Humain by Jul`s: from Ibiza to Athens with more fine dining intentions

I have to go back several years to remember the cute restaurant "Ep`Avli" located for many moons in the building that now houses Humain by Jul`s. I live in the neighbourhood and often pass by after it closed; I wondered why such a charming building had not found a new tenant. The other day, when I met cosmopolitan chef Christos Fotos at Humain by Jul`s - the restaurant`s head chef is Alexandros Rovakis - he revealed that the space has been in their hands since 2020, two years after they opened Jul`s in Ibiza. Still, the pandemic put the brakes on their plans for a while.

Jul`s has been burning hearts in Ibiza since day one since it "cleverly" filled a gap between the two extremes that kept its tasting scene locked in confusion: on one side, the Adria brothers` Heart and on the other...chaos. By emphasizing the cuisine that references Greek gastronomy and the fun for which Ibiza is famous, Ilan and Jem Akiouz and Christos Fotos achieved a golden mean that was rare - or even non-existent until then on the island. After this success story and more conditions had matured, they decided to breathe new life into Humain, creating a more refined dining simulation of Jul`s. And that`s how they got here.

The architectural duo Gavalas-Mourikis embroidered a golden thread in the restaurant`s decor: they transformed the interior, which spans two floors and several levels, into a cave with urban features and pervasive elegance, dominated by an open kitchen with a soon-to-be interactive dining bar and a lounge that evokes modern gastronomic restaurants in Europe. I won`t dwell any further on the atmosphere of the interior for now since the focus of Humain by Jul`s at the moment is its gorgeous rooftop terrace, which is more reminiscent of a roof garden of a luxury home - and I say that for good reason - than a restaurant. Even the decision to take the entrance off the side Agra Street rather than Archimedes Street is a sign of a "privacy" they want to give the experience. I liked that idea, too.

As soon as I was seated at the table, we were served a virgin, refreshing shot that landed almost simultaneously with the cocktail list. It`s worth a look, although they`ve done such a serious job with the wine that any wine lover will spend ten minutes gazing at their exceptionally well-thought-out list, which will be constantly enriched. And an extra trump card: all their glasses are Riedel from their top-of-the-line Veloce range - perhaps the most beautiful glassware. The service now moves around the place quickly and is courteous, though it lacks the quick reflexes to go the extra mile in the experience. I did, however, see familiar faces who have fingered the service at good restaurants in the past, so I`m sure it will improve soon.

I tried several dishes from Humain by Jul`s menu. An initial conclusion is this: while the kitchen has set the bar pretty high, I came across two or three solid dishes that show a potential even to approach 7.5/10, and some others that suffer from technical weaknesses and land it more or less at 6.5 which I rate it within this first review. The arrow next to the grade indicates that as they improve some of the problems I found in textures and tensions, they will get closer and closer to the following rating step.

The raw flesh of fresh sea bass wrapped in a delicate broth of mussels and yuzu kosho smells of seafood sweetness and raises the start of the dinner to a high, but then comes crunchy - I`m not saying - lettuce with kefir, guanciale and caviar. When you expect it to lift even higher, you land abruptly. It lacks flavour and beautiful tension. The kefir is weak, and more than the caviar is needed to save the batch. Their squid comes fully cooked in rounds. The sauce has exemplary density and a delicate aftertaste, but the chip covering it is soggy and quite thick.

The performance ramps up on the sweet-eating wagyu beef tartare and culminates in the best dish of the evening, served in two parts: the first brings Valley prawns, almost raw and immensely delicious with their heads roasted to hold their juices, while at the same time bringing out a gorgeous, delicately acidic casserole, moulded to perfection in prawn butter with egg batter. With this speciality, they could knock on the door of two stars at the next FNL Best Restaurant Awards. Also excellent was the famous Chilean sea bass, a bland fish by nature, which was elevated in flavour by the excellent lobster velouté with corn and quinoa at the base of the dish. I was looking forward to the lamb but still hit a wall. The piece hadn`t been cooked enough to caramelize enough fat, wasting the dish.

I wasn`t entirely happy with the desserts either. But I will very happily return to Humain by July to try the truffle and parmesan one that intrigued me and eluded me on my first visit and to see the evolution I expect on all levels from such a talented team.