I've been here a few times because my girlfriend's family likes it but I just don't get it. I've tried a few different cocktails but they're all ordinary and overpriced. The pizza, scallops, corn soup, corn Mac & cheese, taco dessert and ice cream sampler are good but again, not worth the price and nothing special. If everything was about 25% cheaper this place would make sense to me but your basically paying for the fancy, stuffy atmosphere.
Review Source:I went here quite a few times with my girlfriends, and once with my husband for our anniversary dinner since there was a hurricane and nothing else was open. Â After making the mistake of ordering pricey wine a few times (which was always delicious) I discovered the 1/2 carafe of "cheap wine" which is also delicious and gives you about 3 glasses of wine for $12. Â SOLD
During our "hurricane anniversary dinner" the server surprised us with complimentary dessert, and wrote "Happy Anniversary" with raspberry sauce on our plate. Â Adorable.
The food has never disappointed. Â I know they have impressive salads, although nothing is really sticking out in my head at the moment, which is why I am not giving out a full 5 star review.
I think most Philly area foodies assume that there aren't many reasons to check out Manayunk's dining scene if you aren't local to Northwest Philadelphia and this is largely true. So if you'd been avoiding Manayunk on account of its [deservedly] poor culinary reputation, you might be surprised at the frequency with which Jake's and Cooper's Wine Bar is mentioned as a contender on Best Pizza in Philly lists.
To be sure, I don't think they could ever win this title outright - I think there is a lot of equally good (not to mention better) pizza in Center City and South Philly but *for the area* Jake's and Cooper's definitely sets the gourmet pizza bar.
They do a darn good high-end pie in a really nice setting that is also casual and relaxed if you're on the bar side after 9:00ish (my personal preference when I go here). The two we've had are Lisa's (hold the olives, my b/f doesn't do them) and the three-cheese. The crust really makes the pizza - it's incredibly light but still has some great taste and texture. From there, it's just a matter of adding carefully selected, high quality ingredients. For example, the three cheese pizza isn't your typical mozz/parm/ricotta blend, it does have mozz but the other two cheeses are sottocenare and fontina and each slice is topped with a piece of crispy sage - really, really interesting, complex flavor.
My one minor complaint about the pizza is that they serve it ceramic platers, which can cause a slight sogginess issue when moisture starts to condense between the plate and the bottom of the crust :( - such a shame when the pizza is so good! I'd advise them to consider a wooden (or even metal) serving option - please! for the pizza's sake! ;)
The times we've had the pizza, we sat on the bar side. I've also had dinner on the restaurant side twice and found both experiences expensive but otherwise forgettable. However, I did really love the artichoke/asiago omelet I got when we came for brunch on my birthday last year. They also have *excellent* coffee.
What a nice wine bar! It was my first time there not long ago but I already want to go back. The wine is reasonably priced and their other drinks were amazing. I had the sangria and a strawberry mojito that were both tasty and strong! They don't skimp out on the vodka at all. They had Tito's vodka there so that was a plus. I went with a friend and we both had a blast. It has a great atmosphere, great place for a date since the lights are somewhat dim (not sure if that sounds weird or not). The bartender was great, I forgot his name but he was really attentive and helpful as well. I'll definitely come back next time I'm in the area. Really liked the atmosphere and the people!
Review Source:I've been to Jake's twice and have yet to be disappointed. Aside from the fact that it is indeed pricey and wines are overprice, the food quality is exceptional. Both times i've gone, we've ordered most of the things on the menu and done a sort of tasting on our own. Everything is tasty, from the appetizers, to the cheese and meats, to the main entrees. Definitely one of the top restaurants on Main St.
