We really loved this friendly little place. It was packed and we arrived early to get a good table for an evening of karaoke. The music selection was great, the karaoke host was excellent and the food was fantastic. The service was very good and the customers were friendly with us out-of-towners. We will be back on our next visit! Excellent place to hang!
Review Source:Very disappointing in every aspect!
Took forever to be seated, waitress took forever to take and bring drink orders and could never get her attention for refill. Hate that.
Greek salad weird with tasteless feta, obviously nasty cheap canned olives and half a baby tomato. Ordered fish special that was served with bland mashed potatoes with potato chip stuck on top, ok asparagus and spinach.
Sauce bland and seemed to have too much thickener so almost gooey.
Crab cake not flaky but pasty, too loose to remain intact and, of course, bland. Fries were cold.
Bread served with dinner obviously crappy store bought.
WAY overpriced!
I would not suggest this barely disguised diner to anybody.
OMG!! We were looking for a new local eatery that had it all...and, look!! ....just around the corner from our Oceanside home....we found John's!! Whoohoo! Â We were pleasantly greeted & seated, and treated to one of the best Saturday night dining experiences that we'd had in awhile. Â We ate in the bar, well, cuz we like being close to alcohol, lol. Â
The bartender boasted he could make the best of the best....and he did! He made the most excellent Cosmo, and Margarita, and delivered then with a smile! Â (Well, Marie, our server helped with that too! ) Â Started with the Clams Casino....YUMMY, sampled the highly rated Prime Rib....Loved it, ....the Clam Chowder = some of the best I've had in awhile, and, the Smoked Salmon Cream Pasta dish was to die for! Â Tried to resist dessert but when hearing about the brownie sunday, couldn't...and was happy to devour yet another yummy menu item. Â
You must try this place, who knows...you could become a regular. Â We stayed for the very entertaining Karaoke show....and it was quite the show!!
Enjoyable and Delicious. Â We will be back. Â Thanks Lou, Marie, John, (and Bartender we didn't get your name, but you know who you are). Â We really had a great meal in a great place!!
Had a wonderful meal this evening at John's.  Waitress from Humboldt was funny and very friendly.  My husband had the Tuesday special which was a large platter of fish tacos with black beans, Spanish rice and included a side salad.  The fish was grilled to perfection and all of the sides were delicious all for $9.95.  I got the rosemary chicken with a Caesar salad, fresh veggies and baked potato.  I enjoyed everything and  there was enough chicken to take home some.  The waitress brought out two brownie sundaes because we were celebrating two birthdays.  Loved the relaxed and cozy environment.  We have eaten at John's other restaurant - The Curbside Cafe - and were happy to see he has continued the same level of quality and fresh ingredients at this restaurant.  Love that Vista has another great restaurant!
Review Source:I love John's! We come to this place to relax and enjoy great food and good friends. The regulars here are a true band of crazies that bring back memories of the bar Cheers! They care for each other, sing with each other and take the time to be friends when the bar closes. The owner is friendly and warm and always greets each person making me feel like a true friend each time I come in! Food is always affordable and high quality. The karaoke is filled with singers and many of the singers are awesome.... You will have to sit through some duds but even these performers are interesting to watch in one way or another.... after all it is just karaoke! Come to John's..... Enter the friendly Twilight Zone!
Review Source:Johns is a good place if you want a nice relaxing meal on a weekday. Â If you want a fancy pants entree and someone to wait on you hand and foot then you can go pay 50 bucks a plate at Vigilucci's. Â People that are saying that the food is microwaved are completely full of bs. Â I really dislike when people say things like that they dont know are true or not.
Ive been here several times and the prices, services and food are all good. Â If you go on a weekday and get the special the amount of quality food you get at a good price cant be beat.
We go there every couple of weeks. My two favorites are the Cobb salad and the prime rib dinner. The meat is always tender and tasty. The Cobb salad comes with lots of chicken, blue cheese crumbles and several other toppings.
A perfect weekday restaurant for diners that prefer a quieter location so they can have dinner conversations.
They have dinner specials 6 days a week. The specials are not on their regular menu.
The fish tacos are pretty good.
