Downtown flavor

Justin Thompson on inspiration, community, and the future of Tulsa food

Justin Thompson, Tulsa native, has brought more to downtown than just a meatball burger, a martini lounge, a gilt and Gatsby-esque event space, and what’s arguably Tulsa’s best steak. The founder and owner of Juniper (3rd and Elgin), Tavolo (427 S. Boston Ave.), Prhyme (111 N. Main St.), and 624 Kitchen & Catering (624 S. Boston Ave.) has also won over the hearts and taste buds of Tulsans through charity work and foodie events.

The Tulsa Voice: You’ve brought several dining concepts to Tulsa. What’s your inspiration when writing a menu?

Justin Thompson: The inspiration for me comes from flavor affinities—pairing foods that go well together. There’s no better resource for that than two specific books: “The Flavor Bible” and “Culinary Artistry.” [They] are invaluable for any aspiring chef [as] a quick-reference guide.

Let’s say at Juniper I get kale that was grown locally. I’m going to go to that book and see what flavors are going to go well with this kale and what flavors are going to be seasonal. I use those books as a baseline guide and build upon that, using typical flavors for each cuisine.

TTV: How do you create the dishes served at your restaurants?

JT: It’s a collaborative effort with my chefs. I like focusing on using the best possible products and making it as simple as possible. I don’t try to do the coolest, newest thing because it’s cool and new. I try and think about what flavors taste great together. Then I think about how I’m going to make a dish that people will like and understand and feel comfortable ordering and feel nourished when they finish it. It’s less about what I can show off and more about what I want our guests to enjoy. People gather for meals to celebrate. It’s about how it enhances the dining experience.

TTV: What’s your favorite thing on the menu right now?

JT: We just tasted a caprese burger, so we took our meatball mix and made a patty, put that on a flat top, got a nice crust on it, covered it with fresh mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes, and arugula, made a basil aioli, and put it on a ciabatta bun. It was one of the best burgers I’ve had in a long time.

TTV: Give us your best tip for the home chef.

JT: I’ve played a lot with food, and I’ve failed and messed up plenty of times and figured out things that don’t go well together. So the biggest tip is just to play. Use foods that you really know and like. Every once in awhile, step outside your comfort zone and incorporate a new ingredient. Make it social. When you’re cooking dinner at home, have friends over—cook dinner as a group. It will mean so much more when you sit down at the table.

TTV: You pride yourself on using local ingredients. Tell us more about that.

JT: First, you get to know who’s actually producing the product. For example, Lomah Dairy (based in Wyandotte, about 90 miles northeast of Tulsa)—I know Stan, the guy who owns the dairy and makes the cheese himself. He’s a great guy, somebody that I want to support. And I know local products are going to be healthier; they’re not going to be sprayed with pesticides. The other thing is the local economy. I would much rather put money in someone’s pocket that I meet and see on the street or at the farmer’s market or my restaurant. It’s an important part of what we do—being community-oriented.

TTV: Do you have any upcoming community projects?

JT: I’ve got a dinner coming up for the Multiple Sclerosis Society. They came to me a couple of years ago [asking me] to donate a dinner for 8-10 people. I just decided I’m going to something more impactful, more interesting. Last year I asked them if I could donate a dinner for 20 that would honor someone suffering from MS. We honored Nancy Hawkins, who I’ve known for 25 or 30 years. It was really neat to create a menu based on what she loved. It meant a lot to me because it was giving back not only to society, but also to someone in particular. We are doing it again this year to honor someone else, a bigger dinner—I think 50 people. Those are things that I try to do now with my charitable time.

TTV: You also teach. What do you like about working with aspiring chefs?

JT: I feel like that’s your responsibility when you get to a point in your career where it’s not about you anymore. It’s more about my company, my chefs—I have 100 employees right now between the four concepts. I would much rather they succeed, learn, and continue to progress in their careers. I would rather have to keep hiring new chefs because they keep going on and doing bigger and better things and opening their own places. I think that teaching is kind of a form of giving back, just like we do with charity. I think it’s important to give as much of yourself as you can in everyday life.