Some hits, much promise at J's
5/25/2004 12:23:07 PM by Matthew I. Pinzur
Just months after opening, J's Waterfront Grille is on the verge of something big. Executive chef Jimmy Carey has positioned the Intracoastal-front restaurant in an often-neglected niche: upscale enough to feel like a night out but comfortable and affordable enough that it need not be saved for anniversaries and birthdays. "I don't want to call it comfort food, but I want people to feel comfortable enough that it's not just a once-a-month restaurant," Carey said. There's room for about 100 in the tastefully understated dining room; another 50 can sit at the outdoor tables set serenely along the water. As with any young restaurant, the menu still has rough spots. Most often, they seem to result from reticence, as if Carey is reluctant to fully commit to his ideas. For a rookie chef, caution can be advisable, but Carey has been in the business for 20 years. The Johnson & Wales graduate worked at Brasserie Le Coze and South Beach Brasserie, as well as Morton's and Ruth's Chris steakhouses. One of the strongest dishes we sampled was his herb-crusted sea bass, highly recommended by our server -- and for good reason. Anineounce fillet is baked and then pan fried, keeping the fish moist and flavorful. The prize is a thick, breadcrumb crust with Tuscan herb flavor. Another bold dish was the fried calamari and shrimp appetizer. Carey takes the traditional deep-fried preparation and smacks it with lightning -a spicy Thai and chili sauce that transforms the taste. The seafood was a tad overcooked, however. But too often, Carey stopped short on flavor. The tuna sashimi salad (big enough for a light meal) combined mesclun and Napa greens with carrots, radish and scallions. The soy vinaigrette and mango-puree garnish lacked impact, and the tuna had no discernible marinade, so a dish that could have been a creatively sweetsalty was predictable instead. Penne Bolognese comes with what's described as a "light" pomodoro sauce, but it was too thin and watery for the pasta. Watereddown flavor also marred the spinachartichoke dip (its "secret" cheese sauce was loose and oily) and the crab cakes, which were cut with too much bready filler. Other attempts to stay simple were more successful, notably the well-executed seafood fettuccine. Generous helpings of fish, shrimp and in-the-shell mussels were kissed with a light but creamy sauce made from mussel stock. Anightly special of Dungeness crab legs was minimalist, served with lemon and drawn butter. The portion was large, though, and the legs meaty. In-house desserts were light and delicious, especially the crumbly apple cobbler and the mildly soft creme brulee. The "fruit sorbet" was a small scoop of vanilla ice cream over a bed of sweet berries and Chambord sauce -- no sorbet in sight, but still a satisfying end to the meal. Despite the challenges on its evolving menu, J's has a spunkiness, a hard-to-capture energy that transcends the food. Service was impeccable, from the sunny hostess to the witty waiter, and the place seems to pulse gently with a commitment to succeeding.