Went for dinner Thursday at 6 PM, and had the Meatloaf with Mushroom Gravy, came with Mashed Potatoes, Asparagus, and Spagetti Squash and it was yummy!. Â My guests had Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich with Sweet Potatoe Fries, and Clam Chowder that they both enjoyed. Â I liked the private booth and relaxed atmoshphere. Â I was surprised at how many people were there when I left, because it really wasn't noisey.
Review Source:Recently went to John's on date. It was a Saturday around 8pm. The restaurant side was pretty slow, just a few other tables so the service was pretty quick. However the noise from the karaoke on the bar side was way too loud and interrupted our conversation repeatedly throughout our meal. Also the staff was a bit too chatty, which again interrupted our conversations.
The food was okay. I really liked my Greek salad, but my small $18 steak wasn't very flavorful, felt like I could have gotten the same steak at Denny's for $10. Also the sourdough bread they served seemed a little off.
I'd eat here again if they had some kind of half off coupon (or someone else was paying lol) but at full price the food you get just isn't worth what they charge.
This place is walking distance from my home, and a great place for my little family to go for a nice, easy dinner. Â The staff are all inviting and friendly, and the crowd is just right. Â I usually get the Cobb Salad, Cheeseburger, or one of their pizzas along with a nice cold Stone Pale Ale on tap.
Nice, laid back atmosphere - can't think of another place close by that serves such good food with such a nice ambience.
Thank you John!
I recently went to this place because I discovered it in the community coupon guide. The place had people inside but was not that packed. My boyfriend and I were seated in dining room near the bar area.
My boyfriend ordered the swordfish and I had the chicken dinner special. When my boyfriend received his dish, he cut into his fish and it was completely raw inside. It had a weird smell as well. It looked as if it was frozen and placed on grill for a few seconds. He returned the fish and ordered a sandwich instead. He said the sandwich was ok. My dinner was alright, but the sides tasted like they were cooked in microwave.
They had karioke that evening. It was ok. I dont think we will return to this place for their food. I would recommend for the karioke if you like it, but not for the food.
I went on a Tuesday evening around 5 p.m. after I found a GROUPON special online. The place was really quiet. Just an elderly couple there when I arrived. I ordered the coconut shrimp for an appetizer. It was nothing special and similar to the frozen shrimp in a box at the supermarket. However, I was pleased with the Cobb Salad. It was very big and loaded with toppings. My dinner partner had a chicken sandwich that he did enjoy.
The dinner menu is a little pricey for the establishment. I thought the Cobb salad was worth the price, but the coconut shrimp is very questionable. The owner and host were friendly and courteous.
*I'd go back again if I found more specials*
Really love this place! The food is always great and the owner is really nice. Sometimes the service can be a little slow, especially after they leave the check, but overall we still love it! The owner and the servers try to remember our names, which is a nice touch too. Prime Rib is great and the scallop fettuccine and clam chowder is awesome!
Review Source:Disappointed. Â Hate to use the word, but John's other venture, Curbside Cafe is a nice place, so I expected the same. Â The food was below average, seemed like it was frozen, prepackaged, then fried. Â The service was slow. Â I was so hoping this would be better, because it is not far from our home.
My wife and I have tried this place 3 times, hoping the first visit was a fluke. Â It wasn't, in fact it was worse each time.
Disappointed. Â Go to Caio's if you want good food.
Been to John's many times. Food service is great. Down side the bar service area, you best be over 60 on a Friday. People at the bar seem to think they own it. And on a Friday the bar in the bar empty tables have reservation signs on them meaning don't come in here. So my recommendation take your business elsewhere on Friday's until you're 65. But that i just my view.
Everyone in the place goes out of their way top help and get what you need... As a local this is a staple of places my wife and I stop in. Sundays spaghetti is top notch And I must put in a plug check out Curbside too ... The place is top notch too
Above and beyond what I would expect!
I stumbled onto this place by accident, and had a great steak and a cocktail and had a great conversation with John the owner.
I told my mom about the place, and she was excited to take her Avo group somewhere new, and she called to see if they could seat 20-30 people.
