Jumpin Jack's Drive-In

Tonight, Jay and I finally had our “double dinner date” with my friend Heather and her hubby, Mike.  We have been trying to get together for what seems like FOREVER, so we were super psyched to finally get our schedules “in sync” :)

Our meeting place for tonight was Jumpin Jack’s Drive-In, which (despite living within 25 minutes from it all of my life), I had NEVER been to!  I’ve heard people rave about Jumpin Jacks for years, but just never made it there.  They’re only open seasonally, and all of their dining is outdoors, and very casual, picnic table style (hence the “drive-in”).

They have a simple “Charcoal Pit” menu, of mostly burgers, dogs, sausage & peppers, chicken, & your typical fried choices (fries, onion rings, etc.) but they also offer some full dinner selections, as well as seafood items.

As you can probably assume from the menu, Jumpin Jack’s isn’t exactly concerned with having many “healthy” selections, and you certainly will not find a vegetable anywhere on their menu.  Wait, I lied, they do offer veggie burgers. ;)  But other than that, it’s slim pickins!  I did what I could with my given choices and ended up choosing a broiled chicken sandwich.

When I told you it was a “simple” menu, that’s exactly how to describe it…I present to you, my broiled piece-o-chicken on a bun!

I needed to add at least a little “pizazz” to my chicken, so I ordered mine with fried onions.  Healthy? Nope!  Delicious? YUP!  I was actually pleasantly surprised by this simple yet flavorful chicken sandwich :)

Jay and I also shared an order of seasoned curly fries, which were totally fantastic.  There’s nothin’ like curly fries! (unless, of course, sweet potato fries are in the picture, then that’s a whole different story…)

So no, this wasn’t exactly the “dinner of champions” but then again, not every dinner is going to be!  Like I always, say…BALANCE, BALANCE, BALANCE.  I knew I was going to be coming here for dinner tonight, so I made sure to get a good amount of fruits, veggies, and whole grains into my day earlier.  Sure, my veggie intake is a little on the low end today, but I’ll do what I can to “restock” tomorrow. No worries! ;)

I really enjoyed dinner at Jumpin Jack’s, and I think one of the coolest parts about it was the atmosphere.  Jumpin Jack’s was built in 1952, and has been around ever since.  There aren’t many places like this left around today, so I love knowing that it has some “history” behind it.  Actually, the first part of Jumpin Jack’s that was built was not their “Charcoal Pit” but rather, “Twin Freeze”…

And I’d have to say my favorite menu at Jumpin Jacks is the “Twin Freeze” menu, which is because…

You guessed it…it’s ICE CREAM! :-P

Just look at all the old school charm & appeal…I love it! :)

After seeing that menu, there was no question on what I was ordering:

Black Cherry Dole Whip & Vanilla Frozen Yogurt Twist…with rainbow sprinkles OF COURSE!

It was so nice to see Heather & Mike AND get to try out a new place for dinner all in one night!!  It totally gave me something to look forward to all day on a Monday. ;)

While at dinner, Heather was swearing by how good The Bachelorette is, so I’m thinking that I just may have to go check it out tonight!

OH…If you haven’t already seen it, check out the sweet giveaway on Lisa’s blog…it’s a GOOD one! ;)

Question for tonight:

Do you have a favorite local “dive” restaurant, or one with lots of old school appeal?

Growing up, my family & I would frequently go to a place called Jack’s Drive-In (not to be confused with “Jumpin Jack’s…I know, crazy, right?).

Jack’s had a menu of hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, shakes, & chocolate milk.  I don’t think it was until I was in high school that they actually added CHEESE to their menu!  But we would all wait very (im)patiently for it to open every spring, and we’d merrily go and get our burger sliders, fries (yes sliders…they practically slid right off the bun from all the grease) and my favorite, chocolate milk.

There were actually years where my dad kept a sticky note on the side of the fridge to keep track of how many burgers we all ate for the season.  I want to say my dad and brother made it into the 60’s? Mom? Dad? Dan?  Am I close on that one?

Obsessed much?  Noooooo…… ;)