Not Your Average Joe’s

Valerie and Ashley really took care of all of us. We had a farewell worker event and they really managed our crazy group of 30+ with grace and made it very fun! They were helpful and thoughtful and attentive, making the night a big success. Thank you too, to Manager Michelle for working with me up front to set up the evening!

Great time today at NYAJ. Thanks to Ashley and Valerie. Great menu and drinks for happy hour with wide variety and selection for dinner. Thanks for the excellent service.

Ashley and Valerie were the best!!! Ask for them and they will take care of you… with bubbles!!!

We came to NYAJ for HH to celebrate a work event and it was fabulous. Ashley and Valerie were attentive and pleasant. We had a large group, and it was nice to feel welcome! Drinks ($ 5 white wine) and appetizers were tasty!

Had a great dinner out with the kids tonight. Special thanks to our waitress Valerie for paying special attention to the kids. It can be tough to keep them happy during mealtime and she really helped out.

This food feels healthy, but is comically bland. The *Jambalaya has as much kick as the house salad.
EDIT: Jambalaya, not Gumbo.

Went for my sons 8^th birthday with both sets of grandparents.
April (our waitress) was great. Sangria outside hit the spot. Our food was tasty and everything was cooked perfect. My son loved the tuna tempura roll! The salmon came out medium just like requested.
They brought a surprise molten choc cake and ice cream for my son out smile on his face. That was really nice of them.
I have been to the one in Bethesda and both seem to be very consistent with good service and great food.

This was my first time going and I must say the food and the service was great. My waitress Valery was friendly and recommend the peach sangria as well as the tuna sushi rolls which both were phenomenal. I will definitely come back and bring my friends.

Valerie is a rockstar waitress! She treated our table so wonderfully
Food was very nice and everyone really enjoyed the seating out on the covered balcony

While no one will seek out the Kentlands area as a hotbed of nightlife activity, if you’re looking for a full-​service and lively restaurant that also has a full-​on bar with lots of TVs, and decent food to boot, NYAJ is a solid choice. They’re open until 10 PM or 11 PM, depending on the night, and have a full menu until closing.
They’re located in a nice strip mall directly off of Kentlands Ave., with ample parking. It’s similar to the other locations in Reston, Loudoun, etc., so expect a family-​friendly atmosphere that’s also contemporary and with a wide-​ranging menu of options at good prices.
Our experience at NYAJ was on a Saturday night around 10 PM, and while we initially waited a long time to be acknowdleged by the host and seated, our table service was very good. Our waiter was awesome, and he honored the lucrative Unilocal check-​in deal without hesitation — check in and get free chicken nachos (or chicken fingers) — a $ 10 value! Great way to start the meal on a chilly night. Our waiter was also super-​prompt at refilling drinks, but his coworkers were not on top of bussing abandoned tables, so it was visually unpleasant to see a sea of tables littered with half-​consumed food, drinks, and crumpled napkins.
By far the favorite item other than the free nachos was the big, huge bacon cheeseburger. A good deal and nicely-​executed with ample, if a bit soggy, French fries. Another item was the make-​your-​own pizza — cooked in a nice brick oven, and nice-​sized 10-​inch personal crispy, chewy crust. Waiter advised against too many toppings as he knew that makes a personal pizza too soggy — nice! We also ordered the «Super Crunch Salad,» which was way too heavy on the greens and not heavy enough on the crunch or goodies — not enough apples, pistachios, or avocado chunks. Definitely get the dressing on the side, as it’s a drenched ball of lettuce otherwise.
Overall — a smart place to go on a late night in the ‘Burbs. Some noticable front-​of-​house and housekeeping issues, but otherwise good service. Reasonable prices, clean restrooms, and a lucrative Unilocal check-​in deal.

