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I came here on a suggestion from a coworker who had an awesome steak. Our first impression of the place included a drunk old man slouched outside against the cinder-block wall moaning about how horrible his life is. After a rude encounter with the waiter and a 30 minute wait we get our food. Oh, that steak my coworker suggested, it is not available as a lunch item. When the meal winds down I am disappointed that I missed the awesome steak, unimpressed with the food and service, and not thinking I would ever make it back here. My son then offers us a bite of his hamburger. So I took a bite... AND THE WORLD STOPPED.
Best. Hamburger. Ever.
We have been back several times, waited an hour for a table, and enjoyed every moment. I finally got that good steak and it is good but man, that hamburger is just too awesome to pass up.
Yeah it can be a long wait at night and the service can be lacking at times. But one night when we were here, the host went out of his way to set up a table and seat a party, take their orders, and serve them while the place was short of waiters. He did it because one of the members in the party was handicapped and would not endure the long wait was well as most folks. You earned an extra star for that one Mr Host Guy.
You'll notice most of the negative reviews have to do with the wait time, the service, the level of luxury... its true, you'll wait, you'll not be fawned over, and you wont feel like you're snooting it up in Manhattan.
This is a real life cowboy steakhouse! I've been eating here for about 25 years, since my uncle Buck took me there on my visits to the central coast.
I always order the spencer. Its amazing, i have eaten at fancy schmancy steakhouses all over the country, and this is as good or better than those. I dine out for the food, and the food at Jocko's is amazing. Your food will be cooked over a live oak fire in a pit that looks like someones back yard... you may be seated on picnic style benches next to folks you probably dont know... and yeah, you may wait a while to get your table... but its worth it! I mean, think about it - this little steakhouse in the middle of nowhere is always packed... locals and travellers alike... consdier why... the food is amazing and the price is great... honestly, about half what you might pay at a five star steak house... dont be swayed by the fru fru elitists... strap on the ol' feed bag and enjoy a great meal!!
The reviews: Read up! Get there at the optimal times people list. Order the Spencer.
The hype: BELIEVE IT!
The wait: Inevitable. Reservations only give you a slight advantage. The more time to salivate. Go grab a seat and beer at the bar!
The steak: Devour it! Charred on the outside, heaven on the inside. Eat it up, burnt fat on the sides and ALL! What a delectable, tender, bloody, beefy slab of meat. For those who order anything else besides Medium Rare: for shame!
The table conversation: Silent!
Let's try not to think outside the box here (the box being STEAK). The ribs aren't anything too special. And if they give you the choice of rainbow sherbet at the end of your meal, be forewarned that it's more like bubblegum...
Everybody loves beef. Really. You know why vegans are so miserable all the time? Of course you do. You'd be miserable too if all you ever ate was twigs and leaves and grass clippings. Your best dreams at night are for meat - red meat. Hey, it's just like Robert Mitchum told us, "Beef, it's whats for dinner." Only, it's not just for dinner, it's for lunch, and I guess it's for breakfast too. Well, maybe pork is what's for breakfast, you know, bacon. Why, because bacon is yummy! And I guess it's for lunch as well, you know, BLT's or maybe a bacon cheeseburger. But beef, it's definitely for dinner. Of course, you could have beef for lunch......
Heck, I've had steaks everywhere from a palazzo cafe in Florence, a bistro in the Latin Quarter (with frites!!!), even a great steak in Brazil. The only place I haven't had a good steak was in England. Why do the Brits have to boil everything? A frickin steak for crying out loud. And don't get me started on the bacon. It's not even really bacon, it's Back Bacon, you know, Canadian Bacon. Ham. You want to know why the British Empire crumbled? That's right, no real bacon. It's true, you can look it up.
What the hell was I talking about anyway?
Oh yeah, beef. So it's my trip to the Central Coast, and that means only one thing. Well two things, only I just saw Noah and his ark floating by so there will be no sitting in the wet sand and hurricane force winds and rain on Pismo Beach. No, what my trip to the Central Coast means is one thing plain and simple: Santa Maria Oak Pit BBQ. That's right: beef.
Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Beefapalooza 2009! One week of pure beef bliss on the Central Coast. This place is blessed with some of the best beef places in the state: The Far Western Tavern (Guadalupe, one street, no stop lights), Alex BBQ (right off the freeway in Shell Beach), the Hitching Post (haven't been there - yet), and the Big Dog of Santa Maria Oak Pit BBQ: Jocko's.
Jocko's is in Nipomo. Nipomo is in the middle of nowhere. Jocko's is in the middle of the middle of nowhere. You couldn't find Jocko's if you were looking for it. Except for the parking lot. The parking lot is huge, and it's always full. I swear, no matter what day of the week, or what time of the evening, the place is always full. It's like the entire town of Nipomo is here every night.
So, a fitting place to start our Beefapalooza tour. Jocko's has been around in one form or another since the late 1800's. And it looks it. The interior was out of date before it was even installed. So what?
Remember, it's all about the beef. And it is. You get a huge amount of food: salsa, crackers, baked beans, veggies (not real veggies, just black olives, pickles, carrot sticks, and celery sticks, you know, my kind of veggies), bread, potatos, dessert, and some thing else.....oh yeah, BEEF! Not any old cut of meat, the absolute best cut of beef, the glorious New York Steak. Take if from me, the tastiest cut of meat. Oh sure, Filet Minon is nice, if you're a girl, or a girly man. But it's not the best. New York Steak is the best. The TWENTY-TWO ounce NY Steak. Twenty two, double dueces, two two, two times eleven. That's like what, four pounds or so?
AND I FINISHED IT ALL. Sorry doggies, no leftovers for my friends. If the Big Coronary in the Sky comes to get me tonight, it will be a honored death. The beef, in a word, incredible. Tasty, juicy, tender, flavorful. You don't need no stinkin' fancy restaurant with white linen tablecloths. Hell, I sat in the hallway between the dining room and the kitchen just so I could get a table. Remember, its all about what? The beef! D'oh!
You have got to try this place. Is it worth driving five hours from Shaky Town to have dinner at Jockos? Hell, that's basically what I did.
I give it FIVE (22 oz) NY Steaks. Check it out!
Oh yeah, and another accomplishment: I hit TD (total depth) on my per Diem today! $50. The first time ever. Cool.
This place should be in Texas as everything is bigger in tx. Their steaks are huge. Let me repeat. HUGE. A small is the size of my head. And grilled to perfection.
While the interior and exterior leave a LOT to be desired, Jocko's knows how to feed people of all ages. But when I was there, Jocko's was feeding lots of seniors (I went to dinner early after a day of wine tasting). The place was so dark, which masked the 1970's decor. One old man had a flashlight to read the menu! Waitstaff was cordial, straight shooters.
Don't get anything but the steaks. I had a small Spencer, which looked like a filet but was a thick delmonico. Buttery garlic bread - also thick slices accompanied the yummy steak with a loaded baked potato and baked beans. Yes baked beans!
The meal started also with a normal salad dousted in dressing.
Simple. Good. Supersized food.
It is out in the middle of nowhere, but it's darn good. It's a hidden gem. If you are ever hungry and don't know where to go on your way up to San Francisco or anywhere going North you should stop by Jocko's, but only if you are unafraid of steak and a food coma.
You start off with a relish tray and cracker basket. Then a salad in a bowl totally drenched in dressing and a beet. Get the Spencer, go for the large. Try the pork ribs. You also get a side and texas toast. The enormous meal ends with an ice cream sundae or spumoni. You can get all of this for $30
I highly suggest making reservations, because there is absolutely nothing to do but sit and wait and drink at the bar. You can stare at the pit, but the wait can be 2 hours long.
Steaks as big as your face. The steaks here are enormous and delicious! They are cooked over a giant BBQ pit that you can catch a glimpse of from the outside and come out perfect and tender. At most places there's an inverse relationship between quality and quantity, but not here. I ordered the filet mignon and it was the largest filet I had ever seen and right up there with the best of them.
