"2"^^ . "5"^^ . . "You can (and usually should) judge a restaurant first by the exterior, then the interior, then the service, then the food, then the price, and finally take the global view and ask: Would I send a friend here?\n\nExterior is just okay; it sits in a residential area on a state highway, NOT on the lake, although I bet if you could get up on the roof, you could see the whitecaps. The patio in the back is even farther from the lake, but at least they do have outdoor seating. \n\nInterior is cozy, bordering on cramped. Bar is teeny-tiny but comfortable. We were in for that last-chance-at-breakfast-first-crack-at-lunch experience. Jake's opened last year, but it already has a comfortable \"lived-in\" vibe, which is nice.\n\nThe service is erratic. Plates left on the table for the entire meal. Forgotten items. They do that \"pile the napkins, pile the silver\" service trick, which is okay for a diner, but I think Jake's is trying for something a bit more up-scale than that.\n\nThe food? Okay, this isn't good. It isn't bad, though, either. It's just passable. As my partner said, There's really nothing wrong with this food, but it isn't anything special. She had a Cajun burger and asked if it were spicy, hoping that it WOULD be; it was bland. My perch sandwich? Same deal. Not much flavor. French toast? They could use some interesting bread with texture and flavor, which is the foundation of any good Froggy toast, in my opinion. Again, nothing was really wrong with the food, I guess they have their market pegged as \"safe and sane\" eaters. While the crowd was skewed just below middle-aged, most of the grub tasted like retirement home fare.\n\nPrice was about what I expected, middle-range for a sit-down brunch, but with the quality of experience noted above, about twenty percent off, in THEIR favor.\n\nI can't recommend Jake's. I'll try again next fall, or next year, but it won't be high on my to-do list."^^ . . "2010-08-22T00:00:00"^^ . . "1"^^ . "1"^^ .