I did not know that the owner of John's owns the Curb Side Cafe too. John left his job at curb side, Â set up a special seating time for my Mom's group, before they even officially opened! He brought in wait staff etc, just to serve them! I was impressed, that is customer service!
Good food, nice relaxed place... Â hopefully people realize that this place is here...
Went to John's for my Daughter's Birthday on the eve of May 3rd, Â The food was FANTASTIC, and I am a cook so I am very hard to please !! Â From the Filet to my Halibut dish it was Amazing. Â The only problem was our waitress was not so great ?? Â S L O W ! ! ! Â The place was not busy as it was a Tuesday Night so not to sure what was going on with her ? Â She was very nice, but forgot a lot of things we asked for ?? Â In the End the manager gave all of us FREE desert, which was really nice ! Â Cream Brule was GREAT !! Â Try it out and see for yourself.
Review Source:It's just like the name implies. Â It's in the corner of a strip mall in a non-descript area at the intersection of Bobier and East Vista Way.
They are a fairly typical American menu with a few deviations which are likely the favorite's of the chef and are pretty standard preparation for the kitchen. Â There is prime rib, steaks, fish, chicken, and appetizers. Â The meals are complete with a choice of soup or salad and vegetable accompanying the entree.
I came here with my wife, daughter, and mother-in-law to celebrate a joint Mother's Day celebration this past Saturday evening.
The restaurant is sectioned into a dining room and a bar, with table seating also available in the bar. Â There is karaoke on some evenings, so a patron can dine and be entertained or be the entertainment. Â I called and made a reservation for the dining room on Friday night, just in case other diners had the same idea to go out to celebrate Mom on Saturday. Â I could tell reservations are atypical here from the way my call was received. Â I gave my name and telephone number besides my preferred dining time and the woman seemed perplexed that I would give her so much information.
When we arrived, and after the hostess greeted us, she asked if we would like to eat in the bar. Â WHAT?! Â I told her that I specifically made reservations for the dining room, which was annoying because she didn't even look at the reservation sheet (scratch paper) as I did, seeing my name and number written on the page without any mention of my preference.
Besides waiting an eternity to have our order taken, I had to ask if I could get some cracked black pepper for my salad and my daughter's clam chowder. Â By the way, I had to flag down someone, not our server, but a middle aged guy who was now seating people as opposed to the original hostess who wanted to seat us in the bar. Â He looked like a friend of the owner, seeing that it was going to be a fairly busy night, that decided to stop in and help his buddy.
John's is dabbling at a level of dining where you cannot be a pretender or go only half the way. Â At these prices, which are marginally lower than other American fare restaurants, you need to up the ante on food prep, presentation, and staff. Â If your existing clientele decided to explore other American fare restaurants just outside the boundary of the "neighborhood" they may be pleasantly surprised.
The food here is awesome! You can tell the chef and/or owner really cares about what they serve. Everything from the Greek dinner salad to the dessert was yummy! We had the surf and turf and the prime rib when we were there last time. I would highly recommend it. The management seems highly motivated to serving excellent food, so if someone was there on a bad night, I would recommend giving John's another shot.
Review Source:Love John's Grill! Â Glad we found it - our new fav. Like supporting local biz owners too. I keep trying new menu items and haven't been disappointed yet. Everything is delicious and hot. Meal includes soup or salad, choice of potato, and the freshest local veggies (best part for me) always something different. Nice variety of entrees and I keep trying something different because everything keeps being so yummy. You can tell there is a true chef in the kitchen.
Review Source:I like Curbside Cafe so I wanted to give this place a try. It is a real let down. Mediocre pub food at best. The prime rib was okay. The potatoes were the highlight of the dish. Service was spotty and not nearly as good as Curb side. I can get better prime rib at a chain like Cocos. That's sad. Not a decent value for the price. I was really dissapointed.
