Cancel

Open app

Search

John J Jeffries

4.3 (379 reviews)
PriceyNew American
Closed 5:00 pm - 9:00 PM
Updated 3 months ago

John J Jeffries Photos

Business Info

JOHN J JEFFRIES ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Upscale
Good for groups
Outdoor seating

You might also consider

Recommended Reviews - John J Jeffries

Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
Yelp app icon
Browse more easily on the app
Review Feed Illustration

Reviews With Photos

Lori K.

I love this place! Amazing amazing farm to table options. I've had the chicken twice and was not disappointed.

Christmas decor inside
Mary H.

We booked a reservation for a business end of year dinner and we had such a lovely time! The process was relatively smooth to email and get all of our options picked. The food was so tasty and well presented. There was more food than we needed and everyone left comfortably stuffed. There was a great selection of drinks, even non alcoholic drinks. We were seated in the art gallery and there was such great energy in there. Would definitely come back here again!

Chicken Paté
Lynn D.

amazingly high quality and fresh food! you can taste how the animals are pasture raised from nearby lancaster farms. ambiance included candlelight. i wish they gave something for a special occasion. i went for my birthday but they did not even ask "is there an occasion tonight" which other upscale restaurants do...

Pecan Meadows Pond Raised Duck
Alan L.

A wonderful farm to table option. The cocktails are delicious - creative and tasty. The locally sourced foods are well prepared. The plates have rich flavors - the duck was particularly good. The multiple rooms are comfortable with good acoustics. The service is helpful and attentive. There is a 3.8% service charge if you pay with a credit card.

Peach Bourbon
Bill S.

3 1/2 stars and I have to get this out of the way, the waiter charged me an extra $4 for a coffee cup? Brah, uncool man. My wife & I are staying in the hotel and decided to dine at John J Jeffries which is attached to the hotel. We are seated and I'm feeling the vibe. Good cocktails in a nice setting while being served dishes using local ingredients. I dig that, let's get the party started. I ordered a peach Old Fashioned and a salad with smoked trout. OUTSTANDING! Loving the fish and my cocktail was strong, so far all checks in the awesome column. The waiter comes over and reads the specials. I ask, what steak is being served tonight? In a serious tone he says, That would be chuck sir. I almost spit out my drink and laughed! Um, I'll have the wild caught shrimp and grits. My plate comes to me and it looks great. I take a bite of the shrimp. It was frozen and defrosted, the shrimp has a weird water taste. *chef, are you tasting the food you're preparing? This shrimp should not of been served to me. No bueno. I push the shrimp to the side and I'd like a cup of coffee. I'm told it comes in a French Press, cool! The dessert we chose to share was Chocolate pate, delish! I pour myself a second cup of coffee and noticed there was a small amount left in the press pot. I ask the waiter for another cup for my wife. Not a problem sir. The bill comes and there is a $4 charge for the second cup? What the HELL! I paid for the entire press pot, if I drank 4 cups of coffee I'd be up for two days! How I see it, I paid for the press pot. Was I charged a sharing fee? I left pissed, my dinner entree was off and my coffee wasn't shareable. I'm done with this review

We had dinner last night, and the service was amazing. We are thankful to Abby who was our server. Her recommendations were great. We also tried their cocktails and loved the Penicillin and Whiskey Sour. We started with beef tartare, pork cracklings, and bone marrow. Beef tartare was a 10. However, bone marrow could be better. Also, the entrees were Lamb Sirloin and NY Strip. Honestly, we were impressed with the strip but we can't say the same thing about Lamb sirloin. Both dishes have the same sauce which was a little disappointing.Overall, we had a great experience at dinner in Lancaster.

Lamb chops

Everything we had they made to perfection . Delightful potato parsnip soup - absolutely marvelous lamb chops with butternut squash puree and roasted potatoes , and excellent ribeye steak . For dessert the coconut tart was absolutely to die for .our best restaurant dinner in recent memory

Very peaceful and quaint. The server was excellent very knowledgeable and make good recommendations. The manager stopped by and offered her support. She was very pleasant and friendly. Now comes to the food you can't say a bad word about it. Started with a basil lemon drop cocktail highly recommend. First course was beef carpaccio which basically melted in your mouth. And for the entree I had the Schaefer farm Red deer entree. Was not gaming cooked to perfection, medium rare. Was accompanied by risotto cooked with dear heart broth. Had to be the best risotto I have ever eaten.

Lamb Shoulder - this was alright, a bit chewy but good lamb flavor
Li W.

