5.99 chicken strip basket Thursday's is the bomb. Also: they have the best ranch in town - I know it sounds weird but trust me! Get the ranch. read more

This is a fun easy going restaurant serving American cuisine; burgers, wings, fries, etc. Prices are average. We were greeted upon entering. Our waitress was very friendly & personable. The food was excellent and you get a lot for your money. I ordered a salad with the buffalo chicken and the left overs made for a good lunch the next day. I want to say this is a definite dining spot when in Lawrence, but I will be honest...there are a ton of dining options on Massachusetts Street! However, if you have a picky eater in the group (chicken strips as a meal staple??) definitely eat here. read more

Average average. Being from Chicago i hold Yaktzes as the gold standard. These r dry and very little taste. Fries shrimp was dry. The beer was cold read more

Grilled chicken salad. Chicken pieces very small bites, maybe3oz of chicken. Teryaki sauce is tasty on it, though there is no Romaine, its an all iceburg lettuce salad with shredded taco cheese... Service is friendly though. read more

This was a great bar and grill. We had tasty chicken tenders, some of the best I've ever had actually. Great fries, Mac and Cheese, and onion rings, too. Maggie R was our server and she was super nice, prompt and very accommodating. Service was great for us! read more

Best wings in Lawrence and the fried macaroni bites are outstanding. If you're in a hurry make sure you order everything you want when you order your first round of drinks - otherwise sit back and relax. Hate to say I've never had the corn nuggets, but will fix that the next time I go. read more

Jefferson's is the first place I ate as a new student in Lawrence. It holds a special place in my heart for that reason. It's the first place I think of when deciding where to take out-of-towners. The environment is unlike any other restaurant on Mass. The beer and burger specials are unparalleled, too. Overall: a great place to dine. My one complaint: They hire the dumbest and slowest girls possible as their wait staff. It's kind of a give and take. Most of them are really hot, but the service is pretty terrible. On a busy night, the hotness doesn't really outshine their ineptitude. I'm being harsh, but I've never had good a good waitress at Jefferson's. Luckily, the environment, specials and food is awesome enough to keep me coming back for more. read more

I try to get to Jefferson's at least once a month on a Sunday for the cheap wings because if there's anything better than Jefferson's wings, it's Jefferson's wings on sale! Their burgers are good, as is pretty much anything else on the menu. They also have my favorite honey mustard ever. The service is sometimes hit and miss, but overall I enjoy myself every time I'm there. If I had one wish it would be that they buy one of the businesses next to them and expand their seating - it gets crowded very quickly and is often confusing since it's a seat yourself kind of thing. read more

I liked the vibe but.... My wings literally had no sauce! None. How does that happen? How do both the cook and the server allow wings without sauce to be served. the sauce IS THE WHOLE F-ING POINT!!! If you are really looking for wings....Try a legit wing place like Wingstop and skip this place. read more

This is my favorite and go-to wing place in town. The food is amazing and the service is even better. Don't be scared away if the place is busy, there is a good reason why... Can't wait for football season to start because the atmosphere is great. Ask for Chelsea she always takes great care of us and is super personable. Between her, and Rachael managing, this place just can't fail. Try the wings! read more

Good food. Came during chiefs game still was seated right away and the sever was quick and efficient. I live in Kansas City, but if ever in Lawrence again. I will recommend this place. Also make sure you walk around the area. Lots of other things to do read more

Service was horrible and the food was mediocre. Not a place that I would recommend, and I doubt we will be going back.

Literally WORST service I have ever experienced. We were excited to come in for wings. We walked in, a server told us to find a seat.. everything seemed fine. It took 7 minutes for someone to bring us menus and take a drink order. If it had been busy, no problem.... I've been a server, I get it. But it was not busy. 5 waitresses standing around, there were 10 tables total and 2 had already paid. Anyway, we decided to stay because wings. Well another almost 10 minutes go by, the server who took our drink order walked by our table twice, and then stood by the bar to chat with the other girls. At this point we had to get up to leave. This is sad, Jefferson's is a restaurant I have always liked coming to, unfortunately I will never be back. read more

Someone used the word "blah" in their review. Exactly. Philly cheesesteak and fries had no flavor. How do you screw up something so simple? My wife's chicken sandwich tasted like a frozen chicken breast. We won't be back. read more

