Can a Restaurant with “Drugstore” in its name be considered Haute Cuisine?
by Susan on 07/17/09 at 8:41 am
we hear it's pretty darn good
Can a joint named Justus Drugstore in the little whistle stop town of Smithville, Missouri be considered haute cuisine?
You bet.
This two-year-old phenomenon, located twenty miles north of Kansas City, hit the jackpot when it comes to attracting diners who enjoy quality food prepared with care and served with precision and respect.
Just ask the New York Times, Food and Wine Magazine or Travel and Leisure, who have all written extensively about this destination restaurant’s menu offerings and operating philosophy.
Owner and Chef Jonathan Justus is committed to keeping all of his dishes local, so just about everything available on his small but carefully crafted menu comes from within a few hundred miles of the restaurant. According to their web site, “If we can’t make it from scratch, we won’t serve it.” Justus told the New York Times that the food is his version of Midwestern country cooking “created in a vacuum.”
A destination dining spot in this Midwestern community, the upscale restaurant occupies what once was the family drugstore, and typically books up several weeks in advance. However, for those not picky about where they eat, the restaurant offers patio dining with no reservations necessary, although there’s no guarantee that you won’t have to wait for a seat.
Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are also prepared with a splash of creativity and passion. If you order a Sprite, you’re likely to get a lemon-lime drink, made with fresh fruit, carbonated water and homemade simple syrup, prepared on site. You are also likely to get an offer that if you don’t like the drink, they’ll gladly swap it for a Sprite.
There have been no takers!
Have you been there, tell us what you think.
http://friendseat.com/restaurants/872865/Justus-Drugstore
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