of juliet/ winter 2018/spring/summer2018

of juliet/ winter 2018/spring/summer2018

By Doug Holder

Decades ago—I remember working on my master's thesis at Harvard. The thesis was titled “Food in the Fiction of Henry Roth.” My adviser was a prominent Yiddish literature scholar. At the end of the project she told me, “ I thought food as your focus would be trivial, but you proved me wrong.” Food of course is now a national obsession, a hotbed for media attention, a subject for scholarship, etc...

This brings me to Juliet, a restaurant, bistro, cafe, etc... that now resides in Union Square, Somerville—the very place the Sherman Cafe, an old haunt of mine, once lived and breathed.

A few years back I had the pleasure to interview the young and ambitious owners of the said establishment, Katrina Juliet Jazayeri and Joshua Lewin. They are an admirable duo who firmly believe in giving their employees a “ livable wage.” This venue provides a unique dining experience—with well-honed dollops of French cuisine, among its many offerings.

But Juliet has literary aspirations. Josh Lewin is a published poet and just finished a stint at the William Joiner's Writing Workshop at U/Mass Boston. He and Jazayeri founded a literary/food magazine, “ of juliet.” On these pages you will not only find well-written articles on food and other subjects, but you will find poetry. Have if you will this haiku from Megan Guidarelli--”Pouilly--Fuisse, Clos Varambon,”

a creamy lemon

with a stone in the middle

waving a silky scarf.

Obviously Juliet shares my sentiment of food and drink—that it is fine fodder for verse.

There is also a “ I Was Listening” column by Lewin, who writes: “ It turns snippets of conversation from our dining room into stories everyone can hear.” Pedestrian asides about a resplendent smile on a dog, or the intricacies of eating a grapefruit, are turned into funky dialogue.

Included in these issues are—recipes, interviews, a fascinating piece about the Juliet staff cooking at the James Beard House in NYC, evocative photographs of Juliet by Grace Wexler, and much more.

This publication is surely part of the recipe for success at Juliet.

*** of juliet is available at Juliet
 http://www.JulietSomerville.com