Review Source:We had one of the best meals of our lives at Jake's last night. Â For a friend's 50th birthday, five of us met at 8 on Saturday night. Â We were promptly shown to our table, and they remembered that I had asked for a seat against a wall to help my hearing problem. Â We started out with the fantastic cheese and charcuterie boards. Â If you want a perfect meal, be sure to order them. Â All of our party had the escargot as appetizers, and we agreed that they were phenomenal. Â My husband, who has traveled extensively in France, said they were the equal of any escargot he has had in the fanciest of French restaurants. Â
For our main courses, we had the crab cakes, which are a signature dish at Jake's, and the seared sea scallops. Â Both were delectable, and lived up to their promise by staff. Â Last, but certainly not least, we shared the ice cream taco and the special cheese cake for dessert. Â The birthday girl was pleased and touched by the special effort the chef put into her dessert, with a "Happy Birthday" written in chocolate around the plate and a lit candle on the side. Â The "cheap" red and white wine we ordered perfectly complemented our food, and were both better than what we would normally order in another restaurant. Â
Overall, this was a wonderful experience for our birthday girl, and a miraculous save for her husband, who had forgotten to get her a present. Â Thank God for Bruce Cooper Sr. and Jr., Cosmo and Jake's head chef, who made her feel special. Â And for Seth, our waiter, who ably took care of us while making her feel like the most important person in the room. Â Thank you all!
Jake's is now our go-to restaurant for all special occasions!
I'm updating my review and upgrading my rating for Cooper's because of the great dinner experience we had there last night. I'm going up to 5 stars because I can't really pick out anything that I didn't like about our experience--it was an all-around great night.
We got in at about 9pm on a Friday night, and the place was packed, but we got a table immediately (luckily, they have a huge space between the side that used to be just Jake's and the Cooper's side). We started with a couple of their house cocktails, which were really fantastic, like memorably fantastic. I highly recommend the Bee Sting. It's made with fresh honey and some chili's for the sting. You get the honey first when you taste it, and then the sting, well, stings you at the end. Not too much, just enough to feel good, just like [insert bawdy metaphor of your choosing here].
We started with the cheese and charcuterie board, which was amazing. I can't recommend the local Shelldrake Farms goat cheese enough. They pair it with a fig job that is just absolutely perfect. The portion size here is also quite generous. I also recommend the olives as an appetizer. They are only $4, you get a ton of them, and they are delicious. For the salad course, we shared the Roquefort salad. The presentation was absolutely beautiful. It was a little on the salty side for my taste, but perhaps that's just how roquefort dressing is. For a main, we shared the spicy meatball pizza, which was both spicy and contained ample meatballs. Recommend this too.
Our server was really nice and efficient, and he did a great job of getting a pretty complex order correct, including the right meats and cheeses on the cheese board. The general manager, Cosmo, also came over to greet us and chat with us, which was really nice and made the experience feel special.
We will definitely be back again soon.
I'll sum it up best with what I wrote on my check: "This is food for people who love food." This is not a way for me to wank, and talk about how great my taste is. It's to say, "This is for people who have had *it*" "It" is a moment where everything changes, and a cook makes you forget for a blind second that magic isn't real, and you want to hunt that feeling again for the rest of your life. There are many places I've found this at, and Jake's is one of them.
I am also doing them an incredible disservice by neglecting their wine, for which I am woefully unprepared and unskilled to speak for. They have an impressive stock, but as I can barely tell them apart, so I'll stick with the food.
I recently went back for the spring Manayunk restaurant week, and everything was beautifully composed, the dishes designed with purpose, the staff wonderfully attentive and the "cheap" red better than practically anything I would normally drink. I was picking up every scrap, sliding crusts of bread to pick up the sauce in the bottom of the plate and in general gloriously indulging in decadence and hedonism. There are a few "safe" choices on here, but overall if you search I think you can find some rare treats. I can heartily recommend the Chicken Liver Mousse, and I really want to try the grilled Calves Liver.
Great service, great food, great atmosphere. I've been twice, once on the restaurant side and once on the bar side, and tried a bunch of different things each time. Nothing has disappointed! Our server was helpful and friendly - overall just a really enjoyable experience. Strongly recommend!
Review Source:Met up with a friend for dinner here and was not disappointed. The service was excellent - attentive but not overly so, and helpful when making choices. We shared the beet salad and the BBQ pork pizza, both of which were great, and the "cheap" red table wine was solid. Really, though, the night belongs to dessert.
We ordered the ice cream sampler (lactose intolerance be damned!) - a scoop each of brown butter maple pecan, chocolate covered pretzel, bittersweet chocolate, and brownie caramel. Not one of them was less than stellar. I'm not usually a maple pecan person, but it was almost savory-sweet. Delicious. They somehow managed to make it so the pretzels didn't get soggy in the ice cream, which is some kind of sorcery. And the brownie caramel was my friend's favorite. But the bittersweet chocolate, which I kind of expected to fade into the background, was epic. It was at once light and rich, making you want to both savor every morsel and eat it in one bite. So. Good.
