grille

The atmosphere is nice and relaxed. I may prefer some low key jazz or blues other than the background techno but not unmanageable. I sat in the first corner seat at the bar and looking in to the stairwell to the kitchen. Swapping out the water damaged ceiling tiles would make the view better.
The bartender (the girl) was friendly, attentive and knowledgable.
I had a filet that was cooked perfect.
The sautéed spinach done well
She (bartender) honored my request to sub the potato for steamed broccoli, also
done well.
My personal preference is let a good steak speak for itself so skip the demi-​glaze.
Overall good experience.

Lots of room to grow, a few minor issues with starch and veg, temp on steak was a little cool. Discussed with manager who genuinely appreciated my feedback

I’ve been here four times in last month. That alone should give you an idea of how much I love the food. Everytime I coming to Jonathan’s I always have a seat which is great. Whethher I’m just there for lunch or for an outing the service is always impeccable. I had a really really phenomenal experience recently.
It was my sisters 25^th birthday and I decided Jonathan’s would be a perfect place to come. Our waitress was Daphne. She’s an absolute gem and an asset to Jonathans if they didn’t know it already. She truly made us feel as if we were only guess even though we really knew we were not. We had several dishes. We had the lamb, we had the meatballs and we had calamari. CaIamari I never had before and it was wonderful. This is coming from someone who does not eat seafood. I also had the tenderloin pizza. Never would have thought to have mash potatoes on a pizza but… damn was it good!!!
I have to sing praises to Daphne and Mike!!!
Daphne is a gem and the best waitress I’ve had period! She made us feel like we were her only guests when we knew good and well we weren’t. She knew the menu and recommened the best dishes… and drinks!
Mike I swear made everything great… he truly «put his foot in it». Translation the food was made with love and believe thats missing in today’s restaurant’s.
He even made a special dessert for the b’day girl… which was amazing by the way.
I have recommended and will continue to recommend this restaurant.

I walked in here for lunch and there was no host to greet us. We stood around for a few minutes before anyone was around to seat us. The menu had a wide range of foods from burgers to seared tuna to chicken parm. Lots of variety.
I ordered the chicken parm, dont ask why I decided on that, maybe I should’ve known better. The chicken was bland and the breading didn’t lend much except for crispiness. And the spaghetti was warm, almost as if the food had been sitting around for 20 minutes. Definitely looked hot but very misleading.
Overall a pretty underwhelming experience here. Oh and you may want to ask for a clean napkin or a lint brush, one of the dirtiest napkins that I have ever seen.

Color me surprised to find such a posh place among fast food joints in Newton!
Outside of Jonathan’s you’ll find a pot-​hole ridden congested street with Papa Gino’s and McDonald’s a stone’s throw away. Walk inside, and you’re greeted with friendly faces and an upscale ambiance.
I was here with a large group of 20 or so coworkers, and the owner was very very accommodating for us, especially considering we were only there for drinks and appetizers. Our waitress seemed a little overwhelmed and had to second-​guess whose drinks went to whom, but overall she did her job nicely.
The bar menu is large with a really impressive selection of wines (by the glass and bottle), mixed drinks and a decent selection of beer (but only one cider… sigh…).The appetizers were were very good but pricey. $ 13 for a shrimp cocktail that only had four (albeit large) shrimp? Yikes. I understand that this is Newton, but still… yikes indeed. I saw that their dinner menu had some nice things on it, but still very pricey ($ 23 for a lobster roll when I know I could get a huge one in downtown Boston for ten bucks less).
Parking is a bit of a headache and a deception. There is a very small outdoor lot that can probably hold a dozen cars. There *is* a garage next to the lot, but there are signs posted that it is only for Filene’s customers. So, good luck finding parking!
Overall, this place is great for large groups, not loud, has a very nice and well-​stocked bar, beautiful décor, and friendly staff… however, if I had to front the bill, I wouldn’t bother coming back unless for a once-​a-​year special occasion splurge.
If I do come back for a true experience (rather than casual after-​work drinks/​apps) I’ll update my review accordingly; until then, Jonathan’s is «A-​OK».

