The James

The James in Geneva has become a new favorite of mine this past year. The food is so thoughtful. Their eggplant whip (their take on babaghanoush) has the most amazing toasted crunchy toast to accompany. We also ordered the other bread appetizer that were hot cross buns, so soft and buttery on top….this was prior to me knowing I needed to eat gluten-free. I’m going to beg the James to please make an amazing GF bread option for appetizers and to clearly label the GF options bc I absolutely love this place (it’s possible they do, but I need to check back in to see). We have been bringing our parents and kids along with, and the decor is as good as the food. Interesting wall designs. Haven’t dined outside yet (the metal wire chairs didn’t look as comfortable) but maybe cushions will be offered in the summer. Hats off to the chef, every experience thus far has been appreciated. I’ve had brunch, lunch and dinner.

So, we ended up getting a table in the basement wine cellar—just us, no windows, barely any light, and it was pretty cold because the heat wasn’t on. Getting there was an adventure: the stairs were steep, uneven, and totally unlit. Not to mention we were noticeably under a bathroom. Menus were all different, notably because I have a gluten allergy and was looking for indicators of what would be safe for me to eat and only 1 menu at the entire table had a menu with those indicators. The servers were super nice (and honestly just as confused as we were about why we were tucked away down there). My salad tasted great, but for what it cost, the portion felt pretty tiny. Bottom line: when the place gets busy, it seems like management scrambles and guests get stuck in odd spots and treated like an afterthought instead of given a good experience.