Five of us had: 1. Seasonal Salad - fresh and light, great starter to share 2. Grass-Fed Dry Aged Beef Tartare - delicious and highly recommend! Perfectly seasoned. 3. Local Grass Fed Beef Liver - the texture was perfect so if you're into liver, I would highly recommend. 4. Vegetarian Dosa - we got this as an appetizer to share. I saw a few reviews recommend this so we got it but it was underwhelming. 5. Darhower Farm Grass-Fed Dry Aged Beef NY Steak - this was underwhelming and was a very mediocre and wa chewy ~9oz steak ($36) 6. Fisherman's Stew - had risotto and very good portion size. Good flavor too if you like seafood. 7. Lamb Shoulder - this was alright, has a very good lamb flavor but was a bit chewy. Definitely wasn't melt-in-the-mouth. We got Long Island Iced Teas and a Lavender Sidecar. The Long Island Ice Teas were delicious and inexpensive at $9.75. The Lavender Sidecar was $10, I think, and wasn't as delicious as the Long Island Iced Tea. Parking lot available!

Lavender sidecar with chefs selection of focaccia bread.

See all

11 days ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Zack G.
41
1847
1957

7 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 1
Photo of Lori K.
564
381
2005

8 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 1

23 days ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Mary H.
261
341
1563

1 year ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Alan L.
95
1268
2298

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Bob W.
2
47
29

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 18
Thanks 1
Love this 16
Oh no 1

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

The best fried oysters! Homemade corn and blueberry ice cream with a shortbread cookie. Unbelievable!!! Bartenders were a pleasure.

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Rose D.
0
40
16

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Li W.
126
692
1529

4 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Great food and cocktails. Impeccable service. Love the atmosphere and vibe. Can't wait to see what's new on the menu.

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 4
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

6 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Lou D.
0
25
2

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0
Photo of David K.
24
77
116

4 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 1

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Eric N.
10
435
241

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Alan D.
6
107
7

4 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

Page 1 of 10

Ask the Community - John J Jeffries

Is this place gluten free?

The menu is all small & large plates. I'd check the menu on their website & see what you think. They are locally sourced & seasonal so offerings change. I'm sure the chefs can accommodate. Or I'd suggest calling and asking in advance. My niece ate… Read more

Is it good for kids?

Your normal active child probably not. A very well behaved child you could sit at a table away from the bar area

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

You might also consider

On Orange - Peasant omelet with mint lemonade and coffee.

On Orange

(363 reviews)

$$

Introduction:…read more Representing 2018 in alphabet series, O is for On Orange. The letter O only has 5 of the 8 possible years represented in the alphabet series. Interestingly, 2 of them are in Lancaster County, PA. This was prior to my parents moving to Lancaster in 2021. In March 2018, my girlfriend of that time & I took a day trip to Lancaster. I lived in Montgomery County, Maryland (near DC) at the time, and we were meeting up with a friend who was living in New Jersey kind of in the middle. We agreed to meet at On Orange at 12 PM on that Sunday, March 25 since we were driving from far away, and I think they were doing a day trip too, but possible they stayed a night in town, not sure. Also, On Orange closes at 1 PM too, so even more reason to be punctual. My g/f of then was notoriously late & took a long time to get ready. She was taking too long to get ready, and I knew we needed to leave if we even had a chance of making it on time. After a while I said I don't want to do this, but I will leave without you & meet my friend (& his girlfriend). I started the car and texted you have 1 minute to come out, and if you aren't out, I'm leaving without you. My timer reached 0, and I slowly was driving off, but I saw her shuffling with her coat and what have you leaving, so I waited. We got in the car, and I rushed off. If that weren't bad enough, my g/f said we needed to stop at her bank to get cash. Of course, there was none right within route, but saw a location right off I-83 in northern MD, Hunt Valley, but we wasted more time to get off the freeway, for her to go to her ATM, & get back on the freeway when we were running significantly late. I said we are running significantly late as it is, so why are we wasting more time. She claimed in case there was something she wanted to buy in Lancaster, but that was not the primary purpose, but I'll get to that at the end. I was panicking on the significant late, and that the restaurant closes at 1, and I drove above 100 mph at times on I-70, which I think was the only time I've ever gone that fast on 70, and maybe only 4 times ever in my life reaching that speed. Experience with the Restaurant: This is street parking around here, which was free meters on Sunday. We got a decent parking spot a block away. We walked in at 12:50 PM, which was 50 minutes LATE and 10 minutes before On Orange's closing time of 1 PM. My friend & his girlfriend were already done eating. He said that they had their stomach set for eating at 12, and there was pressure to order since it's not a huge place and pretty busy. I was annoyed with my friend for not waiting for us, but I get it because let's be honest, my g/f fault on that one. Server was cordial, and my g/f & I quickly ordered. Food came out quickly. We ate quickly, and my friend & his g/f watching us eat. Food was delicious, and they were quick, but to be fair, they were closing in 10 minutes, so they were motivated to get out of there. I got a pancake & egg dish as I recall. This was a top notch brunch. In spite of the negative experience of being so late because of my g/f, the experience at the restaurant was excellent. Conclusion: After brunch, we looked around downtown, Amish Farm (see my 5-star review of them written in April 2018), etc. and was overall a nice day with the 3 of them albeit very cold. After we left, I took the back road from I-83 all the way back to Germantown, MD where she lived to see something different and to save a little gas too since it's pretty direct going that way. My g/f was complaining about it taking so long getting back. I knew she was meeting up with a friend that night. But what I later realized, she wanted to stop at an ATM that morning really because she needed cash to pay that friend for cannabis that night. So, she disrespected everyone's time for this. I guess on a positive at least she wasn't cheating on me with that guy and really was just for pot. In conclusion, I thought On Orange was top notch, and they were accommodating to our time schedules.

