Blue Jay’s Restaurant

Surprisingly tasty. Very nice waitress, fast service, and clean. The portions were generous too.

I must say this is a interesting place. In the middle of a small town called Manning on highway 26 across from the state park trail Blues jays was built in the place of what used to be a small town bar. To my surprise it was turned into a very cozy and slightly fancy restaurant and bar that serves a wide variety of dishes. As a local I was very happy to have a new restaurant in town and tried it out as soon as it opened.
On my first trip there it was a little chaotic, kind of expected seeing as they just opened and where getting though the growing pains. Ever since that first time it has been great! The owner Jacob is a nice fellow who can cook some mean Chinese food and is always a good chat if he has the time!
The food is odd to say the least, being Chinese Mexican and American in one place they seem to hit the mark on all of it. The Chinese food is not like your standard take out dishes, more real tasting if that makes any sense. The first dish I got there was their Mongolian beef and that was kind of meh, but after that first trip there when they opened it was super tender and had great flavor. Also I enjoy their pot stickers that they seem to be making in the back by hand. As for the American food all I have tried is the burgers and there are no complaints to be had there
Service: ¹⁰⁄₁₀ with Jacob the owner is a awesome guy!
Food: ⁹⁄₁₀ off from the normal Mexican and Chinese food presentation but overall really good!
Atmosphere: ⁸⁄₁₀ nice looking and well maintained but feels out of place when everyone is in logging clothes and jeans. Feels a little cramped when its full on Fridays.

We decided to try this place on our way to the beach. The first time we went, it was very good. We had the vegetarian omelet and country fried steak. The ingredients were very fresh. We met Jacob, the owner. The second time we went back, we missed breakfast, they stop serving breakfast at 2:00pm. It was like a different place. First off, it was a Saturday. The female waitress that served us seemed stressed out as it seemed she was the only one serving customers. Here’s the deal… when the server asked us if we wanted anything to drink I ordered a coffee and a glass of water. The coffee came but no water. I asked a second time for water. Food came. more about that later. Still no water. I asked another female server for some water. When she brought the water, it was one glass, there were two of us. It also had some «pink» color to it. Looked like weak Kool Aid. WTH? Finally, I got a glass of water. That’s it, one glass for two of us. I ordered the Burrito. They serve it with rice and beef or chicken in the tortilla, but the beans, more rice and salsa is on a different plate. It was very dry and bland. Need some sauce to make it less dry. I would recommend this place for breakfast, not for lunch or dinner. Too bad, I thought we had found a little treasure in Manning, but, alas, not so. We are very disappointed. We liked Jacob, but a friendly server is just as important as good food.

What a surprise! Our expectations were very low for a little restaurant on the highway. It was extremely clean and had newer furnishings. The menu was very eclectic, which sometimes worries me. There are Mexican, Chinese and American cuisine options on the menu. I opted for a burger and was very pleased with the huge patty of quality beef and generous fixings. My husband had a Caesar. He said it wasn’t special, but definitely good. I watched Chinese plates get delivered around our table and am looking forward to trying some myself next time. The waitress told her the wontons and something else were made in house. Our waitress was attentive and provided excellent service. The bathroom was extremely clean. I will definitely eat here again.

Great service and good breakfast food. Nice little place to stop before hitting Portland. We have two different types of omlettes. There was plenty of fresh veggies added.

This place is an absolute gem. We were driving west from Portland to get to Cannon Beach, and every exit has Mcdonalds, and the usual garbage so we held out for something local, different… We took a chance on Blue Jays because it seemed one of the last options, and only had a few reviews, but they were good so we went for it.
Service was great, food was great, atmosphere was nice.
Awesome restaurant, and definite stop for anyone traveling through.

Solid food. Great folks. Good bar and beer selection. Can’t wait for the warm weather to sit outside! Our new favorite place!

What a truly strange mixture of dishes… You can get Chinese, Mexican, Italian, and american in one place. It says Café, but it really has a bar, and open seating, so it may be a bar, or a diner, or a restaurant.
Much like the menu you can decide…
I had the Mongolian beef, which was a bit chewy and not as spicy as I like, but it was good. The wife had street taco’s she really enjoyed. I also had the Hot and Sour soup. It was ok, again not very spicy.
The place was clean and had a certain elegance about it. Pretty rare out in Manning where the diner of choice has been the Dairy Queen. So it was surprising to step inside. You really could not hear the highway traffic. Of course the music was louder than expected. But they were playing some AC/​DC so I was rockin out in the diner!!!

What a surprise to come upon after an active day at the beach and a traffic heavy drive back to Portland! We thought it would be nice to grab a bite to eat before heading home to unpack sandy wet clothes on an empty stomach. I’m always a little hesitant to try some of the restaurants along the highway so we don’t, but I read the reviews and thought it was worth a stop. The menu has something any finicky eater would like. The burgers were very good, the variety of salads are crisp and fresh, the chow Mein flavorful and filling. The outdoor seating looks relaxing on a warm sunny day. Pride of ownership is everywhere! We will now count The Blue Jay as another stop along the way on our trips to or from the beach!

We love this place. Good food and service. Please consider that this is Manning not Portland.

Traditional American food? Check.
Mexican food? Check.
Chinese food? Check.
Is it great? No. It’s just A-​OK. But I have mad respect for anyone who lumps all this stuff together out in the middle of nowhere. Props. Plus the place is clean and yet kinda feels back woodsy. There was country music on when we were in. And a soap opera on one TV. Mmmmhmmm.

We have been going here regularly since they opened. There isn’t anywhere else in this area where you can go have dinner and enjoy a cocktail, so their opening was very welcomed. It is family friendly and has a fresh menu that highlights Mexican and Chinese cuisine. My son loves the chicken chow mein and the sesame chicken with fried rice. Their tacos, pollo a la crema and burgers are also great. They have a full bar, the décor is simple but very clean, and the servers all work hard and are friendly. There are often multi-​generational family gatherings there which is nice to see.

Blue Jay’s was formerly the Ye Olde Dingheiser Rest. & Pub and is located next to the jerky/​fruit stand on Hwy 26 about a mile from Hwy 47. It has been open about three months and they offer American, Mexican and Asian food at reasonable prices. Hence, their logo of a Blue Jay wearing a sombrero while standing on chop sticks.
Apparently, they completely remodeled the interior. I was surprised when I walked in at how modern and clean it is. It’s also much smaller than I thought it would be. They have several tables outside which was a good thing on our visit because the place was packed. There is a nice bar with a large TV that shares the same space as the dining area. There’s about a dozen beers on tap including a couple of micro’s.
On our Sunday evening visit the three wait staff were doing everything they could to keep up. They should have a least one additional person assisting at the busy times. There was a group of 15 or so that took about a third of the tables in the dining area and it looked like most of the outdoor tables were occupied.
We had the Hawaiian Burger ($ 8.25) and the Pork Nacho’s ($ 8.95). The burger had a thick patty that was well done. We thought it was odd that it included tomatoes and onions which normally don’t come on a Hawaiian Burger. It was good, not great. The Nachos were a good size for two people to share. The chips appeared to be house made. Very tasty.
Overall, this is a very good addition for the Banks/​Manning area.