I saw a thing on Pinterest recently - "Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you ice cream, which is kind of the same thing." Truth.
We have been going to Jake's for over 15 years and have genuinely enjoyed our time there every time, until last night. We have celebrated birthdays, graduations, and anniversaries there and true to form were there for my mom's birthday on Saturday night.
We were greeted by Cosmo and shown to our table and promptly had our drink orders taken. We were given a comfortable amount of time to select food and after giving our order only had a short wait until our appetizers and eventual dinner arrived.
From dinner on the service went downhill quickly. They were inconsistent and flaky; the older blonde expediter/waitress cleared all plates at the table and told me she would be right back to clear mine; 30 minutes later I finally flagged down our waitress (younger brunette woman) and asked her to clear it.
She took our coffee/tea orders and disappeared only to return 15 minutes later with the beverages. She asked if we wanted to look at the dessert menu, and although we did (we were planning on having some birthday profiteroles) we declined and 10 minutes later got the check. Good food but absolutely terrible service; especially when the bill was $250+. Total seated time: 2.5 hours.
We politely told Cosmo on the way out how terrible the service was and although he genuinely seemed concerned (and tried to offer drinks and dessert on the house) we just wanted to get out of there. I would never recommend this place for a special occasion and will seriously caution my parents against doing the same.
How the mighty have fallen.
My husband and I grabbed brunch at Jake's this past Sunday. Â It was our first time there, and we can't wait to go back. Â We started out with the cheese & salami plate. Â It was on the smaller side, but put together very well. Â Still, not sure it was worth nearly $25. Â We both enjoyed our entrees, and found them to be reasonably priced. My husband's food could have been hotter, but mine was fine. The $5 drink menu was a nice surprise, and had a good selection to choose from.
*** Finally back to finish my review, and just wanted to note that we have been back for brunch several times. Â Each time, the food has been great and the service very efficient. Â We keep meaning to try dinner one night, but have yet to do so.
Came here for lunch with a large group. We started with a marguerita pizza, spring rolls and gnocchi for the table. The spring rolls were the only think that really jumped out at me. The pizza was bland and the basil gnocchi was oily (I was expecting a creamier texture). Â For my entree, I had the seafood salad. It was fresh and very tasty with avacado, shrimp, calami and fresh crabmeat sandwiched between two ripe tomato slices. For $16, however, the serving size can only be described as miniature. Â
For dessert we finished with the profiteroles wirh chantily cream and pecan ice cream, served with a delicious hot chocolate sauce. Â Quite the "Parisian" experience. Â
I think this place would be a good spot for two people: ordering 3 or 4 small dishes between two people would be a perfect portion size.
The drinks and pizza are consistently "a little better than average." I'm a fan of thin pizza, but the center of the pizza collapses a little because of the soggy dough.
The extra star is for the extremely friendly service. My friend and I brought our dogs on an extremely hot day, and we had two servers (animals lovers!) consistently refill the water bowl with ice cubes!
Can someone please inform this place that pouring wine into a pitcher of ice with sliced up Mango at the bottom, is NOT Sangria?? I don't know how they justify keeping this on their menu....
Besides for this, they are very average at best. Average service. Average pizza. Average menu.
Truly well done, and in an environment with great energy and lighting! The beet salad with goat cheese and greens atop it was superb- the most tender beets I may have ever had. The parmesan fries were crispy and zesty, innovative in flavor and totally indulgent!
I was surprised by how delicious it was, and will be returning!
I love to come back to Manayunk and eat. Â This was my first time to Jake's and we were pleased with both cuisine and service.
Our server (Jamie) was extremely knowledgeable with the menu and how each dish was prepared. Â She also helped us through a wine selection that didn't result in the highest cost bottle. Â
We started with some appetizers. Â Tuna Tatare then Mussels with Garlic Shrimp. Â The tuna was outstanding. Â It had a nice fatty flavor (like velvet) and the chef let it stand on its own.
For the main course, I had the grilled octopus salad. Â Of course Jamie let me know it was so tender because it had been marinated for over five hours. Â It was really tender and the grill gave it a smokey flavor. Â My friend had a Pizza with Fig, Fontina, Ham and topped with arugula. Â I had a slice and it may be the best pizza I've put in my mouth.