My husband and I visit Jefferson's on a regular basis (perhaps once a month) and have done so for several years. While the food is splendid (note: two stars), the service is TERRIBLE consistently. The waitresses were interchangeable, melancholy, and unfriendly. I would suggest a pick up order, rather than dining in. For example, our most recent visit went like this: When we arrived, no one seated or greeted us. Although several servers passed, none pointed us in the right direction. As we began to wander, a waitress across the restaurant yelled to catch our attention and vaguely pointed to two open seats. When we sat down, a young woman took our drink order, and appetizer. She didn't introduce herself, or say anything like "Hi, how are you?" or even a little small talk. After receiving and drinking/eating our drinks, appetizer, and sitting around idly for some time, it became clear that NO ONE was going to take our meal order. It had been a half hour since we arrived. When I nabbed the attention of a different young server to ask to order, she told me she would grab my server. Ten minutes later, we were asked what we want, again no small talk, nothing, no apologies for the atrocious wait. At this point in time, it was clear word had spread about us asking the woman if we could order, because the next people we encountered were flat out RUDE with monosyllabic responses and no customer service whatsoever. In fact, some mannerisms became plain out catty. This is especially offensive, because we weren't being upsetting at all when we asked the woman if we could order our meal. We weren't even upset ourselves at the time! We just wanted to get our food in so we wouldn't sit there for forever. Throughout the bringing of our meal, we encountered three other waitresses, none of whom introduced themselves or attempted to be friendly. Keep in mind, none of these women wear a nametag, either. To be frank, we left a 10% tip and I have NO IDEA which of the people we encountered will receive it. read more

Awesome food each time I've been in here. This is one of those places that just _is_ Lawrence. Important to note: game nights are exceptionally busy, no matter the sport if it involves KU, Royals, or Chiefs. The place is going to be loud, and you may have a noticeable wait if it's particularly busy. However, it is an authentic Lawrence experience and the food is great. A fun, unique atmosphere and a must go if you are in town. A staple of the downtown scene and a great time. If you're looking for the experience but don't want the noise, keep an eye on game days and try for the lunch hours, as it is a bit slower there. read more

Great burgers, sandwiches, oysters, and peanut butter pie! Good atmosphere for watching a game or simply catching up with friends. Fair prices and great service. read more

A once hidden, but now found, gem sits around the corner of 8th and Lawrence's most attributed street, sandwiched between Noodles and Company and Baan Tai. The protruding red and white awning extends over a couple outdoor tables, and advertises its specialties: wings, burgers, oysters. Because hot wings are undoubtedly my favorite food, I thought this would be a perfect restaurant to review. Jefferson's is a well-known restaurant within the Lawrence, Kansas community, and one that I intend on getting to know more and more throughout my time spent in Lawrence. Walking through the big glass entrance of Jefferson's reveals the city's favorite color combination, red and blue, along with a peculiar choice of interior design. Dollar bills coat the walls, and not your average green tinted paper currency, these are customer-designed originals. I spotted KU related drawings along with the names of customers, sororities, fraternities, and dates visited most frequently while waiting to be seated. The neighborhood restaurant provides a variety of seating options with booths to the left, low tops down the middle, and high tops towards the right. Upon our request, the hostess promptly directs us to a vacant booth. Once we are seated, the naïve and oh so innocent hostess graciously puts the reputation of her current employer into our eager hands. Identifying as what one might call a hot wing connoisseur, my hungry eyes head straight towards the hot wing section of the menu. Variety of flavors- nice. Choice of bone in or out- love to see it. On paper, you're doing it all right, Jeff, but let's see just how great you are in the real world. I'll take the six boneless hot with a side of ranch and bleu cheese, please. About ten minutes after ordering, our tray of food is held high, but our expectations are held higher. As my plate comes closer to me, the spicy smell of the chicken wings fills my nose and my mouth begins to water. I stare at a picture perfect plate of six saucy boneless hot wings, three crisp green sticks of celery, and two creamy cups of ranch and bleu cheese. Well done, Jeff. I decide to try the wings without either dressing first. As I anxiously bite into the first wing, a feeling of instant approval shoots through my head. The sauce to wing ratio is phenomenal, and is the key to making an excellent plate of hot wings. Restaurants tend to underestimate the power and importance of such a ratio, but not Jefferson's- Jefferson's gets it. Although the restaurant Jefferson's may not be a new addition to Lawrence, it is a new addition to my list of go to restaurants when I am craving a plate of $6.99 hot wings. I believe rating Jefferson's with three and a half stars is an accurate and trusted judgment. The atmosphere is casual, but upbeat with people of all ages, and the food is served with exceptional taste. I plan on visiting this newfound gem more frequently, as well as tasting other entrees Jefferson's has on their menu. Lastly, the only request that I have for Jefferson's is to start delivering. read more