When it first opened I heard mostly negative reviews from my friends, but in recent months I have heard nothing but good things. I finally decided to check it out and see if it lived up to the sudden change in attitude of their customers. I was impressed!
The space is small, but they utilize it well. A semi sheer half wall separates the lounge and bar area from the dining room. Décor was impressive — lots of red and black, very nice wooden tables and booths.
Service was great — our waitress was attentive, paid attention to drink levels, and stopped by twice to see if we wanted anything. The manager also stopped by and asked how everything was. Unfortunately he came over right when we got our apps so we hadn’t even tried anything yet.
However, the food is what really shined. Everything was absolutely delicious and presented beautifully. Every dish looks like a piece of art. The lamb lollipop app was good, but the tuna tartar is even better. With just a hint of spice, along with battered avocado — yum!
I was most impressed by the lobster roll — perfect balance of lobster meat, pinch of lettuce, and a pinch of mayo. The fries were seasoned and absolutely incredible! Sadly, the coleslaw couldn’t live up the awesomeness of its plate partners.
I’m actually quite surprised by some of the other reviews, and I hope that whatever it was that was causing them so many issues has been resolved because their food is fantastic!

Honestly this place is brutal if not one of the worst meals/​experiences I have had in recent memory. It was so bad and such a joke it brought me out of my Unilocal hibernation for the past few years. Pinch me, this place makes Papa Gino’s across the street look like the Capital Grille…
The staff at Jonathan’s is rude (to say the least) and I was passed by for about 5 minutes while waiting to be seated. Once seated the fire alarm kept going off and to the managers dismay he actually had to GET UP and shut it off — this happened 3 times and on the final time he was having a hissy fit because he was obviously comfy while sitting down at the bar.
The food is overpriced and pretty darn pathetic granted its high prices for the area. The burgers and clubs are made from cheap product and I swear the turkey was from a Jenny-​O package.
Seriously upon leaving I thought to myself that Robert Irvine should come in and fix this place because currently its a 0 out of 10 and a place that will be out of business within a month. Maybe the manager should focus on working instead of slicking back his dirty looking lion’s romaine.
Oh yeah, the staff should be wearing some sort of uniform and not whatever they feel.

I have to agree with all of the reviews. I have tried jonathon’s a few times as I work up the street. Honestly, I will not be back. The service is always horrendous. Our last visit we waited to be seated for 5 minutes as the waitstaff basically walked by us a number of times. In addition the food is eh. Nothing special. I’ve had the Ruben and the meat was slimy and cold. Next visit I had the soup and salad over priced and the clam chowders cream was separating. The last visit I had the Philly cheese steak. This was the first edible meal in my three visits. Service each time was slow and extremely unfriendly. I’ve given them a few chances. Taking mu business back to the biltmore, mc morgans, and oharas. Jonathon’s is not worth your time or money. You will most likely leave hungry.

High prices vs value.
Not used to kids.
Manager is not interested when he asks if everything is ok and is told that the lobster roll lobster is not fresh (read downright smelly) offers nothing to address that.
Avoid.

In short, this place just misses the mark. Its easy to tell when someone opens a restaurant b/​c they wanted to open a restaurant. Simply said, this place has no business being in existence. Not to be rude but some times the truth just needs to be said. Im sure an experienced restauranteur could have success in this location. The food is wildly mediocre. The prices are unjustified. I had better meals at the old Papa Gino’s. Someone tell the owner that just b/​c the restaurant is located in Newton doesn’t mean you can just jack up the price. There are too many really good and reasonable priced restaurants in Newton. Its insulting.
I’ve had a lot of good meals, both inexpensive and pricey. I certainly will not go back here. I hope this saves you thr trouble (and money) of bothering to try this place.

I have somewhat mixed feelings with respect to this place. I can absolutely say that I enjoyed my time there. It was a nice atmosphere they managed to culture in there. I think those who have given this place an extremely negative view should give it another chance; I believe that they have changed a few things around including the menu.
One thing that I can’t seem to shake off is the image that they’re trying to pull off. It seems like they’re trying to pull off a high end exclusive restaurant. According to my neighbor, she and her friends wanted to check out this place. They, however, were turned away because they did not have a reservation, yet according to her, the place was nearly empty. Yet, when I went, I noticed that some people who had no reservations — keep in mind that it was very busy — managed to get seats but not everyone. From what my observations if you looked like a businessman, you had a greater chance of getting seated without a reservation. I wonder if the whole reservation system is a way for them to maintain a certain clientele. Either way, it seems like you should try to reserve a spot.
When I was there, I noticed that it seemed like other than my table, everyone had at least some gray hair. The server seemed quite nice.
Anyway, onto the food. It was surprisingly good. It did take quite some time for the food to arrive. The Tuna Tar Tar (not sure why the elected to spell it that way over tartare) was beautifully presented. The tuna tasted fresh and had a nice subtle seaweed salad and sesame flavor. The pickled vegetables that went with it were quite subpar; it was incredibly sour and acidic. I love pickled vegetables, but this was just very disappointing.
The Margarita pizza was okay. The thin crust was well done, but my chief complaint was that they went way too cheap on the basil! On the entire pizza there was no more than four slivers of basil. The pizza sauce was not worthy of note. The tomato slices on top were a nice touch, but they should have chosen some really nice flavorful tomatoes rather than plain boring ones. The pizza was not horrible for the price and the quantity served.
I also managed to try their burger and steak. The steak was well cooked, but I can’t say that it was truly something spectacular. The price was definitely a bit steep. The burger’s price was still a bit steep. It was a significant step up from a McDonalds burger, but that isn’t saying much. I think they used a potato bread bun that really added a nice sweet touch to the burger. If you’re in a rush, the burger will do just fine. If however you have some more time on your hands and a means of transport, there are significantly better burgers at a much better price point around.
Overall this place is «A-​OK.» I think it beats having an abandoned building there, but again, that’s not saying that much. I probably won’t be back unless they have another Groupon or Living Social deal.

