The Lighthouse Restaurant

I’ve driven past this place dozens of times and every time I wanted to go they weren’t open, but today they were. I choose restaurants based on their appetizer/​starters, soups and salads and I really can’t eat a full dinner.
So I ordered the crab cake appetizer, lobster bisque and side house salad. It was $ 20, which ironically they had dinner specials where you could get soup/​salad, entrée and dessert for $ 20. Probably should have done that, for the quantity of food, but…
The lobster bisque did not have one piece of lobster in it. Literally, not one. Should be called lobster-​flavored bisque. ($ 4.95).
The crab cake was luke warm and more cake than crab ($ 9.95). It was served a two pieces of greens — They could have at least put a little lemon juice or vinaigrette on the greens, a wedge of lemon and some strange sweet pink sauce. If at least it were hot at the very least equal portions of crab and cake that would be one thing, but this was a really disappointment.
I had the blue cheese dressing with the house salad ($ 3.95) and it was gray. I switched to the balsamic vinaigrette which was nice, but still very turned off at gray salad dressing.
I like the idea of Mom/​Pop restaurants over chains and really hoped this would be a go to spot, but I can’t say I’ll go back. Other reviewers have commented on it being pricey, but I don’t mind pricey if the quality is there… IT’S NOT HERE.

Not sure what was going on tonight but, TERRIBLE SERVICE — slow kitchen! Arrived at 7pm for dinner reservation finally was served soup and salad at 8:30 pm! By 9pm still no dinner and no apologies, kept saying a lot of people eating on outside patio — sorry no excuse for what we experienced tonight! We got up and left without eating dinner! We haven’t eaten here many things before without a problem — don’t know what was wrong tonight but it was ridiculous!

Ok. I’ve read the reviews and took them with a grain of salt. Most of them were right about this place. Took 40 min to just get a salad. Another 15 to get my appetizer. That’s almost an hour and dinner hasn’t shown up yet.
Finally an hour and 10 min later food comes. Small portions like most say. Lack of flavor and neglected to tell me the pasta I wanted my seafood over, was unavailable AFTER it was served.
The good:
Nice place to relax
Servers were pleasant.
The bad:
Overpriced
Over cooked food
Very long wait on food
SMALL portions
Overall, save your money and time. I left, came home and had a couple slices of pizza to be content.

Have been going here for a few years now and it has always been great! Went there this past Friday and we weren’t as pleased as in the past. They changed the menu and took away some of our favorite things. Seems as if they have a new cook. We also felt that the owner and staff were not as friendly and accommodating as in the past. Get the old menu back!!!

Hubby and I pass by here every time we visit his parents and I really wanted to go– SO a few months ago Hubby, Mini-​Me and our sons GF –came here for dinner.
Service was really slow, the place was very warm. Food was okay I mean they charge 5* prices but for us they did not truly deliver on the food or service.
We waited 30 min for appetizers and then the food came shortly right after– didn’t get to finish our appetizers or enjoy my salad– refills were hard to come by –considering we were the table closest to the kitchen.
I mean I read the reviews and was really excited with expectations– and everyone is gushing– maybe it was an off night, I am not sure– but will have to give it another go– I believe in my fellow Unilocalers– this just had to be an off night. So summer is here and its on my list.

Excellent food. Inside is small, but we moved outside because we had 3 small kids with us who are loud! There’s an outside play area for kids. They were occupied & it was perfect out there. Byob which is great too.

I absolutely adore this quaint little star of a restaurant! I have been here at least a dozen times and they have never disappointed. Their menu is the most diverse that you will find in the area. Everything from their seafood to steaks are all prepared perfectly. The owners and staff are incredibly accommodating and sweet. Love it here in the winter and it’s even better in the summer when you can sit outside under beautiful lights and music. With a little playground for the kids! An absolute gem in Jackson.

Two Stars because the service was pleasant. The loss of the other three because the food is lacking seriously. Coming from out of state and moving into the area I was praying that being close to the shore we would have a good seafood restaurant locally. Not so, everything we ordered was over cooked, swimming in butter and lacking in complexity. After spending $ 150 for three, trying many of the appetizers and different entrees we were very disappointed. Also, BYOB… you will need it to salvage your evening, if you choose to try it yourself. If you are looking for good seafood… we found it at Allure oyster bar and Rockefellers, both on the coast.

