A year and a half after being brought in as executive chef, Logan Abbe will serve his first customers at Jaja this weekend during a run of private events. The restaurant will open to the public on Tuesday, February 3rd, 15 months after a car crash caused the Ohio City restaurant to abruptly close in late 2024.
Being put out of commission from the jump, Abbe had plenty of time to contemplate big-picture topics like, “What type of restaurant do we want to turn this into,” he explains.
Along the way, Abbe’s kitchen was completely revamped, with the former wood-fired grill suite being jettisoned and replaced with more conventional cooking equipment. That gave the chef the freedom to shift away from previous Jaja identities that were tied to live-fire cooking, such as Argentinian steakhouse fare.
“We can get more open-ended with our offerings and not just be backed into a corner,” Abbe states.
The chef, who most recently worked at The Last Page, has crafted an all-new menu, with zero retreads from Jaja 1.0. He describes it “Med-West” – a play on Midwest – that leans heavily into the Western Mediterranean cuisines of Spain, France and Italy, but also Abbe’s penchant for Asian influences. His steamed littleneck clams, for example, would look right at home in a French bistro, although here they are tweaked with coconut dashi, chili oil and scallions.
Whereas the original Jaja relied heavily on large-format dishes and family-style dining, Abbe has pared that practice down, he says.
“I don’t want to limit our dining experience to just one style of dining, whether that’s coursing or family-style,” Abbe explains. “I enjoy family-style but understand that some people like more of a traditional, elegant dining experience with appetizers and entrees.”
He makes an exception for the pig head chicharron, an impressive family-style cabeza platter that bears a striking resemblance to one that diners might have encountered at the Greenhouse Tavern.
“It’s a throwback to where I spent my roots era, where Jonathon [Sawyer] did it very well,” says Abbe, reflecting back to his time at that iconic East 4th Street bistro. “One thing I like doing is evolving anything I’ve touched or seen – take it to a level that is either unthought of or should be at.”
His features crispy skin and fall-off-the-bone-tender cheeks, jowl, tongue and the rest of the offal affair. It’s served with smoked tomato sauce, chimichurri, house pickles and leaf lettuce for rolling up bites.
Abbe is particularly proud of his beef tartare starring hand-diced short rib, smoked olives, and marinated egg yolk that is served with thin, crisp carta di musica. There’s a deep-fried ravioli featuring house-made pasta filled with roasted chicken, Ibérico ham and whipped taleggio.
To finish, pastry chef Hector Valentin offers desserts like Basque-inspired cheesecake, buckeye mouse and pistachio tres leches.
When guests do return to the dramatic upper-level dining room, they will find a Jaja a little less maximalist than its predecessor. The faux greenery that gilded the skylight ceiling has been removed, as have many of the ornate decorative details, leaving the 80-seat dining room “more composed,” according to Abbe.
Jaja has always been an impressive place to dine, even if the rest of the operation was a little less polished. It’s Abbe’s mission to make sure that the food and service rise to the level of the backdrop.
“I look at this space and want to give it the love it deserves,” Abbe asserts. “I think people who have dined with us are going to be in for a nice awakening – like oh, okay, this is what it’s supposed to be.”
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