The steaks come with a salad, beans, and choice of side. The sides are pretty standard fare -- baked potato, etc. -- but they are delicious. And I like the fact that you're not charged a separate amount for them. Before your meal, there will be a plate of pickles served which is a nice touch.
Service was excellent. The waiter we had was attentive but not overbearing.
I'd recommend making a reservation as when we went the place was packed and there appeared to be a line (for good reason). Fortunately, we had a reservation and were promptly seated.
The one surprising thing was the venue -- I was expecting old school steakhouse or something a little more upscale, but this is a very casual dining establishment. It felt almost like cafeteria style seating, but with top notch food. Definitely no pretentiousness here.
After months of anticipation this meal finally came to fruition. It was excellent and worth every bit of the nearly three hour drive from Los Angeles. Jocko's will be my new pit stop when making the drive north or south along the CA coast.
Oh wow this place is crazy. It was recommended by a few people in our group that had been there before, but they warned us before we left: It looks like a dive, but the food is well worth it. And they were right. The place is nothing to look at, it's old, and it's tacky. But the first tip-off about the food was the full parking lot. The place was packed.
After we were seated we looked at the menu and saw that the main BBQ items include enough food for an army. You get a salad, baked beans, a relish tray, garlic bread, your main course with a potato, and THEN you get dessert. And it was very reasonably priced for all of that. Oh, and there was a bowl of salsa on the table, but no chips, so I am assuming you are supposed to dip the little breadsticks and crackers in it?? That was strange.
Anyway, I ordered the small sirloin (it was not very small, can't imagine the large one) and it was cooked perfectly and had a lot of flavor. And since I am more of a starch-eating kind of girl, I was in love with the garlic bread and my baked potato. Yum. One of the ladies in my group ordered the pork chop, and unless you have seen them with your own eyes, you cannot even imagine how big they are. And when I say "they" I mean it comes with two. It was an entire pig on her plate. But she loved it and so did everyone else that helped her eat them.
Service was good, our server split all our checks which was great and for a large group everything went pretty smoothly.
I would come back, and would recommend it to others too.
Nothing beats a 20 ounce rib-eye (unless it weighs more than a 20 ounces). The quantity of complimentary food with the steak is amazing. With a salad, potato, large peice of steak, beans, little crackers, and ice cream, how can you go wrong?
The meat was cooked to perfection with the blood still oozing out. There was just enough fat on the meat to provide that mouth-watering touch and delicious taste.
I have no problem with the food here except for the wait and service (maybe it was because I sat facing the BBQ range).
This place came highly recommended and although I didn't know what to expect, I definitely wasn't expecting what I got. When I walked into this very local towny bar/restaurant, I knew I wasn't in LA anymore. We sat at the bar for a few minutes and heard the rantings and suggestions of a local towny who was very familiar with wine county. We made it to our seats and were immediately served with a cup of salsa, crackers and eventually a pickle plate. Weird ... right? However weird, it was good. I ordered the Spencer (i recommend) which came perfectly medium and with a baked potato and some of the best garlic bread. I was waaaayy too stuffed to receive the complimentary dessert.This was a very surprisingly quality meal especially for the very low price of about $23 a person.
Holy meat juice.
The food this place to offer is amazing. And with "steak house" in its name, I'm not sure why anyone else would order anything else besides the steaks... seriously...
What cracks me up is how TINY the drink glasses are. giggle.
Don't use the bathrooms at the front of the restaurant. I'm a small girl and could barely fit into the stall. Take the secret passageway to the back. (Ok ok, not so secret.)
Filet is wonderful. I've gotten it the majority of the times I've eaten here.
Such good meat! My favorite is the spare ribs, but their steaks are always great too! I have heard their sea food is even excellent, but always look forward to the beef or pork that I have never tried it! Went for breakfast once and their biscuits were awesome! But their dinner is still my fave! Getting it to go is the best way...you get all the fix ins' without having to wait for a table...and let's just say, they are not know for their ambiance! hahaha
Jocko's my favorite place for a steak. The extra cut filet is huge. Tender and cooked to perfection and tasty. I will drive here 3 times a year from gardena which is 175 miles away.