Review Source:Whelp, I've been back a couple more times. Â Unfortunately, things aren't getting better but, worse. Â I invited some friends to join me for dinner at Johns. Â One LOVES to sing Kareoke and I enjoy watching/listening when there are good singers. Â
I ordered the prime rib and ceasar salad.  Prime rib was served without the horseradish sauce (that's a given that YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE to request it!) The Prime rib was over-cooked,  the patoto was odd and I couldn't figure out what was wrong until my friend pointed out they weren't even hot enough to melt the butter!  Who IN THEIR right mind cuts a potato and doesn't immediately fill it with all the good stuff so it can melt?  The best thing on my plate was the spaghetti squash.  I'd NEVER order the ceasar salad again.  I'd go to an Italian restaurant for one.  There were 4 of us and they served us two rolls and  two REALLY CRAPPY pieces of I'm not sure what kind of bread.
One of my friends got the Shrimp Scampi. Â SHOULD have been called Shrimp ScIMPY and bland. Â She didn't enjoy it at all and said it had no flavor. Â Later we were talking about a Scampi that I love at Cheesecake factory and how it has big pieces of garlic in it. Â She was like.. OMG that's part of what it was missing... It just had no flavor.
The service was pretty bad too. Â Not sure if they don't have enough servers or what the deal is.....
I'm gonna have to say if you want AWESOME prime-rib go to KOKO beach in Carlsbad. Â I've never had a bad meal there!
Went here the other night and we were very pleasantly surprised.  My husband and I both ordered the prime rib.  It was a great cut of meat and a very generous portion.  It came with a cheese covered tomato, the most deliciously buttery brussel sprouts ever, sauerkraut and our choice of potato.  It was a lot of food for what we paid, and it was fantastic and the service was fantastic as well.  We ended the meal with tiramisu.  Ordinarily, I'm not a  big fan of tiramisu but this one was exceptionally good, with very subtle flavors.  Texture was really smooth as well. Â
They have a bar with karaoke attached to the restaurant. Â I'm definitely going to check it out next time - it looked like the place to be! Â
All in all, a wonderful dining experience and a very pleasant surprise. Â I would give it 5 starts but for the decor, which did not match the quality of the meal.
I really wanted to like this place because I like to support small businesses but it was just awful. I came here with my boyfriend on a Friday night after reading the good reviews on yelp. The service was good, everyone was very polite but the food was horrid. Even the bread was awful, sliced sourdough that was toasted to cover the fact that it was stale and flavorless rolls. The ceasar salad we both ordered that came with both of our meals was ok, sort of bland. I ordered John's chicken sandwich, the chicken was dry and bland, the grilled onions were like dried out red onion that was stringy and impossible to chew and obviously old so i took all the onion out. The ingredients didn't seem very fresh. My boyfriend ordered the crab cake sandwich at the waitress's recommendation and could only take one bite of it it was so bad. She offered to give him a burger instead but he wasn't too keen on accepting more food since it had all been so terrible. Another thing was it was karaoke night there and it was really loud, horrible singing (I know that's the point of karaoke but didn't realize it was going on or wouldn't have chosen the place for our date night). Its sad to say that was the most disgusting food we have ever had in a restaurant, and were pretty disappointed we had to pay full price for it, so we won't be coming back. Hopefully it gets better
Review Source:I took my dad here for his 69th birthday with a group of 8. I was surprised at the quality of the food for the price. The prime rib was excellent... very satisfying. Put a smile to my face after the first bite. Nice atmosphere as well. The waitress even took care of the little cake I brought over before dinner and that went very well. The only hiccup was that she kinda forgot about us at the end, and as folks were ready to leave it took me a while to flag her down for the bill.
I look forward to going back... maybe I'll see you there!
I was excited to eat here as I lokve Curbside Cafe.
I rate the food as 5 stars. I had the California Chicken Sandwich and also tried their soup of the day (a 4 bean SOuthwestern Soup). Everything tasted fresh and was great.
The service was 3 stars (average at best). Our waitress was very friendly but it took a little too long to get our food order in.
The decor is meh but that just might be me...it's virtually the same as the prior San Giorgio decor. I'm sure in time they'll update it.
I give it 4 stars overall and would certainly recommend it.