Don't eat the BLT - bacon was limp & almost raw - potato salad was just awful - now when you order wings one would expect 5 drummies & 5 outer wings - I got 9 outer wings & 1 drummy - they did taste good. To many other places serve the same thing only better. read more

As a Lawrence native I frequented this restaurant quite a bit before they got shut down. We've been there several times since it re-opened. I think the transformation (new tables, stools, booths, tvs and a face-lift of the floors and bathrooms) has been very successful. It was a bit like walking into the Sitcom TV version of Jefferson's (which was a bit grungy before) upon reopening. The walls are still covered in their trademark decorate dollar bills left by patrons past. The food is pretty traditional, chicken wings and burgers with some Cajun flare. I'm a vegetarian and have three options- a veggie burger, a grilled cheese and a grilled vegetable melt. I usually get the veggie burger, which is good for the fairly unremarkable. My husband has Celiac's disease and frequently eats their chicken wings, which are non-breaded without getting sick. As a celiac eating out at a restaurant there is always a modicum of risk, but these seem safe. Go on Sunday for cheap wings, or check on their beer pitcher specials. Fun place! read more

Great Burgers, and very good service. Due to my very busy schedule I can't eat here weekly, but I still make an attempt to stop by every other month. The sweet potato fries, and the Jefferson Burger are amazing. It's a great place to bring your family or meet your friends before you go to a football or basketball game. read more

Food was great. Service was a little slow. AC was too cold and was freezing while waiting for the food.

Beautiful day to sit outside on Mass with my wife, well, maybe not. Two minutes after sitting down, my wife shifted in her seat, and felt a sharp pain in her rear! I'm usually the pain in her butt, but this time, it was a damaged seat that had poked through her brand-new pants and pierced her cheek. She let out a squeal, and I had to get up and in front of everyone, slowly remove the expanded metal from her ass cheek and pants and save her from the embarrassment as much as possible. The outdoor chairs were a wrought iron style with expanded metal seating. Her chair's seating surface was torn and bent. Now, with a rip in her new pants, and blood from a small wound in her butt cheek, we will have to try and salvage our lunch date. When we told our server, he seemed to not care. After our food came, we flagged down the manager who is wandering aimlessly on the sidewalk, he did remove the chair that we told him was a hazard but offered no real apology. If I were operating a restaurant and some of my equipment damaged a patron, I would be beside myself. Obviously and I college town, it didn't seem to be an issue to them. Oh, The food was average by the way. They didn't charge me for the $4 appetizer, but we did pay for our meal. We are out $70 for a pair of pants and the hassle of a tetanus shot. read more

I was in Lawrence for the Brew to Brew Run with some coworkers. After the run we were starving! We weren't to familiar with the area and came across Jefferson's. Jefferson's has a very relaxed atmosphere. There are a lot of TVs with sports for viewing. There were a lot of college kids there. It IS a college town. Lol. The service was attentive and fairly fast for a busy Sunday. I really enjoyed reading the dollar bills posted on the walls. They are everywhere. We shared corn fritters and fried pickles. They were yummy. I ordered the Jefferson Burger which came with fries and a pickle. The burger was huge. Tasted great. The fries were definitely fresh and plentiful. Draft Beer was only $1.75!!! For first impressions, the first time eating in Lawrence, and probably the last, I am impressed. I would definitely recommend Jefferson's for some casual eating. Nice portions to satisfy your hunger. read more

Pretty good bar food, but I have had a couple experiences with bad service that really turned me off to this place. Perhaps the servers were a little cranky because the place was busy for a KU game, but still a basic level of courtesy must be kept up. read more

Decent place if you want to have wings and beer and watch a game. The seating is kind of awkward and the service sometimes is terrible. The food isn't disappointing if you aren't expecting much. read more

