I'm only giving 4 stars because it is on the pricey side. That being said, the food is fantastic and the options are endless. The drinks are also excellent (but equally expensive). As Portsmouth natives, my girlfriend and I love to go here for special occasions or when we have friends / family visit that want to experience really great seafood (but don't mind paying for it). The best part about Jumpin Jays is the flexibility they have with the menu. My girlfriend cannot eat meat or dairy but she CAN eat fish. Still, it can be a bit difficult to find a place that doesn't cook everything in butter or may contain dairy in some ingredients / dressings. The Jumpin Jays servers are very knowledgeable about the menu and the kitchen tailors meals to allergies very well. We love it here.
Fun spot in town. Many locals. Very good food. Good service.
Usually excellent food and service. Not the best location.
The entire staff is friendly and engaging. The whole team is dedicated to providing an amazing dining experience. It was our first time at JJ s and it was one of our most memorable. Bridget ensured that our reservation was accurate and we were treated with the utmost respect as we celebrated our 40h wedding anniversary. They were absolutely fantastic. Alexis was our server and she delivered the highest level of professional service. The food was outstanding and comparable to our experiences in NYC. Thank you all for providing us with a night to remember. I would absolutely recommend JJ s when you are in Portsmouth!! Bon Appetit!
Great food, and amazing service. I was very pleased from the moment I sat down. If I didn't have the kids with me I would have stayed with the wife for drinks.
This place is awesome!!! Great drinks... amazing food... wonderful service (at the bar).
My wife and I are from out of town was told by our Uber driver to give Jumpin' Jays a try. Sarah at the raw bar dining area was very knowledgeable about the menu. She helped my wife pick out a perfect pairing of wine with her Haddock. She helped me as well with my dinner choice of selecting the sauce pairing with my swordfish. I will definitely be coming back to the establishment.
While visiting Portsmouth, I wanted a creative seafood meal. Lobster is ubiquitous, I love it, and I can make it at home. Jumpin' Jay's was one of a few that sounded interesting on Google. We ended up at Jay's because it was closest to our hotel. This was an incredibly lucky break! Our perfectly chewy sourdough bread was served with olives and nutty, sweet roasted garlic that spread like butter. The diverse, creative menu made it tough to select a main course; I choose tuna. Served exactly rare, it had mushrooms and roasted parsnips. I have never seen a combination like this, and I don't know why. The buttery fish and roasted veg flavors blended to indescribable beauty. The kitchen is clearly run by a culinary genius. This cannot be overstated. Otherwise, the dining room is clean, with surprisingly comfy chairs. Waitstaff is friendly, attentive, and accommodating. Frankly, Jumpin' Jay's exceeded every expection. I wish I could give them six stars!
Expensive but I'd say for quality seafood it is worth it. It was about $85 for 2 people and that was an app, 2 entrees, and a glas of wine. Take it for what you will :)
Staff were a bit unfriendly. Quick food, but nothing stupendous.
Fantastic place! Shrimp cocktail is the best in all of New England, so aka the world. All fish are cooked to perfection. Drinks are great and the entire staff is always there to lend a helping hand. Is on the pricier side but this is where what you pay for is what you get was founded. Have a great time! Your friendly New Hampshire native.
Gem of a location in Portsmouth. Looks fairly homey on the outside, but this place is yet to disappoint. I've been with my family a half dozen times and am yet to have a bad meal. Fun service, great atmosphere... if you've never been, definitely go!
Great service master chef Nicole Fisher. Delicious!!!!!
Great place for dinner. Wonderful drink selections. I wish they would update the menu, I feel like it has been the same for quite some time.
Good was good, about average for the prices in the area.
Well prepared seafood, rich flavors, easy to access, friendly and knowledgeable staff.
Excellent Meal While on Business Travel in Dover, NH Area
Felt super fancy and gourmet but prices range just at the lower end of expensive. Great place to treat yourself or for a special occasion.
A little pricey, but everything is very good. The scallops were delicious.
Great restaurant. Good seafood, great service and atmosphere.
The service was great, meals and drinks were amazing. Restaurant itself was well lit and very unique in decor. I reserved a table for two and was seated almost immediately. Would love to visit again!
Didn't end up eating there when we saw the kids' meals were over $10. So may be good, but not for us.
Best lobster bisque I've ever had I think, but wasn't impressed with the meals. For the price they charge, the food should have been phenomenal.
Loved it! If you need meat go somewhere else! Fish & seafood are their staples and they are excellent at this!
I would say they have an interesting and ambitious menu, but fall short on the actual execution of the meal.
Awesome food and atmosphere. Wait staff was attentive but not overbearing.
Our experience at Jumpin Jay's was excellent. Having never been there before I thought it was more of a diner, but they have an executive chef, a suis chef, everyone is well dressed, the wait staff are helpful and friendly, the food looks amazing and tastes amazing. I felt a bit under dressed in my workout shorts and t-shirt, but that just says more about the experience. Highly recommend.
Staff is really nice, food was not bad but not great for the price...
I love everything about Jay's. The food, the service, the drinks, the atmosphere... It's all fantastic!
Enjoyed the restaurant week menu at the bar, but the bartender seemed a bit unprepared.
New spring mussels amazing. Tuna and halibut excellent.
