A Little Bit About a Lot of Things

The ladies and I had been dying to try out Juniper in Wellesley. I love Sweet Basil in Needham and Juniper is Dave Becker’s second venture, a Mediterranean restaurant that opened in 2014. In addition to being a restaurant owner, Becker is also a potter. He makes unique dinnerware that is used in both Sweet Basil and at Juniper.

We start with the roasted cauliflower salad ($13) curry vinaigrette, arugula, spiced chickpeas, olives, toasted pine nuts and red onion (pictured top right). I love roasted cauliflower, it had a rich, warm flavor. A perfect start to our meal.

(Pictured left) They have a nice selection of dips and spreads (served with yummy flatbread), you can order them for $6 each or 3 for $15: muhummara (red pepper and walnut), matbucha (tomato, red bell peppers,  garlic and chili pepper), tzatsiki (yogurt, cucumber and garlic), hummus (chick peas, tahini, olive oil), skordalia (potato and garlic), and baba ghanouj (eggplant and tahina).

(Pictured bottom right) I HAD to try the lamb bolognese ($16) saffron pasta, roasted tomato sauce, chili oil and yogurt. A totally different flavor profile than traditional bolognese, but every bit as tasty. This dish has comfort food written all over it, perfect for cold New England days.

The restaurants generally only open for dinner service on Sundays. This Sunday, January 8th, for one day only, they will be opening their doors for brunch with a special guest chef, Avi Shemtov, of The Chubby Chickpea. He will be preparing a Middle Eastern-inspired brunch, including his signature Shakshuka from 11:30am – 2:30pm. Call the restaurant for reservations. If you can’t make it in for this special pop up, make sure to try it out for lunch or dinner at another time, the food was delicious.

Service was excellent, we were there for a weekday lunch. Parking is on street at meters.

Juniper 

13 Central Street, Wellesley, MA

http://www.juniperwellesley.com

Tags: bolognese, casual dining, mediterranean, wellesley