![]() They came folded into the omelet, because the chef-who came over to tell us this-thought it would be better that way. At one Sunday brunch, my guest asked for an egg-white omelet with mushrooms on the side. Orders can get lost, and requests are subject to interpretation. ![]() During the day, you order at the cash register and wait for food to be ferried to the table. The service, too, is much more redolent of daytime commuter takeout than a leisurely dinner. Lewin and Jazayeri clearly want Juliet to be a place you’ll want to come for carefully, caringly turned out dishes from morning till evening-but the very white, crisp, brightly lit interior doesn’t much lend itself to evening dining. With the generous schmears of thick chickpea spread and chutney, you need the caramelized roasted cauliflower for texture-and you’ll want more. In addition, a lunch-menu cauliflower sandwich on an Iggy’s baguette ($9) is slathered with an unmissable fried-curry-leaf chutney that Lewin learned while staging at the cult Indian restaurant Rasika, in Washington, DC. The pulverized, oil-cured black olives he adds to the gazpacho for depth also find their way into a bread-tomato salad ($8) filled with chewy cubes of homemade olive focaccia. It’s also a way for Lewin to showcase his mastery of the flavors of Provence and Spain, which sing through his puckeringly bright gazpacho ($8), garlicky and strong with tomatoes. ![]() You’ll have to taste what he can do with eggs, in soft-curded omelets (starting at $9) with lemon zest and fresh fines herbes tucked in with those terrific wild mushrooms or in a lush wedge of absolutely classic Spanish tortilla ($9). It’s a dish I could have every night, sitting at the high counter overlooking the kitchen.īrunch, though, might be Lewin’s strongest suit. Lewin’s meaty Bolognese ($18), livened with long-roasted, mandoline-thin lemon slices and served over the same tagliatelle, is even better. His pastas have a way with flavor that Hamersley would surely approve of-for instance, a simple plate of hen-of-the-woods mushrooms steeped in cream and butter-sautéed onions, served over egg-yolk tagliatelle ($16) that’s made by the executive sous chef who’s worked with Lewin since his time at Beacon Hill Bistro. Lewin has the instincts to make him a natural successor to Gordon Hamersley (and yes, I realize I’m going out on a limb here). Juliet has also kept some of the improvisatory air of the couple’s pop-up, Bread & Salt at Wink & Nod, which they ran in the South End while developing the concept for the restaurant.ĭon’t be fooled by the casual vibe: They’re flexing serious culinary talent here. ![]() Once they assumed ownership of the space, the couple tore down walls to expose a small kitchen, but-as the neighborhood happily discovered when they opened in February-they maintained the café’s airy, open interior and its welcoming atmosphere. When the Sherman closed in 2014, its owners reached out to the two regulars. When 257 Washington Street was the Sherman Café, the two would meet there often to talk about what their own dream restaurant would look and feel like, and how they could turn that dream into reality. Juliet may be Lewin and Jazayeri’s first brick-and-mortar venture, but the space has long been significant to the couple. So why do I say, “almost”? Because the same homespun quality that gives this little Union Square spot its appeal could be holding it back from greatness. The couple at the center of it-Joshua Lewin, a chef whose work I’ve long followed with interest and admiration, and his partner, Katrina Jazayeri-have charm and finesse in abundance. The dishes hew lovingly and skillfully to classic Mediterranean lines, the flavors are generous, the technique is deft, the ingredients are impeccably sourced.
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