This place is still one of my faves, but it has fallen off a bit since my first review. I have been many times and the menu options are still creative and tasty. I still love their initiative to come up with new items every month. However sometimes now they seem to drop the ball on some things. I was with my mother and her friend for dinner last weekend and my mom ordered the chicken salad special that was one of their seasonal items. This was supposed to include mozzarella balls, but there were none to be found when it was brought out. They were very accommodating though and the manager came over to inspect the issue and brought her a new salad.
Out waitress was very apologetic and kind and assured us she wanted to make sure everything was perfect, and we really did appreciate her effort. I think she might have been a bit nervous because of the problem, but no worries.
The only other thing that I’ve noticed that has changed, is the free bread. I will say the bread with their parmesan dipping sauce is one of the main reasons I come to this place. The combo is to die for and some of the best bread I have had. I know it sounds like something so simple, but when I first came to the restaurant, the bread would be served fresh and warm. Now, pretty much always cold, what happened? I need my warm bread back!

This is my second visit this was by far the most pleasurable experience and quick grear service!!! I’ll definitely be back!!!

If you’re looking for well done American fare, this is the place. The biggest draw is the bread they put on the table. It’s AMAZING! Chewy, dense bread, served with a side of olive oil and cheese for dipping. Just go for the bread!
The sandwiches and salads, are simply well done. They have their shit together. The food is well prepared, the service is on top of stuff, everything runs very well. Great for parents/​out of towners.

This place has good food. I ordered a martini drink for Valentine’s Day with a small Caesar salad and the Spaghetti Squash Bolognese. First of all, the Cesar salad is the best I’ve had in a long time. The dressing taste homemade which really makes the salad taste the way it should. The Spaghetti Squash was delicious as well and has lesser calories than most of the other plates. Will be back for sure.

This 5 star rating is based on two of my last visits. The service on both occasions was quick and friendly! The first visit was for dinner with some friends. I ordered the steak frites which was cooked as ordered and my wife ordered a ahi tuna salad (not on the menu anymore?) which she enjoyed. We ordered the shrimp wraps which were like the cold wraps you would get at a phở place. The peanut sauce was great.
The second visit was with some family and my daughter (peanut allergy). They were really accommodating with her food allergy. I ordered the shrimp tacos which were decent. My wife ordered the Ahi wontons as an entrée as she was in the mood for seared tuna. They were good but definitely an appetizer. The kids Mac and cheese tasted comforting like Mac should be.
The thing that stands out about this place would definitely be the service and the no restriction policy on coupons. For example, I was able to use the Unilocal ‘check-​in nacho’ deal with the $ 15 off birthday emailer. Another plus is the complementary bread with olive oil/​Parmesan. The bread is hot and fresh during dinner and the early lunch hour.
Definitely a good lunch or dinner spot.

This will be my couple times here my first time I came I had Victoria as my server and the second time was with Steven O. He was such a delight to have around our table. its hard to come by great servers with an optimistic attitude now a days, he always came around and made sure we had everything we needed. He always made sure our water cups were full, made sure if we needed condiments and all that good stuff.
He recommended me a dish the Turkey meatball one & it was good, but it was not my taste so I told him and they took care of that while I ordered something else which did not come out long after. I love that this restaurant makes sure if you’re not satisfied they will take care of you. Some of my friends came with me and they’ve never been but they enjoyed everything! Definitely deserves another 5 stars, so close to home and the atmosphere is chill and laid back. From the managers to the hosts everyone was super friendly!
I definitely enjoyed being served by Steven and Victoria so if you’re ever in the area and have never been here ask for them!

I feel like every time I go to NYAJs I have a different experience. Sometimes the service is great and sometimes it is eh. Sometimes the food is good and sometimes it is eh. So basically, NYAJs is like a box of chocolates… you never know what you are going to get.
Either way, it is local and convenient to my parents’ house and they like going. Around the holidays they offer the ability to buy $ 100 in gift cards and get $ 20 as a bonus. They change their menu often, but keep certain things consistent (i.e. their salads). I have yet to find a dish I absolutely adore, but based on my family’s tendency to go… I still have hope.