This was one of the most amazing meals I’ve had this year!
Short version — go and dine here! It’s a seriously delicious seafood delight!
Read on for everything, I mean everything, that we enjoyed!
Family in town visiting, and we took our grandfather here for lunch to celebrate his birthday. What an amazing time we had!
Can’t miss the parking lot — the huge arrows lead the way — to a tiny little building with maybe 10 tables inside. Outside has a sand patio which looked adorable, good spot for the warmer months I’d imagine. However, being my first time here, I got alil nervous as there was only one loan diner in the establishment who only ate a salad and left. My boyfriend and I gave that look to each other and buckled down thinking the worse as we looked around at the décor — it’s a seafood restaurant, expect motifs of lighthouses (duh), beaches, seagulls, sand dollars and seashells. It wasn’t tacky in my opinion, it looked like a typically decorated tourist beach house.
The hostess and service was all orchestrated by the most friendly welcoming woman on this planet!
She offered us drinks while we waited for the rest of our party to arrive…7 of us in total. The fresh brewed unsweetened ice tea was delicious, the perfect strength. She inquired what bought us to the restaurant today and I explained family in town to celebrate my grandfathers 93^rd birthday that just passed… she wished us a good time.
FOOD:
Appetizers — When the rest of my family arrived, I got down to ordering. I enjoy the fact that my family trusts my judgment at picking the communal appetizers. Here goes: shrimp cocktail, tuna bites, mussels in wine & garlic, fried calamari with marinara (they offer sweet/​spicy thai also), stuffed mushrooms, and clams on the half shell. Stand outs for me were the tuna bites. Nice spice served with a blank bean corn salsa. Was really great!
All mouthwatering delicious! We ate like it was our last meal. Everything that should have been hot was nice and piping, everything that should have been chilled was just that, perfect. The only negative thing I could point out is the mussels, we had 2 that didn’t open that were served to us. We knew better not to pry them open and eat them in fear of turning green around the gills (ie. Get seriously sick), so we worked around them. I personally think items like this should be looked over when plating. Remove any that do not open before serving just in case someone who doesn’t know — does the unthinkable and pries it open and eats it. (Quick way to a 1 star Unilocal review!)
Main — For our mains we had… crab cakes early bird dinner (2), chicken francese early bird dinner, fried shrimp lunch, fish and chips lunch, chicken caesar salad (borinnggg boyfriend), and broiled scallops lunch. The early birds came with soup — manhatten clam chowder and a lobster bisque. I tasted both, so delicious and flavorful, stand out was the lobster bisque for me! All the mains were delicious, and good size portions. The early birds came with roasted potatoes and mixed veggies. It looked awesome, no one let me taste their meals! (LOL) but all said it was wonderful and delicious. Me being a sucker for fish and chips, I can say it was really great. The batter was crispy and held on the fish. The «chips» were these awesome potato rounds, think of a round French fry… but much more awesome. Best lil fried potatoes I’ve ever had. We all wiped our plates clean.
Dessert — mint choco chip ice cream for the early birds, apple strudel ala mode, and crème brule! Ice cream was ice cream, apple strudel was so fresh my dad downed it in 2 seconds, and the crème brule was deliciously smooth and crunchy from the bruled top!
All in all, what a fantastic (stuffing!) meal!
Service was so friendly, she busted her butt for our table, our drinks never were half full, always a warm friendly smile on her face. She managed 3 other tables who came in during our 3 hour stay and she did a wonderful job. Hats off to the service!
I highly recommend this restaurant and anytime I’m back in the Jackson area I will make it a point to dine here — you should too!

Everytime I go to the Lighthouse I’m treated like family. Place is amazing and can’t wait to go back.

I was expecting to like this place based on the good reviews and the place is established, but I was disappointed with my broiled seafood platter, 4 dry shrimp, 2 overly breaded clams, an overly breaded crab cake, and a small dry flounder filet. How can you mess up a broiled seafood platter? The seafood was not fresh, flavorless and seasoned with msg. The dish was dry with no butter at all. and didn’t seem to be broiled, but microwaved, Only the boiled carrots were moist. The roasted potatoes also were dry. This was a plate you might expect to get in a nursing home, but not in a restaurant for $ 22.95. Most of the entrée prices are surprisingly very high but include a side salad with choice of dressing. The bleu cheese dressing came with a generous crumble of bleu cheese. Appetizer prices are fair. I started with the Oysters Rockefeller, 4 oysters on the half shell covered with creamed spinach and panko crumbs for $ 8.95. The creamed spinach had a pleasant flavor but overpowered any taste of the oysters. There was a very nice choice of desserts but the msg left me bloated and sweating, so I passed on dessert. The wait staff is very friendly and attentive, butl unfortunately a very disappointing meal overall. For $ 32 before tax & tip, you will eat far better at Kleins. BYOB, credit cards accepted.