Everything Jason V. wrote down below was exactly what happened to me, exactly...I walked in on Sunday at 4:40 pm...a two-hour wait, can't eat in the bar but you can sit "in the breezeway"...I checked the breezeway, no thanks...since it was a near 2-hour wait, yet a majority of the tables were empty, I left....I'll catch it next time but I'll call it in from Orange County first...
yeah pretty much what everyone else has said:
-steaks are HUUUGE for the price you pay
-looks all booboo from the outside, heck even the inside. but DON'T JUDGE! it's goooood.
-you can watch the dudes cook your steak. makes you antsy, though.
-juiciness=godliness. ok not really. but juicy is good.
-comes with sooo much stuff! i thought crackers and salsa was an odd combo but HEY it tastes good so why not. thought the garlic bread was blah though.
-pickles are yummy! i hate pickles but these ones are good.
so sad that this place is so far from me (sf bay area/san diego). BUT on my drives back and forth i will for suuure swing by again!
my favorite steak house!!! spencer steak is the most flavorful steak i have ever had.
crowed? yes
expensive? yes
long wait? yes
worth it? absolutely!!!!!!!!!
breakfast here is also a treat!
Gave it 3 starts for Lunch. It's ok, but nothing from the BBQ.
*** THE TIME TO GO IS FOR DINNER ***
There was a long line when I walked out around 5pm. When I came in at 3pm, there was a crowd.
It's a real BBQ place, complete with flies inside and all...
Gonna have to come back for dinner.
The lunch is good stuff at a good price, i know why it's popular. But you definitely have to come back for dinner.
Had their Tri Tip sandwich.
The best steak i've ever found. We've eaten here a 100 times and the service and quality is always top notch. Have a glass of wine and enjoy the excellent steaks, ribs, and chops.
Dinner is a million times better than lunch because the usually don't fire up the oak for lunch.
My personal review is 4.5, but I give an actual rating of 4.0 for the following reasons:
1. Always a LONG wait (went there once on a Friday with no reservations and nearly waited 2.5 hours)
2. Decor has not changed since 1968 (NOT kidding)
3. Anything aside from their steaks is just average.
But seriously, out of a perfect score of 5, these guys get a 6 if this was a review just on the steak alone.
So, to be short, if you're a MEAT & 'TATERS kind of person, this IS the place to be. Make reservations, have a snack before you go (seriously, this is NOT a place you want to go hungry unless you're there on a week night), grab a seat at the bar, make some conversation with their humbly down-to-earth no-fuss, no-primp, friendly staff, and enjoy your beef when it comes.
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For those of you used to the high-end steak joints:
- This is NOT Flemming's, Laury's, or Mortons. This is a place for one thing and one thing only: well-prepared good, simple, FOOD (and no fancy attitude from staff members).
- Don't wear anything fancy, unless you want your nice clothes smelling like Oak Pit Grill.
- Stretchy-waist pants (girls, bust out those maternity dresses) are recommended.
- Be prepared for a long wait. Make reservations, but even so, be prepared to wait at least half an hour on the weekends (and yes, that would be WITH reservations).
- Order the large Spencer. It's a 20-oz Ribeye for $27.
- Their Filet-minon is not the best, but it's QUITE good, for a very good deal.
- Their Flat Iron Steak is alright, you can mimic this at home
- New York Steak: never ordered this myself, but I've heard good things
- Their Sirloin Steak is alright, but you can get this elsewhere for slightly better price. Get the Spencer.
If you're NOT a red-meat person, I recommend their chicken dinner. It's tender, juicy, tastes just as great as the steaks do (yeah, we're not kidding you when we say "you can TASTE the oak pit!"), and it comes with garlic bread, your choice of rice, or potato (baked/mashed/fries) and a small side of ravioli. If you're one with a lighter appetite, just order the half-chicken (just the chicken) and steal your table-mate's starch source. You won't miss much of the beans or ravioli; they're nothing special. My friends have ordered the ribs and shared with me and I agree with the general sentiment of my fellow Yelpers that it is a bit on the drier side.