A great meal.
I have two words for you: cookie taco.
Yes, the brick oven pizza is good. And ok, maybe the pork chop was described by my husband as "the best I've ever had." But that's not what we're here to talk about . I want you to know about the majesty on the dessert menu that is the cookie taco.
When I saw it, I assumed it was like a fancy choco-taco. And it is, if choco-tacos were made with crack, by a unicorn. The cookie taco is ice cream, white chocolate, caramel sauce, and raspberry sauce all contained in a taco-shaped pastry covered in cinnamon. It is the best reason to tempt the fates of diabetes, and it's a good size to share (though I could finish one off by myself without issue).
You know you want a cookie taco.
Last night was my second visit to Cooper's. I went once about 8 months ago and really enjoyed it..it was one of my boyfriend's go-to spots for solid, good food. Unfortunately, he said after last night's visit that he wouldn't go back. There was nothing BAD about our meal, but nothing special either. I was a bit peeved about the fact that you have to PAY for bread and olive oil. It's only $2, but seriously? It's a nice restaurant...give us some bread and oil.
We paid the $2 for bread, and it was amazing as always. We shared the grilled octopus salad ($15) and burger ($15). The different elements of the octopus salad were good, but they just didn't meld well. Greens, tahini (with a strong cumin flavor), capers, POTATOES. It was just a bit strange - a failed attempt at Mediterranean in our mind. The burger was definitely good, but nothing spectacular for $15. Both of those were small plates - the entrees are $25-30 each.
One bonus - they validate parking for Lot C less than a block away. Just pay (even when it's $12 at night) and they will give you stickers to get a refund after dinner.
I'm not sure if we will go back...again, it was good, but nothing fantastic.
It has been years since I have been to Coopers. Mainly because I was boycotting it all this time because of a rude manager when they first opened.....but I have to say, I am HAPPY I gave it another try.
I was going out with a guy for the first time and did not want to go to any of the other "Manayunk bars"-because: 1. all young college students go there 2. I wanted a nicer place
We entered the wine bar and two hostesses greeted us and I believe the owner as well. At first I thought we were going to be casual and sit on the "Coopers side" but there was no seating, so we sat in the window at "Jakes side"
We ordered a bottle of wine to share as well as a fig pizza. Both were great. Service was attentive and everyone was really nice and friendly.
Sorry that I waited so long to go back and looking forward to going back!
The hazelnut butter that comes with the Rogue Creamery Smokey Blue cheese is pretty amazing - as is the smokey blue cheese itself. The cheese is as potent as gym socks, and as delicious to humans as a gym floor is to athlete's foot. (...I just had to... sorry).
But the rest of the food at Cooper's is only okay, if not slightly unsavory. The truffle oil on the Portabello Mushroom and Shallot pizza is a wee overpowering, thereby inhibiting its consumer from enjoying the delicate thyme and shellbark goat cheese flavors.
The Parmesan Fries are a little too salty. The asparagus with prosciutto is okay - the prosciutto is a little salty. The rock shrimp gnocchi was good - except for crunchy bits of the granules of sand in-your-mouth variety.
A decent meal but a little over priced considering the quality. Â The service is super friendly and there was no pressure to leave our leisurely dining evening. Â The menu is extensive so even the pickiest eaters can find something. Â The menus are combined from Jake's and Cooper's Wine bar that is attached. Â
Big Poppa and his lady friend and the wife and I all leisurely enjoyed dinner last night (3/5) at 8 pm to celebrate our respective 37th and 67th birthdays. Â We started with the $2 bread (Which some of you may snub your nose at, but these days, everyone is on low carbs, so why not have a small fee) and the marinated olives. Â We shared almost everything that came to the table. Â We got crab cakes, oysters, truffle gnocci, short rib pizza, artichoke pizza, mashed sweet potatoes and duck spring rolls. Â Most of the stuff was as good as expected. Â All the ingredients were fresh so nothing tasted like it was from a can. Â The winner was clearly the crab cakes. Â If you go, be sure to get either the entree size or the at least the small plate size. Â
There is a really good wine list with lots of variety, a little pricey, but they offer many by the glass and some cheap stuff too. Â A few selections of beer. Â They really do get an A for effort though and it is a pretty decent meal. Â But it's not like I plan on rushing back.
