Dining Review: A modern spirit fills Jack Tar and the Colonel’s Daughter, from its decor to its eclectic diner fare
If Gray Brooks was a baseball pitcher, he surely would be a curveball specialist.
In 2012, he opened Pizzeria Toro, whose blistery-crusted pies — turned out from a massive beast of a wood-burning oven in the middle of the dining room — preceded by several years the recent wave of Neapolitan pizzerias.
Then, a couple of years ago, Brooks — who has worked in restaurants from the Triangle to Seattle (where he cooked for 12 years for 2012 James Beard Restaurateur of the Year Tom Douglas) — jolted jaded Durham palates with the likes of chicken fried duck tongues and beef heart tartare at Littler.
Last December, he came out of the bullpen again, teaming up with his wife, Cara Stacy, and business partner Jay Owens, to open Jack Tar and the Colonel’s Daughter. The very name leaves no doubt as to whether Gray intends to play by the usual rules.
Jack Tar, the restaurant, is named for the old Jack Tar Motor Lodge, erstwhile occupant of the building that is now home to the Unscripted Hotel, where the restaurant makes its home on the ground floor. The Colonel’s Daughter is the adjoining bar, a cozy, dimly lit space where libations span the timeline of cocktail history from the original Harry’s American Bar Bloody Mary to modern concoctions with names like Rosemary’s Bourbon and Kombucha Kooler.
The dining room, a cheery contemporary space with an open kitchen and mid-century modern accents that pay tribute to the building’s architecture, sets just the right mood for a menu billed as “a modern spin on classic diner fare.“
That includes breakfast, which is served all day and covers an eclectic spectrum from biscuits and gravy to Julia Child’s omelet. A turducken sausage sandwich on homemade English muffin (all breads here are baked in house) and a Spam bowl topped with a poached egg assure that Brooks’ reputation for tossing in temptations from out of left field remains intact.
That’s not to say you can’t get your fix of old school-diner comfort — with the proviso that it comes with that promised “modern spin.” The sandwich selection is replete with the likes of French dip (with semisoft Teleme cheese and horseradish on a kaiser roll), turkey club (with avocado), and a killer double cheeseburger amped up with caramelized onions and jalapeños on a benne seed bun.
A similar spirit pervades the selection of starters and entrees. There’s a thick, bright tomato soup that lives up to Gray’s stated aim of evoking the Campbell’s soup of childhood memory, tweaked for adult palates. And a twist on a Caesar salad with anchovy croutons and a creamy parmesan dressing.
Fried smelts are a perfect nibbling companion for one of those cocktails — or a draft beer or glass of wine from a varied and reasonably priced list. A respectful rendition of poutine (with brown gravy and Ashe County cheese curds), an item that’s practically obligatory on menus these days, happens to be particularly well-suited to the diner concept.
A short but varied list of mains under the Plates heading continues the theme: Szechwan peppercorn hot chicken with Hawaiian rolls and house-made pickles; pot roasted brisket with baby carrots, potatoes and cipollini onions; and a refreshingly different vegetarian offering of barley and spring vegetables, young turnip greens, cashews and green garlic.
And then there’s Gray’s Mom’s Lamb Spaghetti. Ask Brooks the story behind this one, and he’ll tell you that he grew up eating the dish, a homespun creation that his mom created by combining culinary elements inherited from her parents, a father born in Crete and a Durham native mother.
By all means, order it. You’ll be rewarded with an oval baking dish straight from the oven, filled with thick spaghetti noodles and hunks of tender braised lamb shank in a rich, dark tomato sauce. Topped with dollops of oven-blistered buffalo ricotta and baked to the point that the pasta at the edge develops a gratifying crunch, it’ll leave you wishing you had grown up in the Brooks household.
Supplementing the regular menu is a frequently changing list of specials. Recent temptations have included chicken fried chicken livers, roasted marrow bone, and a delightful riff on a salade niçoise featuring house-smoked trout, snap-tender local green beans, poached fingerling potatoes and grated hard-boiled egg, served on a bed of mixed greens and a generous schmear of white balsamic aioli.
Steak frites with bordelaise and marrow butter makes frequent appearances on the list, though the cut varies. Recently, a New York strip (labeled “club steak” on the menu) was accurately grilled, properly rested, and so flavorful I’d be tempted to skip the bordelaise next time.
Other entree specials have included roasted half chicken with summer squash, mushrooms and croutons; a vegetarian “lasagna without pasta;” and NC crab cakes with creamed corn, pea shoots and charred Vidalia onion. It’s tempting to think of the list as blue plate specials, given the diner motif, though prices are actually a bit higher than those on regular menu. Even so, it’s hard to complain about a list with most entrees just a shade north of $20.
The dessert offering keeps the diner theme going with the likes of French silk pie, key lime tart and a classic sundae topped with chocolate sauce, peanuts and whipped cream. A blueberry hand pie, served recently with a scoop of strawberry, was fine — but would have been better served warm. For my money the crullers — fried to order, rolled in cinnamon sugar, and served with chantilly mascarpone and house-made jam — are the way to go.
Service is friendly and suitably relaxed for a diner, though attentiveness can be spotty at times. The kitchen, on the other hand, rarely misfires. The only outright disappointment I have yet to encounter was dense, doughy potato gnocchi — which have since mercifully been pulled out of the starting rotation.
Proving that, unlike most pitchers, Gray Brooks is a solid performer at the plate, too.
Jack Tar and the Colonel’s Daughter
202 Corcoran St., Durham
919-682-5225
Cuisine: American diner, updated
Rating: 3 1/2 stars
Prices: $-$$
Atmosphere: contemporary with mid-century modern accents
Noise level: moderate
Service: friendly and relaxed, occasional lapses
Recommended: tomato soup, smoked trout salad, fried smelts, double cheeseburger, lamb spaghetti, crullers
Open: Sunday-Thursday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday-Saturday 8 a.m. to midnight.
Reservations: not accepted
Other: full bar; accommodates children; good vegetarian selection; parking in the Unscripted Hotel deck.
The N&O’s critic dines anonymously; the newspaper pays for all meals. We rank restaurants in five categories: 5 stars: Extraordinary. 4 stars: Excellent. 3 stars: Above average. 2 stars: Average. 1 star: Fair.
The dollar signs defined: $ Entrees average less than $10. $ Entrees $11 to $20. $$ Entrees $21 to $30. $$ Entrees more than $30.