We had a
gift card and the place is less than 5 minutes from our house, so after 4 years, we finally gave it a try. Boy, are we sorry we hadn’t tried it sooner! We went on a Wednesday night and made a reservation, but there was seating still available in the cozy restaurant; however, there are only 12 tables inside, so Id suggest making a reservation. We tried the fried shrimp, penne Capri, sweet potato salmon, and chicken asparagus. Even if you’re not a salmon lover, you will go crazy for the sweet potato salmon! Servings were a good portion and desserts were tasty too.

Good stuff. Lots of homemade options. Calamari was big and super tender. Probably the best I’ve had. Stick with the marinara though. Thai sauce was a little too vinegary. Small seating area that I’m told gets real busy on the weekend. Takes reservations. Give it a try.

Again, after our son’s concert we came to dine as it is close to the school. Sure, Surf Taco is really close to the school — good inexpensive food and kids love it too! But The Lighthouse is more of a dining experience. Be prepared to wait for your food to be prepared, but that is stated on the menu, and we are realizing that is what we should do more often, have our appetizers and salad (with their home made bleu cheese dressing, so good) and fresh bread and relax! Because it is all totally worth the spacing of this pleasurable experience. Their seafood fresh and their pasta dishes are great Chicken parmesan for my son with plenty of pasta, because, like us, this kid can eat, and the quality is better than most Italian restaurants. I am in love with their clams casino and oreganata! But even more so, their risotto is creamy and cooked to perfection — just amazing I feel bad for giving them 3 stars last time, I was bumming about our server but have always loved the food. Our server this time was sweet and did not make us feel we were burdening her. The owner again walking around. The owners (or managers) sure do take pride in this place as they should, it’s a gem in Jackson!

Recently had a party there in the outdoor back patio and it was perfect. Food was great, price was reasonable, service was on point, and bring your own booze. Luckily, we had great weather to boot. Will be back.

EAT HERE, especially if you are in the mood for seafood, steaks, chicken, pasta etc. It is worth the wait and the wait staff is warm, caring and attentive. Yes the venue is small, that is true, but they make up for that by serving excellent made to order cuisine at more-​than-​fair prices. .
This evening’s meal was aboslutely marvelous. I started dinner with a house salad with balsamic vinegrette, which was not only fresh, but was served on a chilled plate. Marvelous! I then had their version of chicken proscioutto. What a wonderful dish. Fresh chicken, gently sauteed with prosciotto and fresh vegetables all in a succulent brown sherry demi-​glaze.
Next time, i will be dining there with my wife, friends and bringing a bottle of French wine.
:)
Bön appetite!

Who would have thought the best seafood on the Jersey shore is in the woods of Jackson? I have been here four times with a family member who is absolutely in love with the place, and every time the food is just spot on. Last time, my boyfriend got scallops francaise and they were just heavenly. The scallops where soft, not chewy, and not grainy at all. Easily the best scallops I have ever tasted.
It is a small place (Make reservations) and the décor is a little over the top. But I don’t go to a restaurant to look at the walls, I go to eat great food and spent time with friends/​family and this is a great place to do both. It is family owned and operated. My aforementioned family member has been coming here for years, and the owner and his wife always come out to great her. I would recommend this place to everyone.

This is a one room restaurant that is a bit tacky. The lighthouse them was over the top. This place is like going to your Aunt’s house where you’re address in endearing terms such as babe, sweetie and sugar. The Lighthouse is a favorite of the local 65 plus community. BYOB and a coupon makes this place affordable (the parking lot was filled with Benz, Lexus, BMW and Audi). They do offer an early bird menu if you eat before 6 pm. The food was good far from great for an average price of $ 23. I did expect higher quality. This was my 2^nd attempt at trying the Lighthouse as I am a sucker for a coupon. I wish then continued success but I wont be going back.

We went here for lunch. It’s a very cute restaurant. I’ve driven by this restaurant many tines in the last couple of years but never stopped in till today. I am so glad we did! My daughtter had the fish and chips and liked it. The fish was freshly battered and the fish was soft. I ordered the fried oyster and liked it. Husband ordered he blackened fish sandwich and liked it alot too. All our orders were hot and fresh. Service was friendly but a little slow. Will definitely return to try other stuff on the menu!