Previously I had eaten at this place when it was the Old Tubac Inn which I happened to love. I figured how much different can it really be? Oh it was different alright and not in a good way.
We walked in after 6pm on a Saturday and the place was dead- this should've been a giveaway. We were told there was a table for six just around the corner. I do not really understand the decor- the booths are lined with tacky India inspired bright pillows with bling. Yet we are in a "bar" yet they have a single page seasonal menu like many upscale establishments have. Very confusing! It was really warm in the dining area as well, which doesn't make you want to eat food. Â
Anyway we order sodas for the kids, and three of us order from the bar and one adult orders a soda. The drinks weren't bad I will give them that.
We ordered Cheese "Pizza" for each of the kids, two people in our party ordered the pulled pork sandwiches, another adult ordered the burger and I ordered the chicken Florentine flat-bread pizza.
We also ordered chips and salsa which weren't bad the salsa was actually pretty decent here. The kids pizzas tasted like raw tomato sauce- no flavor whatsoever with cheap cheese. The pulled pork sandwiches were okay- they had very little bbq sauce and pork itself had no flavor. The homemade chips were good that came with the sandwiches. The burger looked juicy and good but nothing really to write home about. My Chicken Florentine flat-bread pizza was supposed to have a garlic olive oil brushed on it. I tasted absolutely ZERO garlic, the chicken that was on there- like others have said was uber bland. When you have cheese, bland chicken and sauteed spinach (which was WAY overly cooked) on flatbread its not that appetizing, I had to put a decent amount of salt and pepper just to help the flavor and even then I went ahead and asked for some ranch dressing to dip it in just to give it flavor. To top it all off this flatbread was almost ten bucks! Crazy!
Anyway I guess if I went back during the spring I would try them again to see what is on the menu only because I believe in second chances but if I were in Tubac during the summer again- nope.
Tubac Jacks is an old main stay for locals and Tubac Visitors who are well informed. Jim, the proprietor has been "in-charge for decades. Of all the items of the menu, I enjoy Jims Ribs the most. Especially after working on the ranch all day. At Jacks you meet historians such as Pete Solares, he even has a street named after his grandfather, or even Michael who owns "Mother-truckers" a large truck brokerage and then there may be, Loco Michael, if he's not 86'd that night! All in all, Tubac Jacks is a great eating emporium and the "people watchin is fun. Join all my friends for some front porch kicken! Gary
Review Source:Poor service- worse food.
Came here with my husband and Mother in law during a trip to tubac (to see new things!). Â There are very few restaurants in Tubac, so this is the one we happened to stop at. It was busy, the entire patio was full so we sat inside. It's self seating, which I am not a huge fan of. Â It took our waiter a good 10-15 minutes to greet us and take our drink order. He didn't seem happy to be there, was short and snippy with us. After waiting forever again to get our drinks and give our food order, we waited forever AGAIN to get our food. And what a disappointment our food was.
I ordered a chicken taco salad- the chicken had NO seasoning and was stone cold, the salad was boring, just lettuce, canned black beans, canned corn and tomatoes with a tiny sprinkle of cheese and that horrible chicken. The only thing that made it edible was the chipotle ranch dressing.
My husband ordered 3 tacos, one chicken, one beef and one pork. The chicken  and pork had no seasoning, the beef was overly salty. They were smothered in a green sauce that was unappetizing and the tortillas were not fresh.
My mother in law was  the luckiest of the three of us, but not by much- she ordered a BBQ chicken pizza. There was nothing exciting or memorable about it. The bbq sauce was obviously from a bottle, and the chicken was the same bland unseasoned chicken from the last two items described. Â
The menu is small with not too many choices.
Our waiter NEVER came back to refill our drinks or check on us. Finally we had to flag him down from accross the room to get our check. Needless to say we will not go back.
I went here with some friends that weekend in January when there was a huge freeze all over the valley...and one of the first things that I loved about Jack's is their huge fireplace!! Â So warm and fuzzy.
Their panko crusted jalapenos were freakin' delicious! Â It's too bad they were extra hot that night. Â I love spicy stuff and can take it pretty well...but we must have got a basket of seed-filled jalapenos, because the older couple behind us had them too and they didn't seem phased. Â My other friend and I however were slathering our tongues with ranch to sooth our burning tongues and throats. Â But darn it, they were soooooooo tasty!! Â
We also had their friend pickles which were also insanely good. Â Yum! Â Crunchy! Â Perfectly fried goodness!
