My family decided to finally try Mr. Jones tonight. We’ve been curious about the diner for awhile. We learned about it from a flyer we read at Chelsea Market Cafe (Chelsea and Mr. Jones belong to Rain Tree Group of restaurants). We have a fondness for diners, you see. I do not go to Greenbelt [...]

My family decided to finally try Mr. Jones tonight. We’ve been curious about the diner for awhile. We learned about it from a flyer we read at Chelsea Market Cafe (Chelsea and Mr. Jones belong to Rain Tree Group of restaurants). We have a fondness for diners, you see.

I do not go to Greenbelt often. The parking fee is a killer. The Ayalas should do something about that. We spend a lot of money in the stores there yet we have to pay exorbitant parking fees. It’s very unwelcoming. But I digressed.

Ambiance, Design, and Space

Where were we? Ah yes, my family loves diners and so we went to Mr. Jones. We arrived early at 5:30 PM and there were a lot of people eating. That’s a good sign. Lots of people eating means food must be good. We wanted a booth inside for the A/C. There was no table available. Since the lady there told us that they don’t take reservations, she said she’ll get my number so she can text as soon as a table inside is available. After giving her my cellphone number, my family and I went window-shopping. It took Mr. Jones a long time to text me. It must have been an hour. Maybe more.

Mr. Jones is crowded

Look at how close we were to the kitchen. I didn't use a zoom lens

When we got back, the restaurant was packed. The space they are renting is small, even the outdoor dining doesn’t help the congestion. Inside, I think there are only 5 or 6 tables and this is because of bulky furniture. It looks like a real diner though.

Rating:

Service

The lady was very distracted when I talked to her. She was taking down the names and numbers of customers who wanted to eat there so we had to wait before she showed us our table. Actually all the staff are inattentive. When inside, their backs are turned to the customers while they punch in orders, wait for food to be served, etc. Now that I think about it, none was friendly at all. No wait staff was even smiling.

Rating:

Food

This is where this review should get better. I ordered Grilled Bone-In Maple Glazed Pork Chops & Apple Sauce (P450). It is topped with cinnamon apple and apricot compote and is served with spiced pumpkin puree, haricots verts, and organic carrots.

The chops is tender but a tad dry. Since it is sweet, I felt like I should be eating the chops during Christmas and the pumpkin puree just exacerbated that feeling. Don’t get me wrong. The pork chops is good but I just didn’t feel like it’s something for normal dinner. My sister, on the other hand, liked what I ordered.

Grilled Bone-In Maple Glazed Pork Chops & Apple Sauce P450

My sister ordered Big Mama’s Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf (P395) which is filled with chorizo (at least according to the menu). It is served with haricots verts, roasted herb tomato gravy and potato puree. The meatloaf is topped with fried egg cooked according to your preference.

Big Mama's Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf - P395

I tried my sister’s order and found it okay. The meatloaf is huge. It has a slight tangy taste but I didn’t detect any chorizo. The potato puree is too soft for my liking but it still tasted fine.

Mom’s order was the 1/2 Inch Thick Double-Smoked Bacon & Eggs (P350). It comes with 2 eggs cooked according to your preference, roasted rosemary breakfast potatoes, biscuits, and gravy.

1/2 Inch Thick Double-Smoked Bacon & Eggs - P350

This is the one I liked best among the three. The bacon is perfectly smoked, tender, fatty, and chewy. It has the perfect blend of sweet and salty. The biscuits and potatoes are really good too. The smoked bacon reminds me of the ham mom cooks for us for Christmas. I should have ordered this instead of the chops but mom wasn’t able to finish hers so I gobbled up all her leftovers.

Mr. Jones has a very limited choice in desserts. There are milkshakes and floats but are they even considered desserts? More like drinks to me. They have a couple of pies but none looked appealing to us. I wanted to get a milkshake but it’s just too fattening. Oh well. Probably next time.

Rating:

For a diner, yes Mr. Jones is still a diner even if they upscaled the food a bit, Mr. Jones is too expensive. The serving size per dish is big and some dishes can be shared by 2 people. Still, diners should be affordable. I’ll most possibly come back again to get the 1/2 Inch Bacon but not in the near future.

Overall Rating:

Mr. Jones
Ground Floor, Greenbelt 5
Makati City