OPENINGS

SAVOR

BOLD FLAVORS, COOL COCKTAILS, AND LOCAL FAVORITES

OPENINGS Moment TO ARISE

A new modern Asian restaurant concept is taking flight in Jupiter. Blackbird is the latest venture from Scott Frielich, Angelo Abbenante, and Cleve Mash, the longtime friends behind PapiChulo Tacos. Tim Nickey—who previously worked at David Grutman’s Komodo and Jeffrey Chodorow’s China Grill in Miami—serves as executive chef, whipping up elevated dim sum and Chinese American favorites. One such example are the char siu pork spareribs, which were inspired by dishes Frielich and Abbenante ate at local Chinese restaurants growing up.

“Angelo and I loved those oldschool spareribs that were tough and bright red,” Frielich says. “The other guys [Mash and Nickey] wanted them to fall off the bone, but Tim was able to smoke them in such a way that they ended up perfectly in between.”

The restaurant’s interior is as vibrant as the cuisine. West Palm Beach–based designer Kat Solomon transformed the two-story, 5,500-square-foot space, which is decked out with flocks of paper birds and murals by South Florida artist Amanda Valdes. With entertainment including live DJs on Friday and Saturday evenings, Blackbird is destined to live up to its rock-and-roll-inspired name. (blackbirdmodernasian.com) –Mary Murray

ALISSA DRAGUN PHOTOGRAPHY