Welcome news for Jamaica Plain residents: The team behind Brookline’s Fairsted Kitchen (1704 Beacon St. at Tappan Street) will open a Southern restaurant at 365 Centre St. this summer.
The Frogmore will replace the Centre Street Sanctuary, which closed last month on the Blessed Sacrament Church campus. The restaurant will focus on low country cooking, an homage to chef Jason Albus’s childhood in South Carolina. In addition to Albus, Frogmore is helmed by co-owners Andrew Foster and Steve Bowman, plus Fairsted bar manager Alex Homans.
“We’re so excited to move into JP. We love the neighborhood. There’s an energy, a mix of Latin markets, international foods, and beautiful old houses. It feels so alive,” says Bowman.
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He says that Albus plans to serve “the rich flavors of the Carolina coast”: classic dishes like Frogmore stew (a mix of shrimp, sausage, corn on the cob, and potatoes), shrimp and grits, and green tomatoes. Prices will be relatively affordable, with most entrees under $30. Homans—the restaurant’s “beverage shaman”—will focus on a drinks program that incorporates Southern ingredients like pickled peach syrup; there will also be 13 draft lines. Bowman says the wine list is completely American.
The dining room will have plenty of hanging plants, Spanish moss, and antique wallpaper with pineapple motifs. “Pineapples are a true mark of hospitality in the South. There, you show up at a neighbor’s house with a pineapple,” Bowman says. The space has 85 seats, plus a 20-seat patio.
For now, Albus will divide his time between Fairsted and The Frogmore. Meanwhile, “spirit whisperer” Will Isaza will take over for Homans behind Fairsted’s bar.
Kara Baskin can be reached at kcbaskin@gmail.com.