Junebaby – The Hype is Real!

Junebaby – The Hype is Real!

Recommended by: When doing some research on Kamonegi I noted that it was named one of the Top 50 New Restaurants in Bon Appetit Magazine in July. Another Seattle restaurant on this list was Junebaby.  Not only that but Chef Owner of Junebaby won two James Beard Awards for Best Chef : Northwest, but also Best New Restaurant. This was not Best New Restaurant in Seattle, but in the entire US!

Description on the Junebaby website: Food with Roots – Southern food’s humble beginnings embarked when West Africans were taken from their home and were forced across the middle passage to North America. The term soul food originated during American slavery to not only describe a type of cuisine but also a period of time of oppression and overcoming hardships. It is traditionally cooked and eaten by African Americans of the Southern United States and merges influences from West Africa, Western Europe, and North America. As a result, America’s culinary history was built on corn, rice, peas, and the hog; many of the ingredients associated with Southern food.

Neighborhood/Type:  Ravenna

Address: 2122 NE 65th Street, Seattle, WA 98115

What we ate/drank:   Chicken Gizzards & buttermilk dressing  $9, Pulled Pork with pikliz, Carolina vinegar sauce & aioli  $12, Fried Catfish with pickled onion & tartar sauce $12, Chitlins & rice -$7.

Comments:   This post should have been written probably a year and a half ago.  That’s when the Edouardo Jordan hype was in full effect.  Chef Jordan is the owner chef of Junebaby.   Salare, his other restaurant had been open since 2015 in a rather odd place, the Ravenna neighborhood which will never be confused with the restaurant-centric neighborhoods of Capitol Hill, SLU or Ballard. Salare had received much acclaim, so when news got out that Chef Jordan was opening another restaurant on the same street, the anticipation was built up.

As soon as Junebaby opened accolades and four star food critic reviews from all over the country started piling up. From the very beginning, lines formed daily.

• Time Magazine named it one of 2018s “Worlds Greatest Places”
• Bill Addision, a James Beard Award-winning restaurant critic for the Los Angeles Times named it to his best new restaurant list.
• The New York Times gave Junebaby, Seattle’s first ever 3 star review.
• Junebaby was voted a Top 50 New Restaurants in Bon Appetit Magazine
• Chef Jordan won James Beard Awards for Best Chef : Northwest and Best New Restaurant.

We don’t really need to go on about the food being good, do we?

Here are some of the reasons that make Junebaby special:

• I think part of its appeal of Junebaby also had to do with a lack of Southern food in Seattle. Coastal Kitchen comes to mind, but definitely not many.
• They don’t take reservations unless you are a group of 8 or more, so if you really wanted to and came early enough you could get a seat for this renowned restaurant. If you want it bad enough, you can eat here and not have to wait months due to reservations being booked up.
• Junebaby’s quality dishes has “Special Occasion” written all over it due to all it’s awards, but the spot has a very unpretentious atmosphere you might not expect. It feels like home. It doesn’t have that modern, sleek decor like some of the other popular new places like Sawyer, Cortina, Archipelego or Copine. Junebaby is relaxing.
• Along the same line as the above. They are located in Ravenna, a quiet little neighborhood not known as a food mecca. I’ve read articles where Chef Jordan wanted to have restaurants that were accessible to the community and families. And Ravenna is family-central and close to us! Woot Woot! He really took a risk opening up his restaurants in an out-of-the-way area. It shows great confidence in his abilities that if he builds it, they will come.
• Check out the encyclopedia on their website. I’ve provided links in our meal description.  It not only gives information about the food at Junebaby, but also foods from all over.

A couple more details about Junebaby

• They are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Wed through Friday they serve dinner only. On Saturday and Sunday, they serve lunch from 11-3pm and have something called, Moonshine Hour from 3-5pm. This is when they are prepping between lunch and dinner and are only serving a limited food menu.
• They have a 20% service charge and they are very transparent about how this is split up, which we appreciate.  62.5% is distributed as gratuity to employees directly serving guests. 20% is distributed to employees not directly serving guests. The remaining 17.5% is retained by the house to provide higher wages and benefits.
• On certain nights, they have special dishes.

  • Wednesdays – Turkey Leg

  • Thursdays – Mac n’ Cheese with Newsom’s Ham

  • Fridays – Brisket Dinner

  • Saturdays – BBQ Dinner

  • Sundays – JuneBaby’s Fried Chicken

• Chef Jordan’s has two other establishments, Salare and Lucinda Grain Bar, located on the same street as June Baby.

2021 Updates: Take out from June Baby

Ratings

Atmosphere: 4.75

Service: 5.00

Food/Drinks: 4.75

Bang for the Buck: 5.00

Overall: 4.85

Locals Only Factor: “Locals Only” grading-We’ll assign a grading as to how “local” a place is.

• • Well known or Touristy. Most locals don’t go there unless they have business dinners or visitors in town.
  • Most locals know about it
  • Locals “in the know” know about it
  • Only those who live close by know about it.
  • You’re in on the secret. Don’t tell anybody!

Servers recommendations to visit in the future:  Waiter talked about going to a restaurant that was $1000 but it was his dream and he saved up to do it.

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