Peek inside Jojo Eating House, new restaurant in Uptown Dallas

cool patio seating

lots of inside outsides bar and dining space

swanky

total miss on this living chandelier. who wants dirt dropping on their table?

crispy pizzas are popular here

yep, that's tuna and avocado. not too ambitious, right?

French chef Laurent Poupart (right)

crab cakes

JoJo Eating House, the buzzy new restaurant in the former Bella space (across from the Quadrangle at 2626 Howell Street in Uptown), opens this week with French chef Laurent Poupart at the helm.

Poupart, who lists former three Michelin star restaurant Au Crocodile in Strasbourg on his resume, returns to the restaurant business after a five-year stint as private chef.

The menu glides across much of the Mediterranean, though the region’s bright flavors seemed toned down on an early visit last week. Pizzas, housemade pastas, a smattering of seafood items (clams, mussels, fish, crab cakes, shrimp) and light, simple salads punctuate the menu.

The smart, well-chosen iPad wine list includes lots of new and old world selections, including a Numanthia Termes and a BTG Nero d’Avolo from Siciliy.

Royce Ring  of Plan B (Whiskey Cake, Bolsa, Oak) created the interior, an inviting, comfortable space that invites lingering over a glass of wine and crusty bread from Village Baking Company. French glass doors swing open to bring the outside in, while an extended patio around the side doubles the seating space. It may be Ring’s best work yet.