I came here for a happy hour/​appetizer dinner with a coworker last weekend to see what lied inside this newly sprouted establishment. Weird restaurant/​lounge in the middle of Newton Upper Falls. A bit awkward to be completely honest. But, the food was not half bad. The smooth jazz needs to go; it was really forcing it. Very uncomfortable.
We were told over the phone by the hostess that there would be plenty of room at the bar for my friend and I when we came around 7ish. To my dismay, the bar was packed upon our arrival and all tables were booked for the rest of the night? Lies! We did manage to find two spots next to each other after a few minutes and game of musical chairs with our fellow patrons. Bartender was nice enough; a bit clueless on what questions to ask when I ordered a dirty gin martini, but she managed to make a pretty good one after all.
We ordered three apps to split: honey hot chicken wings, the chicken meatballs (not on the regular menu, but you can order them on request), and some fried calamari Rhode Island style. After a decent (but not unreasonable amount of time, we received our food. Pretty good! The food was definitely the highlight of the experience, although I wasn’t blown out of the water. My favorite of the three would have to be the chicken balls. The wings were pretty good, but I am eternally faithful to Buff’s Pub honey hot. This join could never win against Buff’s, but then again no one can. And the calamari was quite delicious, albeit a bit on the warm side and not as hot as I’d like.
I might come by again if it’s convenient, but I won’t go out of my way.

While visiting my company’s Massachusetts headquarters, my colleague asked if I would like to grab lunch. Of course, I promptly agreed, as I am never one to turn down a dining excursion. She suggested that we check out the newly opened Jonathan’s Bar & Grille, and after reviewing the comprehensive American menu, I quickly concurred. Our arrival was greeted by a friendly server and a helpful waitress, both of whom introduced us to the casual, yet stylish restaurant. With the space’s obvious emphasis on the bar area, I could definitely envision a bustling bar scene during happy hour.
My cup of coffee was standard, but completely fine, but my Chopped Salad entrée was a delightful, healthy blend of various fresh vegetables and garnishes. The large bowl was stuffed with a diced blend of romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions, carrots, cucumber, radicchio, chick peas, shaved radish, red peppers, avocado, dried cranberries, almonds, and feta. It made for the perfect light and refreshing meal I was desiring. I must admit that I also sampled one of my co-worker’s well-​seasoned French fries, which was cooked to the perfect shade of golden brown.
Lastly, as an added bonus, I found the prices to be extremely reasonable. Between the upscale American fare and relaxed environment, I would certainly return to Jonathan’s for any of their whimsical culinary or cocktail offerings.

In short: Disappointing.
I had seen the restaurant open for business from afar, but hadn’t considered going to it until my fiancée made the reservation (through Unilocal,natch). Our group of five hit it up at 5:30 on a Sunday evening.
When we arrived, the place was nearly deserted. There were perhaps 2 – 3 other tables occupied, all by couples. It was quiet and cool and pleasant.
Then others started arriving. The hostesses — nice as they were — seated a party with young children right next to our party of all adults, in spite of there being plenty of other tables around the restaurant. A few waiters and waitresses stood around at the Point-​of-​Sale machines, watching the customers for minutes on end. I’ve worked in foodservice, and I know the cardinal rule is never let the customers see you idle; these servers were clearly never trained on this rule. In fact, as Joanna V. points out in her review, it felt as thought most of the staff was new to the business; our waitress was nice, but did little to enhance the experience, including leaving our water glasses empty for 10+ minutes on a 90-​degree day.
The food was reasonable, but not for the prices. At $ 15 – 30 per entrée, they are squarely in the «pricey» category, but the dishes lacked originality in concept or presentation. My «chicken duo» dish was pretty tasty, but was served with hard mashed potatoes and under-​cooked Brussels sprouts. We ordered an edamame appetizer, which was delivered luke-​warm with the meal and served without any dipping sauce. It actually took 15 – 20 minutes to prepare all of our dishes, and at no point did the server update us on the wait.
I enjoy dining out; the food, the service, the atmosphere, and the people all appeal to me. But when a restaurant so clearly has trouble getting the little things right, I find myself wishing I’d just eaten at home and saved the money.
Good luck to Jonathan’s in improving; I won’t be back until you do.

