Beaver’s is over-the-top thrilled to announce the arrival of Executive Chef Jonathan Jones to the kitchen at Beaver’s.  Jones takes over building the DAM GOOD food from Dax McAnear who is now Executive Sous Chef for Scott Tycer’s soon-to-open Textile.

About being the Chief Beaver, Jones says:

“Being at Beaver’s, I feel like I’ve come home.  I haven’t been this happy since my daughter was born.  I’ve spent most of my career getting away from home (cooking every cuisine out there), but Beaver’s brings me back to my roots and I couldn’t be happier cooking salt-of-the-earth Texas food.”

Leave it to Jones to bring his love of Texas’ rich culinary traditions to Beaver’s.  His daily “Brown Plate” specials are already huge hits, with winners like:

 

• Pan-seared Texas Black Drum with Taqueria Serrano Chiles, Fried Cabbage, Crispy Grits and Texas Toast;
• Boneless "Mick Rib" Sandwich:  Crispy Boneless Berkshire Rib Meat on Dutch Crunch Bread with Texas BBQ Sauce, Crispy Fried Onions and Hot House "Quick" Pickles
• "Duroc Pork ‘n Beans"- Local Jolie Vue Farms Duroc Carnitas, Braised Greens, Calypso Bean and House-Smoked Bacon Ragout with Guajillo Chile Sauce
• 1/2 dozen Smoked Texas Hand-Selected East Bay Oysters with "Ring o Fire" BBQ Sauce
• BBQ Catfish Sandwich: Organically Farm-Raised Fresh Texas Catfish, Cornmeal-Fried, with Jicama & Red Cabbage Slaw
• White Chocolate Bread Puddin’ with Strawberry Marmalade and White Chocolate Bourbon Glaze

Chef Monica Pope and Andrea Lazar, the creative team behind Beaver’s, are excited to have Jonathan (aka J.J.) at the helm:

“Jonathan brings incredible leadership to our team.  We are excited about his abilities to achieve consistency on our menus and bring very tasty ideas to the daily specials board.  He totally gets what Beaver’s was intended to be:  fun food, fun drinks and fun times with friends and family. 

J.J. has a wealth of culinary experience but he is very grounded in his own childhood background of Texas cooking traditions and diverse ethnic influences.  He has this incredible ability to put out real, honest food that respects the traditions that we have here.  He has deep ties to the local food community and is as committed as we are to sourcing local, sustainable products.  It’s hard not to get jaded in this businesses, but J.J. has not lost his love and excitement for good, honest food and he still gets excited about what the farmers are growing or about finding out about a new product.  He is completely committed to using our wealth of local food sources to offer wonderful food experiences that will ultimately be uniquely “Beaver’s.”

J.J. is incredibly well-liked by the Houston food community; he has a gift and people just want to come and try his food.  He knows how to have fun, which is what Beaver’s is all about.  There are a lot of J.J. fans out there, and we are excited about this opportunity for him to shine and cook his heart out at Beaver’s.”

ABOUT JONATHAN JONES

Jonathan Jones, a native of La Porte, Texas, gained a great appreciation for good food at a very young age.  He is a stepson of a European cook, grandson of a butcher and was heavily influenced by neighbors who steeped him in Mexican food and culture.

Jones is best known for creating the menu and shaping the concept at Max’s Wine Dive where he received accolades from both local and national media for his culinary talents. Recently, My Table magazine named Max's Wine Dive as one of "2006's Best New Restaurants," while the Houston Chronicle calls Jones the "Chef to Watch in 2007.". 

Jones is a graduate of the Art Institute of Houston and has extensive experience cooking in such diverse restaurants as Lakewood Yacht Club, Chez Nous, Ouisie's Table, eatZi’s, Aries, Riviera Grill.  In 2002, Jones opened his own restaurant, Café Chiasso, an upscale Northern Italian restaurant.  Café Chiasso opened to rave reviews and provided Jones the platform in which he was nominated Houston's "Best Up-and-Coming Chef" from My Table Magazine.  Jones was most recently the Executive Chef for the Cordua Restaurant Group’s Americas in The Woodlands.