Stopped by on a Tuesday morning and had just the best experience. The owner created us and took us…read moreto the patio. It had a little bit of a magical feel for a Tuesday morning. It was a very intimate space. We ordered an Indian omelet and a peasant omelet. Both were delicious, had there not been more people on the patio we may have licked our plates. The side of sautéed tomatoes with garlic were out of this world.

Horse Inn - Crab roll

Horse Inn

(402 reviews)

$$

Went to the Horse Inn last week and had a really good time. Cool place. You kinda feel like you are…read morein an old horse barn which is actually pretty sweet. They do this mystery beer thing which is just a cheap beer but it's fun and feels on brand for the place. Food wise the beef tips are the move. I would honestly go back just for that. Good spot overall.

This place was BUSY on a Saturday night (a good thing for a restaurant and a good sign for those…read morecoming in for the first time)... we didn't have a reservation, having planned to late, but they do keep tables open for walk-ins and despite being told it was an hour wait (whatever, we knew we ran that risk), we were seated in 15 minutes - Luck, maybe? But awesome all the same! For how busy they were, the server was very attentive and very accommodating as we were yapping away and constantly not ready with our orders so kuddos for the team and putting up with us! I love the mystery beer concept, its not great beer, but being from DC at like $2 a can, I am not passing that up, ever. And a cheap beer with a burger is the perfect combo! On to the burger... I have heard that this is a great burger... and I have to conclude that I agree though it is reminiscent of a Big Mac - just way better ingredients - it has to be the sauce they put on it... Anyway, nice size patty, good amount of toppings and a quality bun (not too soft, not too thick, bread soaks up some of the juices but doesn't fall apart). The mussels were quite excellent as well. It was a Thai curry broth the night we were there and it was drinkable, like soup... we did ask for extra bread... enough said. I am going to take a minute too and praise their spirit free cocktails. THIS IS HOW THEY SHOULD BE MADE. They used bitters, tonics, etc to craft something that tasted like a cocktail but without alcohol which means they were not sickly sugary concoctions, but expertly crafted beverages. Just really great options. All that said though, their espresso martini was one of the worst I have had. Just skip that.

The Greenfield Restaurant & Bar - Filet mignon

The Greenfield Restaurant & Bar

(188 reviews)

$$$

Beautiful restaurant in a historic building and it was decorated nicely for Christmas. Our server…read morewas very informative and checked on us at appropriate intervals. Our party of 4 ordered 3 appetizers: the cheese board, the short rib eggrolls, and the New England clam chowder. The clam chowder had wonderful flavors, but did seem to be lacking in actual clam meat. The PA Preferred cheese board was a nice selection of soft and hard cheeses and paired nicely with the honey, fruit and bread. The egg rolls were excellent and I would have loved to have had an entree that was based around the short rib as it was that good! I ordered the grilled NY strip as my entree. The dauphine potatoes were wonderful with a crisp top and gooey interior. My steak, however, was a bit disappointing. It was cooked to the requested medium-rare temperature but did not have much flavor on it's own. The bordelaise sauce was very good and had a nice acid balance. The steak was just not seasoned as well as you'd hope. There was also a lot of sinew that was difficult to work around. My husband ordered the scallops on special that evening. The scallops were cooked to a perfect level, but the rice had bits that were hard & undercooked. I was expecting top-level food as the head chef/owner served not one, but three US Presidents. The cocktails and wine selection were a high point. We had a regular old fashioned and a blackberry margarita that were absolutely divine! We split a bottle of the Primarius pinot noir from Oregon and all enjoyed that as well. Overall, it was a pleasant dining experience.

Service was great. Ambiance was charming. I was expecting more with the food. The steak was cooked…read moreas asked, but the potatoes were under cooked. Cocktails were delicious. Dessert, we ordered the fresh lemon curd tart with fresh berries and the tart was undercooked. Overall, great place for drinks but the food was just okay. Was expecting more.

John J Jeffries - newamerican - Updated May 2026

Loading...
Loading...
Loading...