Blue Moon Cafe — Restaurant in Jackson

The Blue Moon Cafe is a bit of a hidden gem of a breakfast and lunch spot frequented by locals, nestled next to the tracks near the former Michigan Central Railroad maintenance works and yard in Jackson. Featuring generous portions, fresh ingredients, and very reasonable prices, the food is better than you'd expect from such an unassuming spot. If you like substance over style, this is your type of place. When the owner is the one manning the kitchen (which is always), you know you're in for a meal served with pride and care, like mom used to make. Omelet selections are where I've spent most of my time, which include ethnic-themed dishes that reflect the nearby immigrant neighborhoods of Jackson's past. The Greek, Irish, Polish, and Italian omelettes in particular are all very good and pay tribute to those who manned nearby shops and factories during Jackson's boom times from the late 1800's through the 1920's. The pancakes are also excellent and ridiculously fluffy, wide, and thick, struggling to be contained by the plate. If you think you're hungry for three pancakes...think again. One pancake here is probably like three elsewhere. The best time to come is mid-morning, as there is often an initial rush when it opens. The decor is dated but homey and casual. Service is friendly, competent, and quick, although usually only one server covering the small-ish dining room so when there is a rush of customers, coverage can be thin. There are quirky touches like their funky and diverse collection of coffee mugs contributed by patrons. If you like one, the staff may offer you can take it - as long as you bring them a different one to replace it in their collection. My favorite thing though is the daily specials, which, if on the board, offer a great source of variety and excellent preparations of food the owner wants to use up before the next produce or meat delivery. A breakfast smoked pork chop with eggs and toast is one in particular that was outstanding, as well as an enormous broccoli, ham, and cheddar omelette. Last but not least, Tuesday and Thursday mornings the breakfast prices are substantially discounted, making an already good value a ridiculous one. If you haven't been here yet, check it out. Chances are you'll...

I stopped here at 11:30 am on a Thursday morning and the place was packed. I was able to get a table right away, but there were only a couple of tables left. This is a small place that could honestly use a makeover. My server came over right away and gave me a menu and took my order. The menu looked good, in fact the breakfast selections really looked amazing.

I decided to order the hot beef sandwich with American fries (gravy all over) and applesauce. This is one of the only places that doesn’t automatically serve mashed potatoes with open faced sandwiches, and I thought I was going to miss the mashed potatoes and I was dead wrong.

My meal came right out, and everything looked amazing. The beef was tender, and the gravy tasted good, it needed a little salt, but other than that, it was good. The American fries were outstanding. They were really good with gravy on top.

One thing I must mention is that they serve real coke here and it tasted like canned or bottled coke, not your average terrible tasting, watered down fountain coke. It was the real deal.

This is a good place to eat with great value. The menu is large enough for everyone to find something to eat and the...

We stumbled upon Blue Moon Cafe while rail fanning. When we walked in, I didn't see a sign indicating if we should seat ourselves or wait to be seated, so my son and I stood near the door. The woman ringing up a guest said "uh, you can sit wherever you want." We took the table nearest the door so my son could see the trains outside. Two separate tables came in after us. The first table was promptly given menus (from the lady who "greeted" us at the door) and asked their drinks. She delivered their drinks then went to the second table that walked in after us. She did not bring him a menu, but called him by name and asked if he wanted his usual beverage. She trotted off to retrieve his drink as my son and I sat there still waiting for any acknowledgement. After my 8 year old noticed the people who came in after us were being serviced before us, he asked, "what the heck!?" Which was my thought exactly. We...