Southern Style Cooking at Jackson 20

Jackson 20 is named after the American president whose face adorns every $20 bill. Elegantly designed in the style of an old American tavern, the place exuded warmth on a cold evening. The gaint bronze pig in the center of the room and the whimsical pig-shaped napkin holders provide a clue to what is really special here: pork based items. In fact, they have a weekly pig-a-palooza event where a beautifully prepared whole roast pig takes center-stage as a band plays and bottles of wine are opened.

Jackson 20 is a restaurant located within Monaco Hotel, another lovely boutique property of the Kimpton group of hotels. Located in the heart of Old Town Alexandria on the outskirts of Washington DC, this hotel is only a short drive from Ronald Reagan international airport.

The restaurant was busy when I walked in. The hostess was a charming elderly lady who showed me to the table. My waitress took a few minutes to get to my table, but I was not in a hurry.

I sipped on their excellent Manhattan and watched the people around. Two varieties of corn bread arrived in front of me and they were amazingly good. There wasn't a crumb left by the time I was done!

The Oysters Rockefeller were excellent too: large Rappahannock oysters baked in herb-butter that left me feeling rather good, dissolving away some of my travel weariness.

I had ordered the North Carolina Catfish entree which turned out to be rather large, batter-fried and served on a bed of brown rice, gumbo sauce and crispy okra. Pretty good.

I ended with a Bread Pudding which was really good but also rather filling.

Overall Jackson 20 is a fun place for happy hours or dinner with friends and colleagues. I hope I am here next time during the Pig-a-palooza event so I can pig out on pig!