Asian again? Yes, and it's a winner
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A lot of locals were disappointed when Boston Market closed its store in Newton Highlands earlier this year. That's partly because they were concerned an upscale shop would fill the space and detract from the area's neighborhoody feel, but mostly because they were sorry to lose a restaurant/carryout that served generally healthy meals (nutritionists may not agree that pureed squash laden with butter is really that good for you, but at least it's a vegetable) at reasonable prices.
Well, the new occupant has arrived, and there's cause for both lamentation and celebration. The main reason for regret is that the folks in Boston's western suburbs weren't clamoring for additional providers of Chinese or Thai or Japanese cuisine. Any entrepreneur who decides to come in with something more original or eclectic will probably make a killing.
All that said, Jamjuli is a gracious addition to Newton's steadily growing dining scene, and it's going to give its multitudinous Asian competitors a run for their money.
For starters, the place is lovely. Instead of the traditional artwork and handicrafts that hang on the pastel walls of most Thai restaurants, the decorations in Jamjuli - the name of a tree, according to our waitress - consist mainly of handsomely framed drawings set on an off-white backdrop and pretty sculptures arranged on shelves. The feel is crisp, clean, and comfortable, almost like that of a restaurant in a small art gallery.
Among the appetizers, we especially liked the golden ka-tong ($5.75), spring roll skins fried into the shape of a nest and laden with curried shrimp, chicken, black mushrooms, peas, corn, and carrots. The dish itself was deliciously tongue-tingling, and it got even better when splashed with some of the accompanying spicy chili sauce. The dip that came with the vegetarian spring rolls ($4), which were crisp and flavorful all by themselves, was a treat in its own right; it was an unusual spicy-sweet concoction derived from white turnips, thin slivers of which added a nice crunch to the sauce.
The chef, who came to Jamjuli from the Thai restaurant Amarin in nearby Wellesley, displayed just as deft a hand with his more subtle creations. The two soups we tried make the point: The coconut soup with shredded chicken ($2.50) achieved a smooth balance of sweetness from its coconut-milk base and tang from infusions of lime and galanga (a root spice related to ginger); the vegetable soup ($2) was satisfying simplicity itself, just an array of crisp, colorful vegetables swimming in a thin, gently seasoned broth.
One of Jamjuli's delights is its generous use of vegetables throughout the menu, and it doesn't scrimp in order to cut costs. So rather than buying hard, tasteless tomatoes now that they're out of season - as even some pricey restaurants do - it used costlier cherry tomatoes in the pineapple fried rice ($7.50), which also teemed with peas, mushrooms, crab, and chicken. And the fiery lemon scallops ($10.75) were nearly suffocated by the black mushrooms, pea pods, and other green vegetables on the plate.
Jamjuli won high marks in many categories, including its efficient and friendly service, but it distinguished itself with its easy, accommodating response to special requests. For instance, one member of our party asked whether something could be substituted for the green pepper in her order and whether the advertised main ingredient - shrimp or chicken - could be replaced by tofu. What she got was the hit of the night for $9, consisting of firm cubes of tofu, slices of baby eggplant, string beans, bamboo shoots, Thai melon, fried basil, and the substitute vegetable, asparagus, all drenched in one of the best green curry sauces we've had in a very long time.
Few other selections on the menu soared to that height, but neither did anything fall to so low a standard that we wouldn't gladly try it again. In fact, we had only one serious complaint: The chicken in too many dishes was boiled rather than sauteed, fried, or prepared in some other fashion that might have enhanced its taste. As presented, the small shreds of meat weren't tough, but neither were they juicy or tender. Moreover, while they picked up elements of whatever sauce or spices they encountered, they added too little flavor of their own.
That deficiency undercut otherwise pleasing items like the Jamjuli garden ($8.75), an attractive bed of broccoli, cauliflower, and green beans, along with the boiled chicken, topped with a barely spicy peanut sauce. And it was a doggone shame of an ingredient in the pine nuts chicken ($9.50), which we'd still highly recommend for its wonderfully crisp array of vegetables and remarkably rich, hearty ginger-soy broth.
If this turns out to be Jamjuli's only significant problem, it'll do just fine. Besides, it's nothing that couldn't be easily remedied by a short walk to a wok.
