James Street Gastropub & Speakeasy

We love discovering new places to explore and James Street Gastropub and Speakeasy is probably our best discovery to date! We went there for the Concord Jazz Quartet, who were performing on January 21st. And of course, while we were there we had to check out their fantastic jazz-influenced menu. Our friend Sam came with us and she too was blown away by the music and the food selection.

The atmosphere might be one of the coolest things about this place. When you enter the building, you are greeted by a brightly lit restaurant and bar. It is a beautiful space, but it could have been swapped with any other nice restaurant. Once we told the host that we were here for the quartet, he led us to a staircase that we hadn't noticed. Upon entering, we realized that bottom floor is where the night comes alive.

True to its moniker, the basement certainly has a speakeasy feel. With dim lighting, a bar that featured liquor bottles hanging for the ceiling, and a stage in the front, we felt like we were breaking the 18th amendment. Ryan decided to do just that with what he says was "the best beer that he has ever had."

(He says that about every beer...)

His bottle of choice for the night was "Brother Thelonious Belgian Style Abbey Ale" which as you can see featured a fittingly 'monkish' Thelonious on the label. This belgian ale was dark but did not leave an unsatisfying bitterness on your tongue. Brewed by North Coast Brewing Company, proceeds from every bottle purchased go to the Thelonious Monk Institute, based in Washington D.C. This organization makes good on it's promise to "make the jazz aesthetic available and comprehensible in concert halls and classrooms around the world" by hosting the annual International Jazz Competition as well as worldwide "Jazz in the Classroom" programs. If you ever see this beer, buy it.

Continuing with the jazz theme, the Concord Jazz Quartet performed beautifully. Their instrumentation consists of bass, guitar, drum set, and vibraphone. The stage area is small, so it is important to reserve seats before coming out (something we failed to do!). Lesson learned.

Emma was specifically interested in hearing this quartet because Andy Reamer was the vibraphonist. He is currently a percussionist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra but he obviously has highly trained jazz chops as well. Major props to him as well as the rest of the quartet which included Eric Susoeff, Jeff Grubbs, and Thomas Wendt. All of these instrumentalists put their vast improvisation skills on display.

As for food, we kept it simple. There were three of us, and although the burgers sounded tempting.....

.....we went with wings. We had garlic parmesan, BBQ infused with coffee, and cajun rub. We were all in agreement that these were by far some of the best wings we've had. They were cooked perfectly and the flavors were amazing.

We also ended the meal with some spinach artichoke dip. Although the dip wasn't as creamy and cheesy as we expected, this was a healthier take on the appetizer. It came with fresh veggies and homemade pita which we quickly ate up. It was nice to leave the restaurant feeling that we ate healthy.

We had gotten to James Street early, so we left about halfway through the quartet's performance, which continued until midnight. In the time that we were there, we were thoroughly impressed with the venue, the food, and the entertainment. The three of us give James Street Gastropub and Speakeasy extremely high marks and would recommend it to anyone dining in the North Shore.