Jefferson Grill

Kathleen Squires

Citysearch

The Scene
The decor feels faintly Scandinavian, with blond wood walls, floors, and communal tables topped with white lacquer, while the crowd exemplifies worldly and eclectic--young, mature, straight, gay, groups, dates, suits and jeans. The often-confused service, unfortunately, is in no one's time zone.

The Food
A "skewer" bar introduces the diverse offerings, with meats and fish healthily grilled and hinted with various "scents." Fish, like the orange-tinged shrimp, pick up these hints more than meats, such as the surprisingly timid chili beef and clove pork, but the opposite holds true with the mains. Cornish hen retains a comforting, juicy essence, and confit of duck infuses a slightly sweet and peppery spirit. The portions are small, and the still-hungry should tread carefully on the dessert menu, which ranges from an interesting Vietnamese coffee flan with charred pineapple and sea salt to a downright strange balsamic ice cream with olive oil biscuit and figs.