The atmosphere made me feel like I made it to a classy restaurant downtown without the headache of getting downtown...
Be warned, the food is slightly pricey for Manayunk. However, their "cheap wine" is actually pretty good (@ $12 for a half carafe, it is not a bad deal). The food was good, but the serve put it over the top. Our server Richard was very attentive without being pushy and checked in just enough to make us happy without driving us insane. Worth adding to your tour of Manayunk restaurants!
I Love Coopers! The cocktails are delicious... something blackberry is my beverage of choice...
I always get the Parmesean fries, I love all of the pizzas, the salads are delicious, etc. I can't hink of anything I've had here that is bad!
Service is very good and they always have such nicely pressed button down shirts that remarkably have few visibly stains...
The ambiance is nice, not too fussy but you won't feel out of place stopping here if your dressed up. They have whatever game is going on on the TV, so boyfriend can strategically place himself to properly divide his attention. Not great for deep conversation, but certainly a good date place!
My girlfriend and I wandered down to Main Street and decided to try Jake's. Â We didn't want to spend a ton of money so we chose a bunch of sides as well as an appetizer. Â Unfortunately, we chose almost all the sides, so the meal ended up costing us a LOT more than we'd expected!
The one appetizer I chose was the duck spring rolls. Â They were meh. Â Nothing that really stood out as being wonderful, and I wound up not really minding that I didn't finish them.
As for the sides, they were all very good (my girlfriend loved the portobello risotto), but they were also mostly fried or sauteed in butter (or butter-based sauces). Â They wound up being very very heavy, and not a lot for what they charged.
Apparently, no one has told Jake's that there is a recession on, and their menu prices reflect the prices of the irrational exuberance period. Â Even the Cooper's menu is on the pricey side. Â (We ordered the mac & cheese off the Cooper's menu and weren't terribly impressed). Â Would we go back? Â Probably not - the menu didn't have any vegetarian options, and there wasn't anything on there that really drew my attention.
Service was topnotch though. Â Our waitress was very attentive and very informative.
Come for the pizza and wine, stay for the pizza and wine. And the draft beer. You can also order the famous Jake's burger in case the brick oven or many small plates aren't tempting enough. But so far, I have yet to have a disappointing pie here. Get the 3-cheese if you want something simple, and try the Lisa's pizza or the short rib if you want more toppings.
The outdoor seating is abundant, making it a great start to happy hour on a nice day. Also, the kitchen is open pretty late most nights (with pizzas being served an hour later than other food), so it's not a bad way to end the evening. So far, service has been wonderful at tables and at the bad each and every time.
I've been there a few times now. Â I've had the scallops (I got 3 on my plate, stuffed with sausage - very yummy, great appetizer size). Â Their salads and pizzas are good, too. Â So is there apple cobbler (mouth-watering good, if you like a cobbler that's not too sweet...). Â There is something for everyone on the wine list, too. Â And yes, the atmosphere is nice. Â
However, I have to say, the service is HORRIBLE when there's any semblance of a crowd in the restaurant. Â Service is OK during the off hours. Â But it STINKS when it's busy. Â I really was frustrated at how slow the servers were during dinnertime. Â It was unacceptable. Â If they had 1-2 more servers on the floor, it would have solved the problem. Â I don't think it was the servers' fault. Â
If the service was any better, I'd give it 4 stars. Â
I've seen others make the same comments, so I really hope that they figure out that they have a problem sooner rather than later.
Jake's interior is romantically lit, with speakeasy lighting, a posh lounge (pillows along the wall, low tables) and relaxing music.
Two of us waited about 20 minutes without a reservation. Not bad, considering it wasn't terribly busy. Our host (Evan) sat us. Service was fine. Jenna brought out our dishes quickly and helped make recommendations. At their stocked bar, bartender Jon presided over the drinks. I don't remember having any drinks...
The l'amuse bouche was tasty and a promising start. For an entree, I went for the pink peppercorn crusted venison ($26) with braised baby bok choy, kimchee; Asian reduction, cashew vinaigrette. We shared an order of the Prince Edward Island mussels ($10) with Andouille sausage, sweet bell peppers, garlic and a white wine tomato broth. Sadly, both the appetizer and entree (while creative) were listless in flavor and average in quality, especially considering the high prices.
While the food did not impress, I'd return for drinks! Your mileage may vary.
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