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Joon has turned a 9,700-square-foot space at Fairfax Square into an ambitious showcase for Persian food and hospitality. Located at 8045 Leesburg Pike in Tysons, near McLean, the restaurant combines traditional Iranian recipes, live-fire cooking and an elaborate dining room with seating for 240 guests.
McLean resident Reza Farahani founded Joon with the goal of creating a fine-dining destination grounded in Persian culture. The kitchen brings together chef-owner Chris Morgan and executive chef Najmieh Batmanglij, both James Beard Award semifinalists.
Morgan grew up in McLean and later earned a Michelin star at Maydan in Washington. He has twice been named a James Beard Award semifinalist, including for his work at Joon.
Batmanglij, the author of the cookbook Food of Life, has spent decades teaching Persian culinary traditions to wider audiences. She and Morgan met in 2013, when he attended one of her Persian cooking classes in Georgetown. Their partnership pairs her knowledge of traditional recipes with his live-fire techniques.
Meals open with complimentary house-baked lavash accompanied by an olive-and-walnut spread with pomegranate molasses, whipped herb butter, and goat and feta cheeses. Among the spreads are kashk-e-bademjan, made with roasted eggplant and fermented yogurt, and mast-o khiar, which combines cucumber, walnuts, garlic, mint, tarragon and dill.
Batmanglij’s duck fesenjoon draws on a traditional stew from Iran’s Gilan province. Joon’s version features local duck braised in a walnut-thickened pomegranate sauce and topped with crisp onions.
The kebab menu includes head-on prawns, Cornish hen and lamb rib chops. Yogurt-based marinades incorporate ingredients such as lime, saffron, butter, coriander and honey. The grilled meats and seafood are served with vegetables and chelow rice with tahdig, the crisp layer formed at the bottom of the pot.
Other menu offerings include lamb-and-pistachio meatballs, sour cherry rice and Persian Love Cake.
Designer Michelle Bove of DesignCase created an interior inspired by midcentury Tehran and contemporary luxury. The restaurant’s multiple rooms feature wood paneling, floral wallpaper, velvet seating, marble tables, chandeliers and herringbone floors accented with turquoise tile. A turquoise-tiled bar seats 24, while backgammon sets appear throughout the space.
Joon has received recognition from national and regional dining publications, and Washingtonian readers named it Virginia’s best restaurant. Its services include complimentary valet parking, private dining, weekend brunch, a Social Hour and a Tuesday prix-fixe menu. Reservations are available through OpenTable and the restaurant’s website.