This was our second great experience here. I can’t remember what we had the first time it was a year or so ago. But my wife and I both remember the food and dinner service fondly and were glad to have the chance to return.
This time we went for lunch with our 3 year old, Lucy. She had the Kids Pizza and Lemonade. What a deal for a delicious pizza. Way bigger than a kid can eat. Could be shared by two kids. Also it comes with an ice cream cup. My daughter loved it!
We had the nachos appetizer. The chips were freshly fried and they were semicircles instead of quarters. They looked great, and tasted great! Did I mention this was a free appetizer for checking in on Unilocal?Thank you Unilocal!Yum!
I had the Calamari for my meal, which I found to be delicious and light and tender. I love calamari, and here it was done very well. They had a nice blend of peppers in there that gave it some bite. I was surprised to find there were fried circles of yellow squash in the dish. When I ate the first one I realized that I had overdone the lemon on the calamari and now would have to suffer through it. However, it turned out ok, because on my second piece of squash, I realized that it was a fried circle of lemon. Oops, silly me!
My wife had the Mona Lisa. It was super delicious. Although it sounds like a crazy blend, the mixed field greens, marinated mozzarella balls, crispy fried chicken, balsamic marinated strawberries, all drizzled with a creamy basil dressing was perfect for lunch. My wife wished she had asked for the dressing on the side, as the salad was so large, and the nachos so filling. Then she could have saved the salad for leftovers without it getting limp and wilted.
I have to mention the bottomless drinks. They have these great non-​alcoholic drinks, that really are delicious. My wife had the Mango Lemonade, and I had the Lemonade. They sugar the rim, and dress it up like a cocktail, but it’s $ 3 for a bottomless delicious drink. They are really attentive to refills. We had other waiters stop by to see if they could refill us too! Although our last trip’s food is not recalled here, we did have the raspberry lime rickeys and those, also bottomless, were equally delicious. But I am such a fan of great lemonade, that I may not try anything else here.
Our server was Devonte. He was definitely new, and a little nervous, but super attentive without being annoying, and eager to keep us happy. He kept our drinks refilled and made sure we were not lacking anything.
All this said, I have some colleagues that had a negative experience here, and I read some reviews that were less than favorable. However, we have now had two extremely positive experiences, and it would be wrong not to share those.

I’ve come here quite a bit for lunch. Mainly for sandwiches and tacos… apparently I prefer to pick up my food with my hands to eat it. I’ve tried the Sweet Blue Burger, Southwestern Burger, Tuscan Grilled Chicken (many many times) and the Sautéed Shrimp Tacos. All winners to me! Everything is seasoned lightly, but not bland at all. I plan to try a pizza on my next visit.
My favorite thing ever… the focaccia bread with the dipping sauce! OMG! I think I come here just for that lol. The sauce is a mixture of olive oil, parmesan cheese, red pepper flakes and garlic. I always end up getting too full from the bread. I literally could just eat that with a drink and be totally content with myself.
My second, most favorite thing ever… the seasonal sangrias! Ahh! They make one for every season. (Mind. Blown.) My preference tends to be any of the Fall sangria flavors, but they’re all delicious!
Tip: On the warm days, the patio is absolutely goregous. Ceiling fans and patio tables. So pretty.

A coworker and I had dinner here while in town for work. We weren’t expecting much based on previous reviews, but we were both very happy with our meals and drinks.
I ordered the seasonal molasses pork shank, she had the caramelized scallops. We decided mine was better, and it reminded me of the turkey legs you get at the fair, except a lot more flavor and a lot more meat. The polenta it was served on created the illusion of a holiday dinner, where you smash the meat, potatoes, and gravy all into one bite and it warms you right up. I literally couldn’t stop eating this, and left feeling very uncomfortable.
We shared a pitcher of the seasonal harvest sangria — highly recommend. My one gripe is that the pitcher does not come with the cinnamon sugar rimmed glasses that you receive when you order just one glass. We finished up with the Mexican hot chocolate made with decaf. It was a great way to end the meal, but the kitchen needs to figure out a way to make this drink where adding the liquor doesn’t make the drink immediately cold.
This is a great place to stop for a casual meal, especially given the other options in Gaithersburg! Keep up the good work.