The Las Olas Art Fair is this weekend and with the nice cool weather I figured it would be a nice afternoon to walk the fair.  I guess everyone else in Ft. Lauderdale had that same idea.  It was PACKED.  Each restaurant on Las Olas had a huge wait, so we decided to head further east on Las Olas to Smith & Jones Bar and Grill.  It's located in the old Louie, Louie's location right across from the Floridan Diner.

It's a nice place as you walk up.  Dark wood with inside dining and a small patio to people watch on Las Olas.  We got a table outside which was perfect.  Their lunch menu was actually a lot bigger than I expected.  Typical appetizers you'd find in most restaurants are offered.  They also have 'Organic Flat Breads' with an array of toppings.  There was a sandwich section and a BBQ section as well.  To top it all off...they had some 'Lunch Entrées' too. 

I went for the Herb Chicken Sandwich with guacamole and chipotle sauce.  You get a side and I of course went for the fries.  Jeff ordered the Thanksgiving 365 entrée.  That's served with mashed potatoes, stuffing, veggies and cranberry sauce.  Just like Thanksgiving dinner.

The food seemed to take a long time to come.  I believe it took 30 minutes.  The server same up to refill a soda and said "You're food's up in the window and will be here any minute".  Hmm.  I guess the servers don't run the food.  Another guy (a 'runner' I'm thinking) delivered the food right after the waiter left.


(Thanksgiving 365 entrée)

The Thanksgiving 365 plate came with enough food to keep you full for the day.  The turkey was moist and tasty.  The mashed potatoes were typical garlic mashed.  The veggies were 'ok'.  Jeff said it was almost like 'diner' food.  What really disappointed him was that many items on his plate were cold.  In my book...there is no excuse for cold food.


(Herb Grilled Chicken Sandwich and Fries)

My choice...the Herb Grilled Chicken Sandwich came and looked pretty good.  The chicken was spiced well and had a great 'grilled' taste.  But....the chicken was cold.  At first bite, I thought maybe it was supposed to be a chilled chicken breast, but as I got more into the middle...it was warm.  Not hot...just warm.  The sauce on the sandwich was pretty good.  If only they served it to me hot...I would have said it was a good sandwich.  The fries were 'fresh cut'.  They were 'ok'...but were not piping hot.  These type of fries usually get soggy when they sit around.  These were warm..and soggy.  I'm thinking they were sitting around too long.

As I looked around...it seemed like many people didn't finish their plates.  The table next to us left all of their fries.  Another left 2 sliders out of 3.  Not a good sign. 

The total with 2 soft drinks NOT including tip was $35.93.  ($16.95 for Thanksgiving & $10.95 for the Chicken...$3.00 each for sodas).  I'd say skip Smith & Jones.  If you can't keep your service spot on....and your food temps up to snuff...that is a miss in my book.  Especially for $35.  I'm hoping they had an 'off' day...but I'm not going to take another chance.  If you had a different experience there...please leave a comment.

Smith & Jones Bar and Grill is located at:
1313 E. Las Olas Blvd
Ft. Lauderdale, FL

FTLToday's restaurant grade: D