The people rating 3.0 or below in any of their reviews must have made the first cardinal mistake of either going there for lunch and expecting the grill to be fired up or the second, went there hungry and was too starving and pissed off to appreciate anything by the time they got seated. I've been to GREAT restaurants and have ALWAYS had a bitter experience when I go way too hungry and had to wait for a table for too long.
My husband and I had just attended the Michael Jackson Memorial service at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. We were driving back to the San Francisco Bay Area along Highway 101. We decided we would stop by the Neverland Ranch in Los Olivios on the way back.
We were really hungry by the time we arrived at Jocko's at almost 9 pm. We walked into the bar and ordered beer and wine, and we just got comfortable when our table became available.
EVERYONE there told us to order the Spencer steak. We got the huge one - 21 oz. and split it. We also got the "side deals" for $6 each, which included a relish tray, Texas Toast, baked potato, beans, salad, salsa, and ice cream for dessert.
From the first bite of steak, all we could do was moan about how good it was. The meat was juicy, and the flavor of the woody sizzle and smoky oak flavor made this one of the best steaks I have ever eaten anywhere. The Texas Toast came in handy to soak up all the beef juice. I had no idea beef could taste so good.
Everything was delicious ... the buttery toast, the loaded potato, the relish tray, the beans, and the thick salsa was a lovely addition to the steak (if you dared contaminate that luscious beef with anything at all.) The creamy Spumoni ice cream was the perfect ending.
There was so much food, we even took a plate home (steak, potato, beans, relish tray, and salsa.) The steak was still fantastic the next day when we reheated it. That wonderful oak flavor was still there.
The extra-large Spencer steak and the two sides came to a total of $39.00 and we had two meals out of that (bar drinks not included in that price.) The service was very friendly and very attentive.
The oak-grilled, sizzling Spencer steak is well worth a day trip. It's the best steak you will ever put in your mouth. Period.
We love this place! If you like steak or pork you won't find a better one than here. We live in Camarillo and make it a point of visiting Jocko's at least once or twice a year.
Pulling up to Jocko's feels like arriving at Bingo Night at the Eagles Hall. It's beige cinder block building and requisite gravel parking lot give it immediate street cred as a long-time fixture in central coast food culture; it's been there for decades, and has the decor and clientele to prove it.
Jocko's has been doing the same thing for generations--grilling meat, Santa Maria style, over red oak and serving it with house-made salsa, toasted/buttered french bread, pinqinto beans (pink beans) and a vinegary salad. It is not trendy, and it has refused to change with the times--not an ounce of balsamic anywhere-- and it reminds you of restaurant food in the '60s & '70s; that is comforting to me.
The steak is very good, not the best I've had, but unique in that it stays true to local tradition, and has a great wood/smokey flavor. The sides are mediocre, but good (again) in a comfort-food sort of way.
Jocko's is VERY popular. Go early @ 4:30, and you might get to eat by 5:30 or 6:00...Do not go at lunchtime as the wood grill is not used for lunch menu items.
Call me crazy but I was not crazy about this place, at all.
We drove about two and a half hours to taste the famed steak. We arrived around 1pm and entered the small town of Nipomo. There is a large white wooden church across the street, and then there is Jocko's. Many pick-up trucks in the parking lot, big bellied guys and extra- large ladies in ponytails milled around the dusty exterior.
The building is constructed of painted tan cinder blocks. You walk inside and a sign says, "seat yourself". The decor consists of knotty pine and more cinderblock. Drab flowered curtains and dull light barely illuminated a mostly older crowd of "folks" who looked and sounded like they just came from a John McCain reunion. A sign hanging on the wall: "We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone".
We both ordered steaks, but were told that the BBQ steaks, the famous ones, are only served at dinner. So we took our chances and ordered the regular grilled steaks for $16 a piece. This includes garlic bread, a salsa dip, saltines, and a salad.
The salad arrived, consisting of one lettuce: limp romaine. And a corn syrupy Italian dressing.
Service is very nice. I have nothing bad to say about the servers, who also speak with a pronounced "Fargo" twang.
