J Law Kitchen & Craft Bar — Restaurant in Danbury

To start, I'd like to highlight the positives: the restaurant offers ample space and the host was friendly and welcoming. However, my decision to rate JLaw Kitchen & Craft three stars stems from several fundamental culinary missteps. Firstly, placing salad directly on top of hot dishes like steak or chicken is a mistake, as it causes the salad to wilt and become soggy. Additionally, the use of balsamic vinegar was excessive, dominating the salad's flavor to the point where its strong aroma was noticeable from two feet away. A reduction to half the amount of balsamic might be advisable, along with a suggestion for the chef to use it more sparingly. Similarly, the experience with the Milanese was compromised; the dressing on the accompanying salad undermined the Milanese's signature crispiness. Furthermore, the application of chimichurri sauce on fish is a culinary faux pas in my eyes. Coming from the country that originated chimichurri, I am confident in stating that it is traditionally reserved for steak and sausages, particularly when grilled, and should not be paired with fish. Additionally, the chimichurri served was not authentic. It's akin to marketing tea as coffee - it simply doesn't match up to expectations. The pricing of the meal did not reflect the basic culinary errors made, which was disappointing. The relatively low occupancy on a Friday evening, with only 4 out of 14 tables filled, should have been a forewarning. Would I consider returning to this restaurant if they address these issues? Possibly, but certainly not at their current price point. I would prefer to invest that amount in a different dining experience elsewhere, exploring new flavors and dishes. You might want to visit the bar, as it appears to be busier and more attractive than the restaurant. The nachos were delightful, and the non-alcoholic cranberry mock mule was enjoyable. Additionally, I appreciated the availability of kombucha on tap.

P.S.: The total bill neared $100 for one non-alcoholic beverage, an appetizer, and two main courses (Milanese with Arugula salad and a Chicken Parmesan sandwich).

Answer to Owners Comment:

I want to make it clear that at no point did I suggest the chimichurri sauce should accompany the chicken caprese. My critique was that the chimichurri was being misapplied to a dish it doesn't traditionally belong with. Coming from the country that gave the world chimichurri, I—and others from my homeland—find such a culinary misstep quite disrespectful.

Furthermore, I refrained from bringing this to the attention of the waiter because I wasn't seeking any form of compensatory gesture, like a free meal or a refund. This way, I can provide a genuine review. Typically, if I'm compensated, I feel a duty to post a positive review, but that doesn't apply in this situation. There are essential principles in cooking that your chef overlooked. Many of the most skilled chefs, including those trained at Johnson and Wales in Rhode Island where I once lived, adhere to these foundational guidelines in pursuit of excellence, including the aspiration for a Michelin star. It seemed to me that your chef was attempting to innovate unnecessarily, disregarding these core culinary standards.

Despite the issues, I hope you appreciated the high-quality, non-stock photography it was provided for free. I'm open to visiting again for a second chance, but next time I'll leave my camera at home. I prefer not to be recognized, seeking the same treatment as any other guest. Should there be noticeable improvements, I'm willing to revise my review. However, keep in mind that the outcome could also go...

Had dinner for 4 here. Hope this place succeeds and continues to improve.

Atmosphere: pub like but cozy and rustic.

Service: well taken care of though our server never brought us any water (can't say we asked though).

Drinks: we had beer and wine. Craft beer selection is pretty solid but the menu was a little confusing. Didn't realize some said "coming soon" and other's were kicked that weren't marked on the menu. Probably got my 4th beer choice by the time I got through all that.

Food: We had a variety of dishes. We all agree they were very good but most missed the mark of perfection by a few small details. The duck was a little overcooked, and the skin needed some more rendering to be nice and crispy. The fingerling potatoes with this dish were definitely undercooked. I'm also glad I got the cranberry glaze on the side. Far too sweet for me and didn't really tie the dish together. I far more enjoyed the duck plain. The pappardelle dish was just a tad too al dente, and the sauce could stand to be thickened a bit (very watery and did not cling well to the pasta). Burger ordered medium rare came medium, would get it rare in the future. The salmon portion was a little small but otherwise good.

I think with time some of these kinks will be ironed out and I would definitely...

We made reservations for a Saturday night in the beginning of December not even thinking of holiday parties. When we arrived, they seated us in the back room which I didn't really love. I'd prefer to be in the main dining room however due to a large holiday party going on in there, we were only able to sit in the back. Despite this our server was on top of everything! Drinks came out within a reasonable amount of time and food was timed perfectly. We started with some maple bourbon bacon wings and the potato smashers. The wings were tasty, they were crispy and the sauce was really good with the bits of bacon in it. We really liked the potato smashers as well. For entrees, our table had the 'Merica burger, French dip, chicken caprese dip and the chicken Milanese. Everyone enjoyed everything we had very much. The chicken caprese dip was probably the star of the table. It had pesto, mozz, tomatoes and came with some vodka sauce on the side for dipping... so good! 1 had the Milanese which I loved, but I was dipping some of my chicken in the vodka sauce because it was so good!! We were celebrating 2 birthdays so we had slated caramel gelato and an apple crisp. I loved the apple crisp presentation in the skillet, but both were very tasty desserts. I would definitely return...