Well Fed On the Town

Kent Rathbun has it going on right now. He and his brother Kevin recently defeated Bobby Flay on Iron Chef America. As if that wasn’t enough, his restaurant, Jasper’s, located in The Domain in Austin, TX is doing a great job of making great food.

Very tastefully and artfully decorated, Jasper’s invokes feelings of spring with Teak and Bamboo, stylized leaf pattern themes and elegant trappings. The ubiquitous wait staff can be seen flitting about in their distinctive black from head to toe attire. While dining there recently with a friend, we found all of the staff we had contact with…service personnel, hostess, manager, bartender to be extremely attentive, courteous and professional.

Arriving a few minutes late, my lunch partner was found at the bar sipping a Strawberry Martini that was a great, vibrant, deep red. I was happy with the selection of bottled Republic of Teas, but I’ll admit to a bit of Martini envy as well.

Deciding on sharing an appetizer, we went with Calamari and were not remotely disappointed. Large, tender pieces of Calamari were lightly breaded and fried up perfectly with sauteed onions and green peppers (just sweated a bit, so they were served up crisp, lending a great texture to the dish). The entire affair was tossed with fresh Cilantro and resting on a thin layer of Toasted Orange Soy sauce.

Normally, I am not a big soup fan, but I was curious what their Grilled Chicken Masa Soup was. The waiter was just about to explain when the very attentive manager stepped in to take over that explanation so that the waiter was freed up to attend to others needs. Rather than being awkward, that hand off was smooth and professional and the manager, Paul was very helpful.

After the explanation, I just had to order the soup. It was served with a stack of thin multicolored tortilla strips resting in the center of the bowl on top of a black bean and corn relish with wonderfully spiced, pulled chicken…and no soup. The thick, rich Masa broth accompanied the soup in a small kettle and was poured in table side, filling the bowl like a soup moat around the castle of goodies. The presentation was fun and interesting, but served a purpose. My tortilla strips were crisp throughout the experience and I was able to pull from the center mixing a few bits of the stack in with the broth with each bite. Very well done.

Being a huge fan of the specials menu at any restaurant, I couldn’t help but order their Jambalaya, that days Daily Business Lunch Special. Rice dominated the center of the large bowl, arrayed around it was a thick, slightly spicy, flavorful tomato based jambalaya sauce and…pieces of just about every protein they had in the kitchen. Chicken, Andouille Sausage, Beef Tips, Salmon, Red Snapper, Lobster, etc. I’d never had a Jambalaya that I would have described as decadent until then.

My lunch partner however, may have outdone me. I admit that reluctantly, but it is true. She ordered the Pan Seared Salmon. First of all, this wasn’t just a chunk of salmon from your local grocery store. This was a large slab of Sashimi Grade A Salmon. The pan it had been seared in did its job perfectly as the skin was crispy with a slight crisp to the rest of the exterior, but soft, flaky and buttery in the middle, cooked a perfect medium rare. The plating was excellent as well, resting on two Jumbo Grilled Asparagus stalks, which themselves were propped on the creamy marscapone polenta, with a third asparagus stalk resting across the salmon.

Dessert was a close thing, it almost did not happen. However, the waiter kindly pointed out their unique, award winning, Cherry Limeade Pie. Who could pass that up?

First of all, we did not get a piece of pie. We got a mini-pie. About 4 inches tall and 3 inches in diameter, it was topped with a Swiss Meringue, which itself had Keylime Zest resting atop it and it was held together by the graham cracker crust. It was dense and well chilled, so the spoons cut through it a bit reluctantly, but what rested inside was worth the effort. A tangy, sweet/sour cherry topping was under the meringue, and itself was on top of a thick, dense layer of what would best be described as a keylime sherbet. All in all one of the most inventively imagined, well plated and tasty desserts I’ve ever had. The tiny flakes of keylime zest were just genius.

Their menu is fairly straightforward, with limited but creative offerings. If you are looking for a place for an upscale business lunch, elegant dinner or just a quiet, comfortable place to share a meal with friend(s). This Domain hotspot in Austin is great.

Jasper’s
11506 Century Oaks Terrace
Suite 128
Austin, TX 78758
512.834.4111