If chasing the hippest thing in town is your thing than you are probably better off running by In and Out for a burger before heading to the clubs downtown. Â
If you are looking for an awesome neighborhood bar & grill that actually has some tasty grub than this is the place for you! Â This is a versatile place. Â If you don't feel like being in a neighborhood bar, no problem! There are 2 atmospheres to choose from. Â One side is like a restaurant & the other is a bar with plenty of room to eat as well. This was a great place to come for dinner with friends and the food was delicious! Â The calamari appetizer was really good. Â Cooked just right, not too tough nor too greasy. Â The Veal Oscar was super tasty. Â The vegetables were cooked perfectly. Â The portions were huge & the meals came with choice of soup or salad & a side of potatoes or sweet potatoes cooked a few different ways. Â The white bean or navy bean soup was awesome and the fried sweet potatoes couldn't be any better. Â We had a chocolate brownie ice cream type dessert that was sooo good. Â I just wish we lived closer. Â We'll definitely be back here again!
I went to John's last Saturday night with a few friends and we totally enjoyed ourselves. Â The food was amazing and the portions super generous. We started with the calamari appetizer. It was lightly breaded and delicious. Â For my entree I had the Veal Oscar special. I was a little concerned about too many calories in the bernaise sauce so they served it on the side for me. Â The meal was sooo good, and too much to finish. Â I ended up eating the leftovers for breakfast. :) Â All the entrees come with a choice of salad plus a choice of baked potato, garlic mashed, or sweet potato fries. Â We each ordered something different so we could try them all. Â I highly recommend the sweet potato fries. Â Best ever! Â Top all that off with excellent service and several margaritas and there you have it, a five star review. Â East Vista definitely needed a nice dinner place with a totally reasonable price. Â Enjoy!
Review Source:This place has potential. I just hope it's potential that is realized in the near future.
The food wants so bad to be fancy but I think this place should really just be a beer and burger joint.
The clientele is on the older side, especially since there's karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights in the bar. This could easily change though if it stays in business for a while.
The beer prices are super awesome. $3.00 for a pint, not too shabby.
Our server was overtly friendly to the point of annoyance. I was with three other people and we all agreed that she needed to dial it down at bit. I know it's an odd thing to say but a server can make or break a restaurant experience and she was definitely tipping the scales in the "never coming back here for fear we'll be waited on by her" side.
If you go here, stick to the sandwiches and burgers. Otherwise you may be disappointed in your entree.
Just unearthed another gem right here in good ol' Vista. Anyone who is a fan of the Curbside Cafe (see my review) knows John Randall, the owner. Well John has done it again. He is also the owner of John's Neighborhood Bar & Grill.
Tucked away at the near end of the strip mall on the corner of Bobier and E. Vista Way (where Stuft Pizza, Chili Coast Burgers, Kragen Auto Parts, and the Bombay Cafe are located) this place literally just opened within the last month or so. A long time ago in an era far away, the place used to be known as the Cambridge Inn. Most recently it was an Italian restaurant...if I'm not mistaken.
This place has sort-of a rustic homey atmosphere. It's very casual, so ya don't have to get all dressed up (but ya can if ya want to). The waitstaff are very friendly and make you feel welcome. Our waiter was Toni...he was very polite and did a good job, but he could have been a bit more attentive.
The food is exactly what you would expect coming from John...nothing but the best. For an appetizer we had the Fried Calamari. It was done just right, and the marinara sauce is awesome. My wife had the Porterhouse cut pork chop with apple brandy sauce, and she was quite happy with it. I sneaked a small bite and it was very good. I had the Scampi Sea Scallops which were pretty awesome, but not what you would expect...you know sizzling in garlic butter. No...this was nicely broiled scallops on a bed of cooked spinach with a garlic sauce. Entrees come with choice of potato and veggies.
They also have stuff on the menu like Prime Rib, Rosemary Chicken, Fettuccine Alfredo, and they also have sandwiches and burgers. Just like previous owners, John still has the small lounge attached where ya can either grab a bite to eat or have a drink to quench your thirst. And there's even a patio area to sit in.
So...for now I'm giving this place 4 stars. Gotta go back and try some of those other tasty dishes before I give'em that 5th star...lol. The place had a pretty steady flow of customers, so that should tell you something. This is a must try...
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,609 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,970 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,310 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,906 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,986 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