The steaks came. They were very large "ribeyes" stacked on top of two big pieces of garlic bread with many french fries also poured onto the plate. The fries and the bread barely left room for slicing of the steak. Condiments included A-1 and Heinz, which also surprised me, as I expected some special homemade concoction, not a standard Midwestern steak sauce you could buy anywhere. The meat was tender, but with quite a lot of fat. It was a better than average steak, but not one that would pass muster in Ruth Chris' place.
There was also a bowl of baked beans: decent, undistinguished.
So nothing bad happened here. Just nothing to write home about either. I would not come back here again.
Whenever I cruise through the Central Coast, I try to stop at Jocko's. Is the food all that great? No. But I am a true believer that you can get great food at your own mother's. But that there is more to dining than food, and that would be atmosphere. And Jocko's has it to spare. The food is not bad at all, good and lots of it. But you won't find any place that I know of in most any big city. You have to go to Nipomo for this.
The only reason to go to Jocko's is for steak. HUGE slabs of beef, cooked just right over an open pit oak fire. Decor is simple, sides are basic and almost throw aways... but the steaks are simply awesome.
They have 1 filet on the menu, a 20 oz. monster for $31. That comes with all the sides and dessert. We fed three for under $100 and had enough left over for at least 2 more meals. Come hungry, leave stuffed and very, very happy.
May not be the best steak I've ever had, but it's by far the best value.
Good steak at a great price
Location reminds me of simpler times
Like steaks? Then you will like this place
HUGE steaks! I ordered the small Spencer, which was a 14 ounce rib eye for $21. It's one of the best steak deals I've seen in California. They also had a large 18 ounce rib eye, the large Spencer, for a few dollars more, but why get a large, when I could barely eat half of the small one?
The steak was flavorful, cooked perfectly to medium rare, and I was fortunate to get a really fat, thick piece of meat! It was almost so thick that I couldn't cut it. My steak knife was kind of wimpy...
Service was slow, but I forgive them because I was part of a 30 person party. Bread was soft, buttery, and crunchy, but don't wait to eat it. The bread gets rock hard when cold. I didn't like the baked beans, though. I thought they were burnt tasting and bland. Baked potato was as expected, you can't go wrong in making that.
Overall, this place rocks! Eating here puts LA steakhouses to shame in overcharging for food!
If you ask about steakhouses around the Central Coast, you will most likely hear about "The Hitching Post" and then about "Jocko's."
One of the big disadvantages of Jocko's is that I feel that the Hitching Post does a better job with cooking the steaks. When you want your steak to be medium rare, it comes out medium rare.
Jocko's counter is that the prices are a lot more reasonable. Dinner for two will still cost you more than say, Texas Roadhouse, but it's not at Hitching Post levels.
The Hitching Post is the place I would go once and Jocko's is where I would come back again and again.
This is a breakfast review so my rating reflects this meal.
I have been traveling up and down the coast and passing this place for almost 30 years. I never heard of Jockos until a fellow Yelper turned me on to it. On my next trip, I made it a pint to stop here. Unfortunately, bad timing put me here at breakfast time.
We went about 11am on a Sunday, not too crowded which was good. This is a true hole in the wall place, which I like. It is nothing fancy and they have fake wood grain formica tables, truly tasteless. But, the decor is not the star of the show here, and they are not trying to be a hip and trendy Los Angeles eatery. The star is the food here, so don't forget it.
I wanted one of their steaks. I was disappointed to find that they do not cook on the Oak pit until after 1pm. So, my steak would be cooked on the griddle.
Got the steak and eggs, my son got ham and eggs. The steak was wonderful and tasty, about as good as a griddle cooked steak can get. My son's ham steak was HUGE, almost 2 inches thick. It was smoky and tasty.
Everything else was good and at least 4 stars. They served the breakfast entrees with Santa Maria style beans, which is odd but I am glad I got to try them.
Service was right on. My grandmother just ordered an egg and one piece of bacon and they charged us only $1.50 for her meal. We thought it was a mistake, but the server said they did not feel they should have charged us more. Very classy indeed.
