Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar — Restaurant in Fort Collins

I’ve been contemplating writing this review for about a month. I’m not one to write negative reviews because I’ve lived in Fort Collins my entire life and I like to see businesses in my hometown flourish. However, this place was so bad to me that I feel the need to speak up so that they can improve in the future…

So, I’ve eaten at Jax on three separate occasions; twice with my wife and once by myself. The first time was magnificent, absolutely no complaints, which was why I came back. The second time, the restaurant was not too busy but it took FOREVER for us to get our food and when it did come out they gave my wife the wrong meal. They finally got it correct on the second try but they sure did take awhile to correct their mistake. At first, when my wife said that she had the wrong order, the staff member (who shall remain nameless out of my kindness) said “That’s not what you asked for but I can get you something else if you want.” Very rude and offensive. I chalked it up to the staff member having a bad day and returned one last time.

On my third visit the place was packed. I got seated in a reasonable amount of time considering how busy it was. The staff was running around frantically and would barely make eye contact with me. This time I got the wrong order. I thought about not saying anything but the food is very expensive and I think if a customer is paying that much than they should atleast get what they paid for. One of the ladies from the kitchen walked out to apologize to me personally, but she seemed so preoccupied and unauthentic that she might as well have never apologized in the first place. She asked what I wanted and turned away before I could finish my sentence. I waited and waited and when I finally got my meal it was under cooked and not nearly as good as the first time I ordered it.

To top it all off, when I got the bill they had charged me for the item I sent back as well. I tried to get the staff member's attention but they were running around so crazily that it was nearly impossible. So I paid the entire bill in cash and wiped my hands of that place. Basically what I’m saying is eat at Jax at your own risk. There is a 50-50 chance you will have a good time but also a 50-50 chance you will overpay for mediocre food. I wish I had nicer things to say because a few of the waitresses and hostesses were very friendly,...

Made a reservation Tuesday for Saturday night seating, and we looked forward to dinner all week long. So worth it!

We started with oysters -- it was so fun to have a variety to choose from. Sadly we quickly forgot how the wait identified them. I think it would be nice to have little signs in the ice to remind us, but it hardly mattered. They were each delicious and some more than others:)

I ordered the yellowfin -- amazing. The beans. THE BEANS. They were such a nice side and deliciously flavored. I will be ordering this meal again. (You know the wait is well trained when he doesn't ask you how you want your tuna prepared, too!)

My partner ordered the wedge salad and the made-to-order seafood chowder, which we'd never experienced before. He also ordered a side of cornbread.

We thought the chowder was a little too salty, and that's either a miss or just the way chowder is. We honestly don't know. It was loaded with mussels and shrimp and so much goodness. It also came with an amazing bread on top. We loved it. Had we known it came with bread, I'm not sure we would have taken our wait's suggestion to also order the cornbread.

That cornbread though ... no joke, the best I've had anywhere. The compound butter was amazing.

So we're a bit torn on how we'd order next time. We'll give the chowder another a try ... and we'll definitely find an excuse to order the cornbread again. Perhaps as an app, lol.

The wedge was solid, too. A nice sized serving with halves of cherry tomatoes, bacon and bleu cheese. Nothing is every super impressive about a wedge, and I tend to think that's how a wedge should be. It was fantastic with the chowder.

Two glasses of the very dry Malbec with all of this and we were quite happy.

This was a special "Is COVID finally over" dinner treat for us, and we'll definitely be back for oysters before the end of the month!

Our wait was Logan, and I really appreciated that when I was choking and tearing up after a bit too much horseradish he didn't ask me if I wanted more water. He just ... brought some. It's the little things that a wait can perceive and act on that matter. Thank you for reading my...

Have been to Jax several times with an overall good experience in the past so decided to go to Jax last Wednesday (3/16/22) to celebrate a birthday. We ordered a dozen oysters, Calamari, 4 beers on happy hour and for entrees: 2 large Caesar salads w/ salmon and two more beers. Our bill was just shy of $170.

The service was good however our server seemed to noticeably push drinks and upsell on food with out mentioning extra charges. At the end of out birthday meal there was no offer of a dessert menu or possibly a complimentary birthday treat. Not the end of the world but disappointing and think would of been a nice way to end our dinner.

The quality of our food and portions were disappointing for the price. Before ordering the Salomon caesar I asked how much it would cost as it was an off menu item. Our server gave an evasive answer and I just went with it thinking it couldn't be more than the typical salmon entree. However, I was taken aback to see $33 ea. on the bill! Expensive, however wouldn't of been an issue if it was really good and worth the money. Unfortunately the portion of salmon was very small and the caesar dressing was way off, bland and very watery. I had to hit the salad w a healthy dose of salt in order to eat it. On the upside, the salmon I did get was cooked well.

In terms of appetizers, the oysters were overall good. We did get a handful of noticeably small oysters in the mix though. Lastly, the calamari was pretty disappointing. Although the calamari itself tased good and the sauce complimentary we got a lot of unidentifiable small pieces that didn't quite fill out the dish they were served in making them look like breaded crumbs. All in all seemed like they were deep fried straight from a freezer bag.

Since the last time I visited Jax (2020?) it seems like there seems to be a big slip in quality, quantity and hike in price. I do enjoy the atmosphere and the beer list is pretty good however might check out another option for the next birthday celebration or fine dinning...