Jake's on the Lakes 1 & 2 - Center City, MN

With a tinge of audacity rarely seen in The Tundra, Jake's declares, "YOU LL BE BACK".  Well, we were back two days later . . . 

We first hit Jake's for a late Friday lunch on a road trip to Wisconsin.  They occupy a lovely relaxing space just across a road from the kiss of North Center and South Center Lakes.  The patio looks the place to be morning, noon, and night.  I'd happily park my keister here on the regular.  The kiddo liked it so much she insisted we hit Jake's for a late Sunday lunch on the way back as well

Admittedly, the "PLAY TILL YOU WIN" duck machine served no small role in her wanting to return.  She's a fiend for the damn things, and our first visit it paid out double ducks.  The second visit the claw nabbed and dropped two ducks as well.  It probably SHOULD pay out double, because $2 is a bit of duckflation over the usual buck

I shouldn't badmouth the duck machines.  For a̶ ̶m̶e̶r̶e̶ ̶d̶o̶l̶l̶a̶r̶ $2 a kiddo gets the joy and excitement of plotting which five cent duck from 'Jina to go for, navigating the claw movement, executing the drop, watch sweet sweet victory snatched up and dropped to a waiting shoot, and the triumphant power and glee of raising up said 5¢ duck from 'Jina.  Ain't that America!?!  And it only cost me a̶ ̶b̶u̶c̶k̶  $2

But I digress

Jumping to the food, the other thing that drew her back was their Shorelunch Walleye Bites.  Whether it's a $15 app might be debatable, but they're special as far as fried fish goes.  Tasted as though a thick walleye was cut into chunks in house, dipped in a lovely batter, and fried.  Consistency was a minor issue.  On Friday the fry was perfect, and all that was missing was a lemon wedge to squeeze over for that tart pop.  On Sunday, a lemon wedge was there, and the dish would have been perfection except the fish was over fried

One of the things that drew ME back was their salad.  The robust It's 5 O'Clock Somewhere Salad was stellar.  Tons of flavors and textures, fresh veg, and just enough of everything for the kid and I to share.  Ok, maybe they could up their game with something besides the cheap generic church basement supper roll (a King's Hawaiian would have at least played into the salad's theme), but the kiddo didn't mind.  She had me butter it and devoured them each time

The side salad that came with my burger was no slouch either, and well worth the $3 upcharge over kettle chips

Said burger, their Gouda & 'Shroom (to which I asked for jalapeno added) was fine, cooked to medium rare as requested, but skimpy for the price.  If we didn't live an hour away, there're plenty of other items I'd try (Short Ribs, Poutine, Burnt Ends, Tri Tips, Hot Beef Commercial, and Pork Ends Hash to name a few) before making my way back around to the borderline kids burger

Service was friendly, capable, and kind both times.  Our kid created some art over looking the lake, and . . . for some reason was moved to give the waitress the drawing she made of our meal on the patio (on our second visit we found it taped to the wall at a server station).  She also wrote a note for Jake's in sidewalk chalk, that they posted a pic of on their social media  :)

So, even if I was out this a ways by myself, I'd happily stop in for a siesta at Jake's, but with the kiddo running the show from the back seat, we'll be stopping for sure.  You should too.  Take a break, take a breath, kick back, nosh on the patio, and enjoy the view

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jakesonthelakes.com

Jake's on the Lake - 300 Andrews Ave, Center City, MN 55012  

651-257-6446