Jaspers Alsatian Bistro and Wine Bar

Closed. Now open as The Downtown Kitchen.

It’s hearty food. Being Alsatian, the food here is influenced by both French and German. There’s a heavier usage of cabbage and sauerkraut present in the dishes as well, reflecting the German history in Alsace, France. The food here is a bit pricier than most restaurants in the area, but the portions (depending on what you get) is on the large side, so evens out.
We tried the Jagerschnitzel, duck, choucroute garnie, and the beef stew. Each entrée comes with a house salad that is lightly dressed in vinaigrette. The meal starts off with a complimentary bread basket (featuring flatbread crackers/​lavash and sliced bread from Daube’s) served with a compound butter and a pat of regular butter.
The duck breast was delicious, but looked frighteningly small compared to the other three entrees. It was a bit disproportionate to the large heap of braised red cabbage on the plate. I personally would have seen the breast cooked a tad rarer and the skin to be crisper. The other three entrees were quite hearty in flavor, in richness, and quantity. The meats were quite tender and paired well with the accompanying vegetables and starches. The spaetzel was fun to eat. Overall, the food here is very easy to eat.
We tried two desserts: the Sacher torte and the almond pear tart. I’ve been to Hotel Sacher, originator of the Sacher torte, so I’m quite biased when it’s just not the same. The cake itself could have been more richer in flavor and more moist. The texture seemed a bit off, making it seem that the cake had been cut and sitting for a few days. The almond pear tart could have been made a bit thicker, more generously made, giving the eater the chance to eat the frangipane filling with the pear. It was served warm, which was a nice touch.
This is a good place to try for date night, meeting with family, etc.
They also have a lunch menu here.

While my original thoughts still hold true, I thought it would be only fair to update about my latest Jasper’s experience (yes, I did go back).
Had an excellent dinner experience there a few weekends ago. My date and I were pleased with everything we ordered. Started with the cheese plate, which consisted of a nice variety of cheeses — reasonably priced. I had a beef dish (similar to pot roast) while my date went with the steak. The waitress provided excellent wine recommendations which were much appreciated. Of course, we chose the crepes for dessert… delicious as always!
Thank you Jasper’s. We will be back.

Ok so ya go to Rochester for the 800 LB gorrila [Mayo] but there are other things and Jaspers isone of them. Owned and frequented by a local family, the restaurant has a good deal of charm and menu selections to back it up. Tried both lunch and dinner entrees, and 1^st off the soups, whatever they may be, are really worth trying. The sandwiches are tasty as well.
Dinner had some specials but the menu has a broad selection too. Their breads and flat breads are made locally– they’re owned by a bakery-​and the quality shows in the more German and Alsatian choices; white bread not so much.
The Jaeger Schnitzel was prepared by someone who really didn’t have a good grasp on what that dish is supposed to be, but nonetheless: tasty. A small but adaquete wine list rounds out the establishment. The night I was there, the service was excellent, even though there were only two servers and they had some preperation work in addition the table service. Oh, I must mention the deserts. Everything we tried was excellent! Go for the date cake, you won’t regret it.

Well, that was about the worst I’ve ever had in Rochester, a town known for pretty decent MN dining.
Server/​waitress could not wait to get away from us and go behind the bar and read the paper with another sever. Must have been pretty interesting as even the cook came out and read it with them for 15 minutes on and off. We had a hard time flagging her down.
The food, you know, wasn’t that great beyond the mushroom soup. My chicken was dry and had little taste. The SO’s pork seemed a bit better but given everything we’d read about this place pre-​visit we were ready to be impressed. We were not.

I love a good weekend breakfast. The type where you wake up late, cruise to a little local hole in the wall, then stuff yourself silly with amazing, tasty, fresh egg-​based dishes with fantastic and bottomless black coffee. This was a ritual I regularly experienced during a stint in Portland, Oregon, and was eager to recreate in my new Rochester home.
Two years after moving, I still hadn’t found my new weekend breakfast «home»…until I found Jasper’s, that is. The menu is still small for the weekend breakfast, and it’s only available on Sunday from 9 am — 1 pm, but the food is fresh and flavorful and the waitress happily delivered to our table outside, even when all the other customers opted to stay inside the restaurant.
One gets the feeling the kinks are still being worked out from this weekend brunch, but Jasper’s is on the right track. Hopefully in time this will evolve into a weekend-​long gorging opportunity, replete with Bloody Marys and a two-​page menu. Until that time, I’m enjoying it for what it is: the best breakfast I’ve found in Rochester.

A good menu — as others have noted there were several items that appealed to me.
Décor is nice and cozy. The location is great — on a low traffic side street where people only really fond Jaspers if they know of it, or stumble upon it (as I did).
One of my favorite place in Rochester — recommended!

While in Rochester hunting antiques, we were looking for a quick bite of lunch that wouldn’t weigh too heavily on either our tummies or our bank account. We found it in Jasper’s!
Although we came in well after the lunch rush, there were a number of people waiting around the front for their take-​out orders. A good sign when the local office workers crowd the place. Despite them, we were seated promptly and began purusing the small but intriging menu.
My wife (a vegetarian) had the Artichoke Soup and Hummus Poor Boy Sandwich. In her words, the sandwich was good, but the soup was «unbelievable.»
I was really tempted to order the Monte Cristo, but was afraid it would be too heavy. Instead I ordered the «safe» choice, the Roast Beef Au Jus. It was, by far, the best such sandwich I have had anywhere. It was buttery and lightly grilled and oh so tasty. We were both left satisfied but not overstuffed.
Jasper’s will be our first stop next time we find ouselves in Rochester!

It took me awhile to finally find this place. It wasn’t really busy around 5 pm. The interior was very cozy and relaxed. Since I was by myself, I decided to sit at the bar. The complementary flat bread was salty and delicious with the cream cheese and paprika. The small leek and mushroom pizza was light and paired well with the shiraz-​cabernet. Most importantly. The server was very friendly and helpful. Would definitely go back again!

This is really the finest dining I’ve encountered here in Rochester. If 5 stars, the atmosphere might have reflected «finer» a smidge more, though hey, they had classical music on, and I enjoyed a really wonderful wine.
Jasper’s food though is really quality and lovely preparation. Service is friendly and absolutely no pretension. Our server was [quite] young, and I was dubious, though her recommendations were really wonderful, and she was generally really, really, and surprisingly great.
And the food is stellar. In my experience (rack of lamb, one of the «pizza» for an appetizer, a really quite lovely salad, linzer torte for dessert and really nice coffee). The whole thing was… lovely. Really fine food, great service.
Great experience. :)

Ok, consistency is key to me. On my trip back to Rochester I revisited Jaspers for dinner and was equally or more impressed. The cuisine, the wine selections, the service and the ambience were all stellar. Amber, my server, was extremely personable and her recommendations were spot on. The rack of lamb was prepared perfectly. Definitely the best dining experience on my return visit to Rochester. Additionally, the price/​value would be tough to beat.