I had their green chile stew wish wasn't as good as I had hoped for. Â The meat was pretty dry and the stew itself was lacking spice and flavor. Â
They did give us a free drink card and half off appetizer card for our next visit...which was perfect, because we'd be back in 2 weeks for another conference.
My family and I really enjoyed Tubac Jack's! We dined on the patio which was really nice on a temperate day. Service was good, the food was fresh and was a good value. My Pop particularly liked the Green Chile Stew. It's for real, definitely hearty, with tons of tender smoked pork, some kick and a unique flavor. Glad we made a good choice!
Review Source:Dear Tubac Jack, Â
Thank you for making panko crusted fried FRESH jalapeños.  Because of you, I was able to laugh at my two friends who ended up having to lather their tongues with ranch dressing using a butter knife.  (I'm pretty sure they wish they had a tub of ranch to...uh...sit in later that evening!)  This New Mexico girl is used to the burn and welcomes it!  They were spicy and tasty and i had to have them in my mouth!
Your burgers and fries were yummy, but they ain't got "Jack" on them there jalapeños! Â
You also have a mighty fine micro brew hefenweisen as well! Â I don't know how to spell hefenweisen...and I'm a teacher! Â It's Friday, grammar has to take a break at some point!
Love,
Ella
Alright, I have a confession: When I think of the Southwest, I think barren desert....and I can't say that hasn't been the case (it has) BUT when I came across this place, packed and wait times on a Friday night, I wasn't sure if it was because Tubac Jack's is outstanding or the only place in a 30 min drive to eat. Â It was neither.
I came during a "Luminaries" festival. Â I still don't know what it was but it brought people to the area. Â I got Green Chicken Chili stew and the Diablo Ribs here. Â The chili wasn't at all spicy much to my disappointment. Â In fact, it was loaded with chicken, beans, and corn and tasted a lot like homemade chicken soup....but that's not I necessarily wanted. Â So I'm not sure whose fault this dish was.
Apparently deep frying ribs makes the fall right off the bones. Â I had "gently tug" with my teeth, but I guess it was pretty true. Â It was a bit to heavily bbq sauce laden, but it was still decent. Â Still not enough spice for my tastes though. Â But I couldn't complain. Â I left content.
We initially went to Tubac to dine at Elvira's, but it was a little too busy, and Jacks seemed a little more chill. Â This place has a Mexican/Western restaurant feel with a California type patio. Â It had a really comfortable feel.
The food was absolutely Fabulous! Â We tried the Ribs, Cheeseburger, Onion Rings, Diablo Sauce, and the Veggie Burger. Â My kids thought the Cheeseburger and Ribs were the best they ever had. Â I can honestly say that the Ribs were the best I had ever had.
The service was great: Â The server was super friendly and my 2 boys really liked him.. Â He talked to them about video games andmade them feel special. Â I think his name was Todd.
We are planning another trip to Tubac just to eat at Jacks.
It's back! After a brief hiatus as the Old Tubac Inn the name is being changed back to Tubac Jack's. We met the owner on our last trip who told us of the latest news.
They have a new menu which looks unbelievable! We shared the nachos and a combo platter with friends. The new from-scratch onion rings are the size of donuts and taste even better. We also tried the Diablo ribs. The meat fell of the bone and the sauce was spicy and flavorful. We saw some salads coming out in a huge shell. Interesting looking and can't wait to try one on our next trip.
They had live music and dancing on the patio and everyone was so friendly. The bartenders are quick and friendly. We met Christene and Oscar. They were both great bartenders.
Friendly service + GREAT food + Live Music = A REALLY good time
Simply AWESOME Tex-Mex food served here. The restaurant uses natural lighting to set a great old southwest mood. Â The burritos and tacos here are amazing and the service is the same. Â I wish the portions weren't so big but I guess if you don't eat everything you have some for later. Â They're quite pricey though, which is why they don't get a full five stars. Â I ended up spending around $35 for a meal for two. Â Ouch!
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