Seattle Chef Edouardo Jordan to open heirloom-grain focused bar

Chef and restaurateur Edouardo Jordan is planning to open his third Seattle venue in November: Lucinda Grain Bar, an ancient grain-focused concept that will have more of a casual vibe than his previous restaurants.

Known for his concepts Salare and JuneBaby, Jordan said the new 20-seat eatery will actually be more of “a bar first that happens to have really good food.”

The James Beard Foundation has named Jordan best chef in the Northwest and Salare best restaurant over the past three years, and JuneBaby was named best new restaurant this year. JuneBaby was also awarded three stars in a review by The New York Times in March, and Jordan was also named among those On the Rise in Restaurant Hospitality earlier this year. 

Salare, a chef-driven neighborhood restaurant, opened in 2015, and JuneBaby, a soul-food restaurant inspired by the slave food of the South, opened in 2017.

Lucinda Grain Bar will incorporate ancient grains into practically every portion of the menu, Jordan said.

The bar will focus on craft distilled beverages that use spirits made from grains, like bourbon and whiskey, as well as homemade kvass — a traditional Slavic beverage made from rye bread — and grain syrups for sodas and mixers.

Both the drinks and the grain-forward dishes will use ingredients like freekah, einkorn (an ancient wheat popular in gluten-sensitive circles), purple barley, farro, and land-raised rice (rice grown on dry land rather than in rice paddies), as well as gluten-free heirloom crops like millet (an ancient seed), legumes, and sorghum.

Details about specific dishes and menu pricing were not revealed. But Jordan said to expect a more-casual menu of fermented beverages, roast chicken, cured meats, and cheeses, in addition to the chef’s exploration of whole-grain varieties from around the world.

“As Americans, we eat some of the most flavorless, unhealthy grain-based products in the world,” Jordan said. “Commercialization has stripped down all the nutritional value in our grain product. We are excited to explore the flavor and potential of ancient grains.”

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