The best breakfast on the central coast is still Paula's in Solvang or Big Sky Cafe in San Luis. For dinner though, I will make it a special point to eat here on my next trip.
This place is a total dump. The filet is out of this world and the price is right on. I like the bar here too. I did not care for the ribs - too dry for me (Firestone in SLO has the best ribs anywhere) - but this is a steak joint anyway and the steak tastes better than most places I've been to on the central coast - and it is cheaper here. I could care less about ambiance when I want good food - if I wanted a steak in the Central Coast - this would be my first choice.
Wasn't too impressed. Went here the first time with some friends. Just don't get the whole steakhouse iceberg lettuce infatuation. But then the meal came. Beef ribs? I'll admit, I'm a pork rib fan, but was open to trying the ribs. Served Santa Maria style, which means with salsa, no barbecue sauce. They were tough and not flavorful. Had a filet here the second time, have had better, Madonna Inn, Tanner Jack's, Blue. And the place is just not clean. Don't mind the whole 'down home' schtick, but it shouldn't be an excuse to be lazy with the soap.
I have heard about this restaurant from many friends in the past, so on a recent trip to the Central Coast, I decided to stop by here. I got the Spencer which is also known as a Delmonico. It just depends on how you cut it, to determine what cut it really is.
We got there and even though we had a reservation we had to wait almost 90 minutes before we were seated. From what I had heard about this place I thought the interior would have more appeal. The tables and chairs are very cheap diner like.
The steaks arrived and when I cut into mine it was still mooing. I had ordered mine Med-Rare, and this wasn't even rare, because it was still cold in the middle. I told the server and they took it back. It came out like 10 minutes later, now cooked right, but the fries were stone cold.
Even my friends who have raved about this place in the past, we not raving about this place anymore. They even said quality has gone down.
The flavor of the steak was not the best steak I have ever had. This steak is not even in the same league as Morton's, Ruth Chris, or even STK. The steak was good, but I think that is the oak grilling and smoke people are tasting,
If you want a good steak grilled on an Oak Grill go to Alex BBQ in Shell Beach or Mcphee's Grill in Templeton
Jocko's wood-fires a great steak, but service can be casual to the point of careless. Insist on how you want your steak and send it back if it comes not exactly as you ordered. Eventually you will be very satisfied with the flavor, quantity and price.
Do not go for lunch as the fire pit is not burning and the pan fried steaks are tasteless.
My husband and I must have come on an off day a couple years ago, or maybe we ordered the wrong steak. We'd heard rave reviews from a few Fresno friends, so when we moved to the Central Coast area, we decided to take a long drive to give Jocko's a try.
We got there early, so our wait wasn't horribly long. The appearance of the restaurant left me feeling like I was at Trappers Bar and Grill in a very small Kansas town.
We ordered and all I basically remember is getting a good-sized piece of steak that was OK. It didn't make me go "mmmmmm...this is the best steak I've ever had!" I also recall something like Texas toast? I don't recall any veggies/salad that came with our order. From pictures posted, there must have been baked beans and fries, too?
As you can tell, for us it was not a memorable, taste-bud altering life experience.
This is a wonderful steakhouse, and its hidden location, good prices, and family run atmosphere make this a true gem.
First, I randomly heard about this place as a co-worker mentioned this on a food list at work. Next, I decided to do some research and found that this place had great reviews, and was near the Hitching Post, another local steakhouse that my boyfriend and I recently found though we're not from the area. Third, I decided that after reading the reviews of giant pieces of steak, the place was totally worth finding.
From the outside this restaurant looks very rustic and it looks like an old school saloon that locals would go to as a watering hole. There were a ton of trucks outside. Upon entering, we were greeted with a crowd of people waiting for seats - families, friends, college students. We were seated about two minutes after our reservation time.
Instantly we were brought coffee, water, a basket of crackers, a cold dish of crudites, and salsa. The salsa was hearty and had a ton of tomatoes and black pepper. The crudite dish came with olives, buttery and savory pickles, carrots, celery, and various peppers like pepperocinis.