I do not like seafood, but I loved their haddock, nuff said
This was so good! The haddock piccanta was Perfect.. full of flavor, crispy green beans and creamy smooth mashed potatoes. And the crab cake was divine!!!
Fresh, perfectly cooked seafood with elegant plating! We ordered the jumbo shrimp cocktail to start, and it was the largest, tastiest shrimp we've ever eaten. A must if you like shrimp! The fried calamari included potatoes and Shishito peppers, which was a nice touch. Definitely order one of the fresh fish dishes...cooked to perfection and really well done sides. The staff was very attentive and friendly too.
Great food and service. We got the Haddock meal, fantastic! Go at 5:00 and get certain drinks at $6.
I was disappointed. The oysters error great but the clan chowder was pasty and the divers scallops were just so so.
Service was outstanding. Food was awesome! Every plate was empty at our table of 8. Thank you for a wonderful evening.
Very pleasant experience!! The food is fabulous and the staff was very nice. Always made sure we were doing good. Keep the crumbs off the table by brushing it off. The pleasant thing to see was how the staff were all smiling. The food is incredibly delious.
Good restaurant opened late on a Monday. Nuce staff. A wee bit on the 'too salty' side
Good food but the wait was terrible. It took 45 minutes to get the first course. It was busy but isn't that what every god restaurateur should be?
These folks know how to surprise and delight with innovative preparations of seafood. Don't miss it!
Fresh seafood with great flavors. This is a lively restaurant with a nice bar. Every time we walk by, the place is full of patrons both young and old. We tried the clam chowder and it was delicious! The peppered linguine with scallops, shrimp, muscles with a light sauce was tasty. The shrimp cocktail on a bed of shaved ice was nicely presented with cocktail sauce and horseradish, but it had a slight aftertaste of a chlorine bath which wasn't appetizing. Would definitely go here again to try something else on the menu.
Absolutely wonderful! Great cocktails! Oysters are heavenly and mains perfectly prepared. We had the scallops and salmon. Scallops were perfectly cooked and my husband loved the salmon. We split the blueberry shortcake. DELICIOUS food all around. Great service.
Loved this place. The staff was very attentive, and the food was well worth the trip.
Mickey our waitress was fantastic. Very informative and patient
Great food, and exceptional staff. Lighting was a bit dark so it was hard to read the menus. But other than that no complaints.
Our party of four was seated at our reserved time. The wait staff was pleasant and professional. We ordered four different entrees after some very fresh oysters. The bouillabaisse, linguini with clams, diver scallops, and swordfish were all obviously fresh and very well prepared. Mine was delicious. The dinner was marred by two significant things. This was my first time here so I don't know if the kitchen is ordinarily so slow, but tonight they were. Our order of a dozen oysters took nearly 25 minutes and even then was initially brought out as 6. The correct order took another 15 minutes. Our entrees also were very slow, slow enough that the swordfish was almost cold when it was served. The second flaw was the noise level. Two in our party have hearing issues and conversation for my dad was impossible. The noise level was high enough that he had to remove his hearing aids. I don't know if I would go back.
Great selection of fish at Jumpin' Jays and its always cooked to perfection.
Super place - top notch dinner, cool atmosphere, recommended highly.
Was all very good...until our party was asked to leave so they could have our table.
Great food, good service. Absolutely loved it. The Scallops are awesome
I have never in my 65 years been treated as well as I was here. The food speaks for itself.....incredible. The service was as incredible and we really enjoyed an evening with family. We shall return every time we visit Portsmouth.
I meet friends in this nice place quite often! This is my favorite spot to pass a nice evening. I visit this place routinely. The meals are just great, the crew is polite and the cost is decent. I like going in this place to have a tasty lunch.
The calamari was super tasty! The haddock piccata was great and a good size portion. The only real downfall of the experience was the clams and linguine. The amount of salt was almost unbearable. The service was excellent and the drinks were great!
Went for shuck a buck. Had some great local oysters, excellent soft she'll crab, and scallop cerveche.
Always a great meal! Chef Patrick always makes sure to say hello and check in on our meals. We've tried almost everything on the menu and can't chose one favorite because we love it all!
Our party had three different fishes prepares three different ways, and each agreed it was among the best fish they've had. If you're looking for fish in Portsmouth, this is the place to go!
Food was very good, wait staff was very nice. Make sure you make a reservation, because this place is always packed. On the more expensive side, but so worth it! I highly recommend if you're looking for some delicious seafood.
Nice ambience, excellent service, and through the moon food. I've had monk fish many times, and liked it but never could figures out why people would call it poor man's lobster, now I know. Tremendous meal , our app. (calamari ) was very good and my friend loved the spaghetti and clams.
Great seafood options, on the pricey side. Nice location with parking nearby.
Ok clam chowder. They try and haute cuisine on seafood. In my opinion, keep it simple. Good honest seafood us better than let's give this a try.
The food is amazing! Best swordfish I have had in a long time. Price is a little steep but you get what you pay for!
I've come to this restaurant on multiple occasions and always am more than satisfied. Their food is top notch and the service is high quality. They specialize in oysters and seasonal sea favorites. This is a must stop for foodies and anyone looking for something higher end without being pretentious.
