JULIAN,KANSAS CITY: EATING OUT

Striking a pose with Celebrity Chef Celina Tio

I am passionate about the cities I love for its own special reasons. And its no coincidence that every city I love has a great food scene.Be it Kolkata, Mumbai Delhi or my Kansas City,every city has its own treasure trove of much more than just dinners,drive ins and dives.

We all have our favorites as well, even in the cities we love. When it comes to restaurants in Kansas City, we are very passionate and proud of  JULIAN by James Beard Award Winning Chef Celina Tio.  The name Julian also has a Julia Child connection,in case you didn't know. I still remember how much we rooted for Chef Tio during the Iron Chef competition on Food Network a few years back. It was like rooting for a member of your family.Always proud of you Chef. recently she had put up an ad for a job opening at one of her restaurants,and I must say, I felt tempted to apply.When my husband came to know of it, he told me that I should have applied for it and tried to follow my passion. Maybe next time, there's an opening Chef, I will surely be there for an interview.

I had been planning this post for long,but it somehow did not happen. So rather than concentrating on just one visit to Julian and a review, I though of writing about my favorites from the restaurant.
Julian is nestled in the lovely neighborhood of Brookside close to the State Line road, in Kansas City,Missouri. Whenever I go to Julian and park my car, the neighborhood and the outer facade of Julian give me an impression as if I am on holiday. it just has taht great vibe which instantly lifts your spirits. So when you do not have plans for a holiday,yet your heart wants one, head over to Julian for sure.

The first time I went to Julian was in 2012 for our Anniversary Brunch. The man was neck deep in work even on a Sunday but we made sure we had something special planned. The decor in Julian is very modern , I love the bluish grey accent walls and the steel furniture. Nothing dated about this joint. Tres Chic !!!

 We started off with Ice Tea. For our first course we opted for SMOKED SALMON AND DEVILLED EGGS CROSTINI, topped with some pickled red onions. It was a wonderful play of textures. The smoked Salmon and devilled eggs were velvety, the crostini was nice and toasty and the pickled red onions, added a lovely crunch and some acidic element. I could have 5 more plates of it.

For our main course both of us opted for Chef i play on Eggs Benedict. We ordered for CUBAN BENEDICT WITH PULLED PORK AND MANCHEGO CHEESE AND SAUTEED POTATOES. When it was brought over to our table, I had to take a moment to just admire it. A work or Art indeed. The Manchego Cheese was light and wispy and cast such a dreamy touch to the whole dish. Perfect for a romantic Anniversary brunch for sure.

Needless to say, they have become our all time favorites.

For our next visit to Julian, we were a family of three. Our daughter Riona had joined us for a birthday party we attended there. Did I tell you  that we convinced the Birthday Boy that JULIAN was his best choice for throwing a Birthday Lunch. Bingo !!

We started off with CHINESE STYLE FRIED CHICKEN WITH GARLIC AIOLI, and LIVER PATE and TOMATO BEET SOUP. The soup was a cold soup and was perfect palate cleanser. I am not much of Fried Chicken fan,but this Chinese Fried Chicken surely had me reaching out for more. The piece de resistance was surely the Pate. I love my pates. And in my entire pregnancy I was off of pates. So I made sure I was sneaking in extra helpings from the plate while everyone was enjoying the birthday banter. It was like silk on my tongue.

For the main course the majority of our friends seemed to opt for SEARED TROUT served over ALMOND BASMATIC RICE. For every Fish loving Bengali, it was as if someone had tugged a chord at our hearts. Serving Fish with Rice, Chef Tio , you surely had a home run here with all Bengalis. The fish skin and the flesh were such a familiar taste for us, that everyone kept praising it at every bite. yes,at every bite and I am not kidding. It was like Mom's cooking had a trendy makeover.

Check out the fish in everyone's plate

There were a few who opted for the CRISPY PORK SHOULDER. I had a bite of it when I was already in Food Coma over the fish,but it was great in its own way.

By this time the entire Birthday party was almost in deep Food Coma,but we took it a step forward and ordered desserts. ROCKY ROAD CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE PUDDING and CHOCOLATE MOUSSE. The perfect ending to a perfect lunch.

We will surely keep looking for excuses to go back to Julian. Chef Tio changes up the menu every now and then and we dont want to miss what she has to offer.

JULIAN
6227 BROOKSIDE PLAZA
KANSAS CITY,MO 64113
Website: http://www.juliankc.com/