Jacques, a French restaurant in LoHi helmed by chef Nick Dalton, exudes understated elegance. The deep green leather banquettes and warm wooden tables create a refined yet inviting atmosphere. The space balances moody intimacy and airy openness, enhanced by natural light in some areas and dark, dramatic walls in others. It evokes a chic, upscale bistro where classic French style meets modern sensibilities. And the menu follows suit with French dishes that don’t take themselves too seriously. “When designing the dishes, I like to think about how we can play with French food,” Dalton says. “We want to introduce nostalgic flavors that American palates relate to even with traditional dishes.”
We started with the house-made baguette— fluffy, warm, and perfectly crusted. The house butter is its obvious best friend, but don’t skip the sardines, which add a briny punch to each bite. Next, we smell the aroma of our French onion soup wafting across the dining room as it makes its way to our table, our mouths watering before it even arrives. The bubbling cauldron is filled with a rich and perfectly balanced broth, packed full of creamy sweet onions, and topped with the salty and craveable house-made Brixton Cheese Blend that melts luxuriously into every spoonful. The beef tartare brings a fresh umami flavor, with bites of shallot, chives, turnip, and cornichons adding a bright contrast, while the yolk ties it together. For something crisp and light, the beets with blood oranges and ricotta proves French cuisine doesn’t always require butter. But when it does, there’s the pâté to wow—a cloud-like indulgence, equal parts chicken liver, butter, and beauty topped with dollops of seasonal mostarda.
The mains are just as transporting. The duck confit, with its crispy skin glazed in a Southern-style mustard barbecue sauce, falls effortlessly off the bone, offering rich, wintery comfort atop pan de mie to help soak it all up. Mussels arrive in a broth infused with whisper-light crème fraîche and fine herbs that subtly complement the briny and umami-packed protein. Meanwhile, the steak, served medium- rare, melts in your mouth, finished with a decadent peppercorn sauce, which Dalton tailors for the American palate with more smokey, spicy pepper and less brandy.
To close, the desserts are no afterthought. A mini espresso martini—courtesy of a specialty machine gifted by Grey Goose—is the perfect final sip, while the crème brûlée, with its salty finish and crackly caramel top, is so silky you’ll want to bathe in it. The drink menu features a few craft cocktails, but French wines are the star of the show. Sommelier Jerome Lavaissiere will guide you to the perfect pairing, all while charming you with a Parisian accent as authentic as the vintages he pours. It’s the ideal date night spot that’s polished but never stuffy.
