Going Out

Photo Credit: Dan Watkins

By Kyle Wright

Most people are surprised to see Michael Moxley and Jim Cochener flinging open the doors of the charcuterie-laden Salty Pig. After all, the paint is barely dry on their Jamaica Plain hotspot, Canary Square. “I don’t know if I’d recommend opening two restaurants at once or do it again,” laughs Moxley. “But the timing felt right, and we saw potential in this space.”

The Dartmouth Street location housed Firefly before Six Burner sparked up for a brief stint, but the pair isn’t worried about turnover, having already found success skirting the Back Bay/South End line at their other spot, Coda.

Renovations were needed to bring the space up to snuff. “This was never intended to be a full-service restaurant,” says Cochener. “We had to completely re-do the kitchen and fix ventilation problems. They weren’t equipped for a gas stove.” Turns out Six Burner’s stove was electric.

Now, an open kitchen is fronted by a bar bathed in red light thanks to Campari bottles strung into pendant lamps. Reclaimed lumber adds texture, but it’s Asyera Sidauruk’s simple line illustrations on the wall that draw the eye. These chalk compositions use geometric shapes and tucked-away pigs to give the lofty restaurant a homegrown feel. Moxley and Cochener were so pleased they invited her to make a mural at Coda to match.

Chef Marco Suarez will do double duty at Canary Square and the Salty Pig, but here the focus is on locally cured meats and artisan cheeses. “It’s going to change a lot,” adds Cochener. “We want people to be able to get the best of what’s available.” That means ever-changing pizza toppings (for crusts pulled from the newly installed wood-burning oven) and sandwiches stuffed with all the pig’s edible bits.

The Salty Pig
130 Dartmouth St., Boston | 617-536-6200 | thesaltypig.com