Waitress gave us a free half order of fried pickles because it was our first time. They were excellent. Then had an order of raw oysters that were fresh and went well with a pint of Fat Tire. By the end of all that out cheeseburgers came out and they were excellent. Just finished the second half of my double cheeseburger for lunch today. This is my new favorite place for a casual dinner in Lawrence. Really surprised by all the negative reviews because this place is always packed and we had a great experience. read more

With me being from New Orleans, I am known to be extremely picky about my food choices and my teammates suggested Merchants and Jefferson's. To not be bias towards the restaurant's food I also decided to bring along one of my teammates, Kwamie, who also has not tried Jeffersons. Once we entered the restaurant we noticed that they were having a special sale for today because it was the owner's birthday. The meal was called "the owner's special" which was grilled buttery shrimp, their famous mac and cheese, buffalo wings (6), and another side of your choice. I was in awe when I seen the price of this tasty looking meal all for $11.99. So we both decided to get this meal. It was Sunday at noon and the restaurant was not very busy and we did not have to wait to be seated. The staff seemed friendly and greeted us right when we entered. When the waitress sat us at our table she asked us "What will our drinks be today?" Usually I order a strawberry lemonade when I go to restaurants, but I told her to surprise me with any drink special they have. She told me with a grin that they didn't have a special drink. So I just decided to order a pink lemonade and Kwamie ordered a Sprite. I noticed that inside the place that they had sat us they had sports games playing on five big screens around the restaurant and dollar bills all over the wall. The interesting thing was that these dollar bills weren't just American dollar bills, but they were from other countries as well. I asked the waitress why there were dollars on the walls and she told me that "They were for decorations". It felt like forever but it took 20 minutes to finally get our food. I did not appreciate the wait time because they were not as busy as most people I have talked to say they usually are. When the food came out, the shrimp was crispy, grilled, and glazed with a special sauce making it shiny the like a new diamond ring. The ten jumbo shrimp were piled on one side of the plate. On the other side of the plate; the mac and cheese was white and yellow like the sun in the summer on a california beach. While the wings came separate in a basket. The wings looked like they were going to be as tasty as they looked. When I tasted the shrimp it reminded me of back home when my mother used to take me to my favorite cajun restaurant "New Orleans Food & Spirit" where the shrimp always satisfied my taste buds. The mac and cheese melted on my tongue as if it was a pop sickle. On the other side of the table, I wanted to get my teammate's opinion of the food. He could tell by the expression on my face that the food was pretty good. He tried the mac and cheese first and then told me that it was the best he ever had. Then he had the wings which he couldn't get enough of and when I got up to use the restroom some how my wings had disappeared when I came back. I knew it was him because he was done with his wings when I got up from the table. When he ate the shrimp he couldn't finish it all because by then he had already stuffed his 146 pound body with 2 entrees of chicken wings. Overall, I was satisfied with the experience at Jefferson's and it truly does lives up to its citywide reputation. One thing I took from this experience though was to not take Kwamie Lassiter III to Jefferson's with me anymore or if I do, don't order any buffalo wings. read more

jefferson's has a good mix of good food and a fun atmosphere. The service isn't the greatest but the good food makes up for it

Awesome little dive bar/restaurant right smack in the middle of downtown Lawrence. For all the years I lived in Lawrence this was pretty much my favorite place to eat, I was there the night they opened with the original owners (July 2000 I think, does that sound right?) and these days I make a trek every time I'm in back in town. The signature items are the wings, but some other nice choices would be the fried pickles, the corn dog basket, oysters, and spicy chicken sandwich. A lot of these are foods you don't find on a lot of menus in Kansas. I've never been a huge fan of the burgers personally, but they're nowhere close to terrible. The place went through a down period a few years ago followed by some IRS uh..."tax problems." But with current management and owners the place is back to the old days. The dollar bills on the wall are a fun feature, and the servers are always cute and friendly, even if the service isn't crazy fast. Take note, though: Don't even THINK about trying to get a seat in this place if there is a KU baskeball game going on. Jefferson's has no hostess (no room for a stand anyway) so trying to get a seat on busy days is about as easy as playing pick up sticks with your buttcheeks. read more

