Misstropolis

Monday, March 12, 2007

51 Lincoln, A Creative and Culinary Dream Come True

by Andrea Pyenson

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With the opening in January of his restaurant 51 Lincoln, in Newton Highlands, co-owner Jeff Fournier is living his dream. “After being in pretty high-end restaurants my whole career, I wanted to do something that addressed high quality at a mid-price point,” he says. The menu at the cozy new 60-seat spot emphasizes fresh, quality ingredients and reasonable portion sizes. And the room serves as a backdrop for Fournier’s art.

The 38-year-old chef-artist has painted all the large works in the restaurant, and the glass panels that separate the entryway from the small main dining room. He is also responsible for the small woodcuts that hang throughout the restaurant’s two floors (there is a small, 25-seat dining room downstairs). He sees the entire space at 51 Lincoln as “almost an installation.” The restaurant is painted white, and accented with warm woods, “like a gallery.” The banquettes and chairs are upholstered in orange tones that are picked up in the paintings that Fournier made specifically for his new venture.

Food and art have always played a major role in the life of the Amesbury, Massachusetts native, and finding a way to integrate the two has always been one of his greatest challenges. “I grew up in a house where there was always food going on. My grandmother and mom encouraged me to draw and be in the kitchen with them.” He attended North Essex Community College and started cooking at a local sub shop to support himself. “Within six months I was managing the shop,” he says.

Discouraged by the poor quality of art instruction at the college, he dropped out of school and followed his girlfriend to California, where she was enrolled at USC. He bought himself a set of knives and landed a job in a restaurant kitchen. Except for a year’s hiatus, when he managed a design firm, Fournier has been cooking, and making art, ever since.

“I’ve always tried to put my art in the food itself,” he explains. “At [The Metropolitan Club in Chestnut Hill, where Fournier worked before he opened 51 Lincoln], I did a lot of colored aioli, and tried to imitate a lot of the art in the food.”

Fournier describes the food at 51 Lincoln as “contemporary American” and his presentation as “less nitpicky” than some of his past work. The idea of the melting pot is very important to him, as is his Turkish-Armenian background. “I’m much more motivated by culture and ingredients than I used to be,” he explains. “I’m really into Latin food, especially Colombian and Mexican,” – hence the scallops and bacon “Colombia,” with stacked arepas, queso sierra and mango butter, currently one of the most popular appetizers on the menu.

“My udon noodle soup isn’t traditional,” he concedes. “It’s a copy. I didn’t come from that culture.” But he combines ingredients one would find in a traditional Asian soup – ginger, shiitake mushrooms, chili oil – adds shrimp and gives it his own delicious translation.

They are variations on a theme for the chef-artist, whose work looks like it’s going to be a very welcome addition to dining in the suburbs.

51 Lincoln, 51 Lincoln Street, Newton Highlands (617) 965-3100 http://www.51lincolnnewton.com

51 Lincoln’s Udon Noodle Soup with Shrimp and Chili Oil
Serves 4

This soup is a combination Asian soup. The broth is Vietnamese in origin, and the noodles are Japanese, while the vegetables are reminiscent of those found in Thai soups.

1/4 cup canola oil
12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt and pepper, to taste
10 cloves garlic, sliced
1 teaspoon chopped ginger
1/2 cup shiitake mushrooms, cut into julienne strips
1 carrot, cut into julienne strips
1 red onion, cut into julienne strips
1/2 pound fresh udon noodles, blanched and shocked in ice water
8 cups chicken stock
Juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons chili oil

1. In a large sauté pan set over high heat, sear the shrimp in canola oil. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper, and cook until it is half done (about 1 minute), then transfer it to a plate.
2. Add the garlic and ginger to the pan where the shrimp was cooking, and sauté over high heat until the garlic starts to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, carrots and onion and sauté until the vegetables are soft, about two more minutes.
3. Add the noodles and stock, and bring the stock to a boil. Add the shrimp, and season the soup with salt and pepper. When the shrimp are cooked through, turn off the heat and add the lime juice, vinegar, cilantro and chili oil.
4. Ladle the soup into four bowls and serve.

Adapted from Jeffrey Fournier