The folks at Field & Vine have been expanding slowly into new culinary adventures since opening their inaugural storefront in Union Square in 2017. Inspired by seasonal, sustainable and local sourcing, chef Andrew Brady and co-owner Sara Markey teamed up with the ownership of Rebel Rebel wine bar in Bow Market and opened Dear Annie on the restaurant-rich stretch of Massachusetts Avenue between Harvard and Porter squares just as pandemic protocols allowed people to dine in again. It could have been dicy, given the eviscerating effect of Covid on the food industry, but the venture, which serves up sea- and flora-leaning plates – a Sea Dog, please! – has the hungry milling around waiting for seats at the eatery’s big, communal indoor table.
Keeping with the slow yet steady expansion, late last year the crew opened June Bug. Just around the corner from Field & Vine, the concept holds to the same local, seasonal and sustainable aims and, like Annie, has a veggie and pescatarian lean. It also has a slate of wood-fired pizzas. That’s right, tapas and ’za, a combination that’s intriguing and worth the sojourn.
The interior is an inviting series of Scandinavian-inspired nooks with a high-top bar at the center. Off to the side is an impressive wood oven – a holdover from T&B Pizza, which was spun off from Bronwyn next door – so all can see the prepping of their pies. The pizzas, which have that pillowy Neapolitan look, come in the traditional and playful. The 50 Degrees in January comes with classic sweet Italian sausage and unlikely but intriguing playmates: squash purée, jalapeño pickles and feta. A vegan option, the Vegan Dream, comes with a cashew sauce, greens and spicy pickles.
To me, the tapas side of the menu is the true pull, with its crudos and tartares, mushroom and winter citrus salads, pinto beans tossed with pickled Jimmy Nardello peppers (sweet, not hot) and shrimp toast, a prawny yum. I had a scallop and tuna tartare starter crowned with homemade taro chips, which was generously portioned, fresh and clean and accented lightly by citrus and herbs. For my follow-on there was no question; the one large – or I should say largest – dish June Bug has on its small-plates slate is a skate wing. Not enough places anywhere serve skate, which is too bad, as it’s lean, flakey and delicious. One reason I’ve been told it’s hard to find is not cost or availability, but because it goes bad more quickly than most fish. And then there’s the prep: Skates are member of the cartilaginous ray and shark family, and the thick skin can prove a challenge.
Even before arriving at June Bug, I know exactly what I was having. The wing steak comes blackened atop a puree of turnip and celery root with maple butter accents. The fish came out perfectly moist and flaky, and the play between the sweet, rich maple butter and mouth-puckering blackening spices really enriched a nicely prepared piece of fish without overpowering it. The puree added a hearty way to sop up the final orts. My only complaint is that there wasn’t more to be had. Two orders next time.
Know that June Bug automatically charges a 20 percent gratuity and 4 percent kitchen fee. Reservations, even for the bar, are a necessity. Also, given the seasonal concept, I’d expect a menu change soon.
June Bug, 251 Washington St., Union Square, Somerville
Tom Meek is a writer living in Cambridge. His reviews, essays, short stories and articles have appeared in the WBUR ARTery, The Boston Phoenix, The Boston Globe, The Rumpus, The Charleston City Paper and SLAB literary journal. Tom is also a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics and rides his bike everywhere.
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