Honestly, I never thought this day would come where I could write a paper over the thing I love the most, food. Food has always been my favorite activity, hobby and past time to do whenever I'm not playing sports or playing games. The opportunity to do this made my day I literally already knew the place and what I was going to eat when found out about the project. This place was introduced to me my first summer when I came here to KU by my wide receiver coach when I was moving into my dormitory. I didn't know too many places to eat in Lawrence, since I usually eat basic fast food, so I asked him where is the best burger and wing spot to eat at. This is an answer I will always remember, he said, "I know a perfect place on Mass called Jefferson's." I have been to Jefferson's many times but I never reviewed it. All of the previous times I would go with teammates and just talk and laugh but not pay too much attention about what is going on around me or the service or anything like that. Although I've been before I had to go again to view it from a reviewer's stand point and not just an everyday customer. Since I knew the place, I wanted to make sure I choose the right day and have people to go with me too so I can get the correct review experience. I choose to go on the weekend because usually they are pretty busy and I wanted to see how the waiters act under pressure. I also choose a specific group to go with because I did not want people that liked the same food as I did so we might not order the same thing. That is not what I need out of this experience, I need a variety of food and desserts to taste from to see the quality of multiple dishes. Another thing I did was go during the day so I can see if there were any sanitary issues that you may not see at night due to the lighting. After finally finding a parking spot to get into Jefferson's, we had to walk almost 1 quarter of a mile just to get to the door. I went on the weekend so there was a lot of people on Mass Street going in and out of shops. As we approached the door, the first thing I began to observe was their outside sitting area as we waited to be seated. There were not too many people sitting out there so that kind of tells you a little about it. To go into more detail, the seats and tables from a far did not look that bad but as I got a closer look, I was able to see orange rust on the bottom of the chairs and tables. Along with the rust there were little spider webs on the very bottom of a couple of chairs. Since I have been to Jefferson's before I decided when it was our turn to be seated I asked to be sat outside since I have never experienced it. The wait to be seated did not take that long even though there was a couple of people in front of us. As we passed through the inside of the restaurant to get to our seats the first thing that caught my eye was the wall on the right as I entered. It was covered in dollar bills and signed in colorful markers by all the students, parents and children that put them up there. Seeing that made me feel the comradery between the customers and the employees. Each one of those dollars posted up there had nothing but good comments and positive things to say. As we sat down a servant immediately came and gave us menus and asked for our drinks. After we gave him our drink orders we instantly looked at the menu to see what we were getting because we all were starving. The menus we were provided were laminated and fairly clean. The first thing that caught my eye on the menu was the exotic burger choices. I have never seen or heard of the way they put certain toppings on burgers. I was very interested in the way they did this with their burgers so right then and there I knew what I was ordering. I didn't want everyone getting the same thing so we ordered the aloha burger, oyster Rockefeller, and the buffalo shrimp basket. We also ordered an appetizer, I didn't want it to be something I have had before so I went out on a limb and order fried mushrooms. Of course the appetizer came out first and I regretted us ordering it. I never thought I could hate the taste of something so bad, the smell, texture and the flavor was so nasty as I was eating it. I thought it would taste better by dipping it in ranch but it only made it worst because the flavor of ranch and mushrooms do not mix very well. The waitress that was helping us was dressed very casual, she had on short jean shorts with her Jefferson's shirt tucked in with black converse on. She was very nice but did not have a distinct personality, it was like she was a robot. She did not ask or say anything out of what she was required to say as a waitress. What I mean by that is she would say the basic things like "do you guys need a refill", "what is your order" and "are you done with that". I do not know if she was new to the job or if she was just one of those people to follow the rules all the way down to a T. Our food finally came out and we all were read read more