I grew up in Newton, and frequented what was the old Papa Gino’s as a kid. I wanted to experience this new upscale restaurant for myself, so I suggested it to a childhood friend as our meeting spot.
We walked in and the hostess seated us an unappealing table for two along their window. I noticed that the bar area was jammin, so we asked to sit at the bar.
The bartender was nice, but seemed to be having an off night. She put in the wrong appetizer order, and forgot to give us our plates and cutlery after the correct one arrived. She checked her phone, and seemed distracted, and finally left. My friend had to hail the other bartender down for a steak knife, or anything. When our bill came, it was incorrect.
For this price point, I would expect better service. Next time, we’ll go to Union Street.

I was really looking forward to this place opening, and I’m sad that the experience was so meh.
When I walked in the two girls at the hosting booth seemed like I interrupted their little slumber party girl talk.
My waitress was nice enough, not the most interested seeming but she didn’t mess anything up and she had timings right on when to brings things out.
The food for the price per person, I expected better.
It is a place that has just opened so I think I’ll wait til they get a few kinks out the system before I try again.

Alright.
Food. The food is pretty good but a tad overpriced. Lobster roll was great. Coleslaw was disgusting. Food and drinks are often served in warm plates/​glasses. A sign that they have been recently washed (not a bad thing) but incredibly unappetizing.
Drinks. The cocktails are good (depending on what you get) but expensive $ 10. Mojito is great but Gimlet is not.
Service. Really bad. I recognize they just opened but they staff seems a bit incompetent and short with the customers. They seem as though they haven’t been trained. First time we were here they rarely approached our table. Second time they can over about 20 times, manager included. It felt like we were being pushed out even though we had reserved the table and my party continued to order drinks and food. Made us very uncomfortable.
Environment. Pretty good, actually. I’ve been here twice to watch the Celtics and sat in the bar area. I appreciate that they allow you to reserve the tables in bar areas ahead of time. Makes it more enjoyable to go watch a game knowing you can be comfortable. Placement of TVs is not good. They are too low (the bartenders block the tv) and at least one of them needs to be larger. But the bar area is big and clean.

The macaroni’s soggy, the peas are mooshed and the chicken tastes like wood — seriously — noisy, expensive, nasty staff otherwise it’s a great place to drop your hard earned money
oh — and as a P. S. if you don’ t write a nice review about this place expect to get some hate mail and name calling from the employee Unilocalers that read the reviews

Jonathan’s seems to still be a work in progress. The décor is pretty nice and the lay out is decent. The sliding glass window to let in nice fresh air on a nice day is a nice touch.
Unfortunately for me that is where most of my accolades end. The food is just okay to be nice. Its just too basic and lacks creativity. It deserves a better chef and a more upscale menu to stay open in the newton neighborhood. The wings are actually not bad and would recommend them. Pricey though and $ 9 for like 7 wings. The turkey club was just okay and seemed to be made with Wonder Bread. The wait staff still needs some work. The bartender was particularly poor. I wanted to be more complementary but I just could not. The menu really needs to be reworked or bring in a new chef.

Went on a Wednesday night and it was packed at 7 pm. Live music at the bar was a nice touch, but lasted only 45 minutes. A very cool atmosphere out in the burbs.
Anyway, being a new place I understand the kinks in the service (it was kinda slow to get our meals) but understandable and wasn’t in any rush. Though I must admit, the waiter was very attentive.
As for the food, it left something to be desired. I was deciding between the chicken and the salmon and went with the chicken based on the waiters recommendation. The two pieces were VERY small and the presentation looked sloppy. As far as taste, I could make better at home, it had some weird flavorless sauce on it. If a place does chicken right it can be spectacular, this not so much.
I’d be willing to give it another shot but would definitely order something different. Some of the other menu options looked good and would be curious to try them.