We then ordered the large Spencer, and the filet mignon, both medium rare. The Spencer had great flavor and was tender inside. It was also quite large! The filet mignon was also huge, and came super tender inside, with a slightly cooked outside that was both soft and slightly crispy. I liked that there wasn't a ton of seasoning on it, it was mostly just meat flavoring. And yes, they were smoked over oak. Mm.
We also got some amazing garlic bread, a baked potato and a side of rice, and beans and onions. And a house salad. I loved that at the end we got to top off our experience with ice cream - I got rocky road, my boyfriend got vanilla with chocolate sauce.
The whole meal was only $65 with all the sides, starters, large meat portions, and a beer.
AMAZING!
ah yes...good ole santa maria style bbq.
come to this place only if you love steak.
come to this place only for dinner.
come to this place without your snobbishness.
ain't nothin' fancy bout this place. they do not have 10billion degree broilers. just a good old fashion wood burning firepit grill.
no fancy sauces or seasonings, just salt and pepper
get the spencer (ribeye).
be prepared to wait even with a reservation and don't even try to come here without one.
I disagree with the person who recommended ALEX's instead. Food is worse, atmoshpere is worse.
I echo what yelpers say about this place... it is fantastically fabulous steak. We waited on a Saturday night for 35 minutes (no reservations) which I didn't think was that bad considering the building was packed to maximum occupancy.
I think this must've been a bingo hall, and to be honest if I hadn' t heard such good things about it, I may not have waited. Big central bar as you walk in and it smelled like a bar. We waited by the restrooms for a seat, and bar restrooms smell horrendous. Tough it out!! It's worth it!!
My husband got the Spencer and I got the filet. Had to be 3 inches thick, cooked a PERFECT medium-rare, and blew any steak I've had at a Ruth's Chris and the like completely out of the water. Not to mention about a 1/3 of the price.
I thought I might explode after eating barely half of my filet, when the waitress came and asked what we would like for dessert. (it's included) I said "do we have to have dessert??" She said "yes it's not optional" with a devilish laugh and looked at me like I was a big wuss. (She was a fantastic waitress...honestly)
Go to Jocko's for red meat perfection. End of story. P.S. they also sell their steak rub, so we had to buy it. Good on everything.
We ate dinner this past Friday night. We've been coming to Jocko's for 40 years and my husband for several years before that. We love Jocko's, from the cinder block construction to the "Come in an' monkey 'round" sign. However, we come back for the scrumptious steaks and chops.
We mostly get the spencer and it's always been cooked exactly right. The service is terrific. The prices are so reasonable, and we've sent many friends and family members here. Make reservations, but you might have to wait anyway--it's worth it. We love Jocko's.
Best steaks I've had, at a reasonable price. Unlike the posh steakhouses in Northern CA or the LA and OC areas, they don't charge a lot for a good quality, big chunk of quality steak. On top of that, you get baked potato and salad with the meal - not to mention texas toast and some pickled veggies as sides for the table. An awesome place if you love cooked meat.
The only real negative I can think of is the fact that sometimes it's hard to get a table because the place is so popular. But if you can get a reservation and/or don't mind waiting a couple minutes, it's a must-try for steak lovers.
One of the first steakhouses to prepare its steaks Santa Maria style (the meats are cooked over an open red oak fire, and served with green salad, salsa, ranch beans, and French bread), Jocko's is both quaint and raucous, with a bustling bar and spirited patrons. The Spencer steak is succulent and beautifully aged, while the generous filet mignon will challenge you to explore new heights of fullness. But, the ribs are a disappointment, as they are covered with an overly salty rub and lack moisture.
Not for the faint of appetite, Jocko's is a lovely place to enjoy a relaxed dinner with family and friends. And, they welcome you to walk back to the grated fire and watch the men at the grill flipping meat with lightning speed. Be sure to order your steak a grade above the preparation you prefer, as it will come out a touch rarer than you expect. Reservations recommended.
Santa Maria, CA
Category: Restaurants
Nipomo, CA
Category: Barbeque
Casmalia, CA
Category: Barbeque
Guadalupe, CA
Category: Steakhouses
Avila Beach, CA
Category: Fruits & Veggies
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