Some people would say that you shouldn't take food advice from the type of person that spends their free time writing reviews about restaurants but I write this review because I really, really want this place to be better. It's got a nice vibe, friendly staff, cheap drinks, plenty of TVs and for that type of setup.. it does well. But the food.. the food is SO. BAD. Now full disclosure, I've never gotten the wings which a lot of people say they're good at doing so maybe that's what I'm missing out on but the things I've ordered over the last handful of trips have been so bad that I felt compelled to sign up for a Yelp acct to write a review. Why I've gone back more than once is because my friends like the cheap drinks and a place to watch a game. I ordered an appetizer of cheese fries for our table and not only did they come out partially cold, but the cheese was somehow worse than the nacho cheese you get at movies and sporting events. It was as though they'd liquefied that kind of cheese you spray out of a can and heated it up. I don't know how you mess this up. Just go buy some cheddar cheese in a bag from a grocery store and melt it on top of the fries. Would have been a hundred times better. The burger I got was a mockery of a burger. Again, how do you screw these things up? No joke, I'd have been pissed if this was a dollar burger from McDonalds. It tasted as though it'd been sitting out to dry in the sun for an hour and that in turn made the flavor of everything just bleh. I'm not a foodie or one to get off on putting people down but my hope is that this place turns itself around and just has decent bar food. I'm not asking for much here. I haven't eaten at any of these places in years but if you went to Applebees or Chilis or whatever generic place like that.. that's the kind of food you should find at Jeffersons. But the food I got served here would seem poorly served out of a concession stand at a highschool football game in Podunk Town, TX. Jefferson's is a chain so chances are, they can't change anything about quality but man.. I hope they step it up. As I type this, a commenter to the right brings up the crucial point that just 10, 20, 50 yards in different directions you have exponentially better food at the same price. The Burger Stand at The Casbah. Rudy's. Ladybird Diner. La Parilla. Zen Zero. Granted these are food places of varying types so if you want bar food to watch a game.. some of those restaurants aren't qualifiers but I'd really, really just stick to drinking here. Quickly eat at one of the dozens of places on Mass and then head over for some cheap Coors but man.. Jefferson's.. at least try a little. read more

Jefferson's is the best place to eat on Mass. Street! It has great food for anybody! The atmosphere is very laid back and fun. Every time my family comes to Lawrence we always end up at Jefferson's, and It is a must stop when friends visit to show them my favorite places in Lawrence. read more

Jefferson's Restaurant is the place to be on Mass Street! They have such a great option of menu items that my friends and I can always find something we all want. The fried pickles and mac and cheese bites are my favorites! The service is also one of the best in Lawrence! The servers always make me feel welcome and are really friendly. If you are looking for a good time with a great atmosphere I recommend stopping into Jefferson's! read more

Tired and hungry we hit the right spot with this place! I got Fried oysters and man were they good! Staff was great i loved how one of the first words our waitress said was we have 2 dollar beer draft specials! The wife and i were like sweet this is our kinda place! She loved all the dollar bills on the wall i wish we would of left one.... I would recommend any body traveling through Lawrence stop here! read more

Easily one of my favorite places to visit when looking for a nice downtown eatery that's not too pretentious. I would recommend this place even on a game night if you can get a table. I have never received poor service and the food has always been pretty darn good as me and my family have left wanting to come back every time read more

Recently went for the first time in a long time. For one the place doesn't have the same "alive" feeling and now has a very blah feel to it. The chicken wings arrived with no taste at all. When asked for some sauce (to actually have flavor), was charged for sauce that should have been on in it the first place! For two $5 kids meals had to pay an extra $2 for kids drinks, which anywhere else the drinks would have been included, making a poorly made kids meal $7, that they didn't like anyway since it too was tasteless. So a waste of money and bad experience with the nickel and diming. In Lawrence there's too many other good places to go, and definitely not shortage of chicken places. Hard to review them since you get negatively contacted for an honest review as per their response on another site. You can almost assume the reviews on those sites are not honest due to the harassment you get after leaving it. read more

Jefferson's is full of false advertisement. To begin with all appetizers are frozen, like the corn nuggetts, breaded mushrooms, onion rings, none of that is specially battered , or prepared it comes froze thru Sysco Foods. The jumbo shrimp, are not jumbo, but large. The wing sauces are mostly franks hot sauce and butter, of cattlemans bbq or sweet and sassy sauces. There is nothing special about this place. The salads are mostly lettuce, with little toppings. The grilled chicken breast are good. They do marinate those in an italian dressing, which has a good flavor. They attempt to be like a hooters, hiring mostly young unexperienced servers, in short shorts, like that appeals to everyone. The chili, baked beans, slaw, pasta salad, all canned and prepackaged. The pies all frozen except for the peanut butter, which never tastes or looks the same depending on who makes it. People that eat here often, don't know what good food is. As far as the Management, you never see one and I would imagine they can't keep a good one, due to the fact they have no benefits. Really, I don't know how they keep the doors open. read more