JONATHAN JUSTUS

Artist, Chef, Forager & Scientist

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Jonathan grew up in Smithville, Missouri in a family whose main business had been owning and running the town's pharmacy. But Jonathan's interests were elsewhere and the day he graduated from high school, he began a journey that took him as far west as San Francisco, and as far east as the south of France. Along the way he repossessed cars, worked as a bike messenger, repurposed old furniture as art, sold his paintings and eventually learned to become a chef in France. 

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In 2007 the Justus Drug Store closed. Jonathan, along with his wife and partner, Camille Eklof, returned to Smithville to see the family. The building was vacant and they decided to re-purpose the space as a true farm-to-table restaurant.

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From its inception, Jonathan was on a road of discovery, partnering with each of his local farmers to grow ingredients to his exacting specifications. He foraged to create menus punctuated by obscure local ingredients and developed complicated techniques that turned his restaurant’s larder into a culinary science lab. His goal was to ensure that every new dish he created said something about the culture and the food of this region, and it paid off, earning him two James Beard nominations for his work with the Drugstore.

 

Then came Black Dirt. Jonathan's strategy was to step down a little on his executional complexity, and make the restaurant menu more approachable to meet the expectations of a broader audience. Unlike the Drugstore, a 30 mile drive from Kansas City's center, it was a stone’s throw from the thriving Kansas City Plaza. 

He added seafood and expanded his range to bring in Vegetarian, Vegan and Paleo options. For the next two years Jonathan wowed his followers, old and new. Black Dirt was extremely well received. On the downside, Jonathan found himself having to spend more and more of his time focusing on the business side and giving up pieces of his main driver; fulfilling his journey of creativity and exploration. He had to make a decision to carry on down the highway, or to close Black Dirt and walk away. For those of us who know him, it was inevitable that he would choose to hand his partners the keys and return to his roots.