This is from Goin’ Coastal, a new seafood place in the Highlands. On Mon, Tues, Wed nights you can get a lobster, fries and slaw for $15. They have a ton of other great specials, as well as a pretty decent, if small, wine list. Great weeknight find!
Cliche Pun on Book Title
eat. drink. be merry.
It’s been around forever, and somehow I had never stopped in. Krog Bar is tucked away in the same complex as Rathbun’s, and is owned by the same people. It’s a small space, but I liked that it felt like a secret. It wasn’t very crowded on a Tuesday night, so I had no problem getting a table. About half the space is a patio, so if the weather’s bad, it might be tough to get a spot. On the other hand, when the weather turns nice, I’d love to camp out here on the patio for an evening.
Fun wine list where I didn’t recognize a single bottle. They offer everything by the glass, so it’s easy to try a couple different wines. The menu is entirely small plates and I’d recommend just ordering a few things and sharing. I especially liked the flatbread and the charcuterie plate.
Good spot for: parents in town or night out with friends.
Note: they don’t take reservations.
I eat this yogurt almost every morning, so I’m excited to see it with 0% fat and some new flavors.
New flavors include: cherry pomegranate, blueberry acai, mango guanabana, & strawberry goji. Yum! I tried the strawberry goji this morning and it tasted like candy. Which sounds gross, but it worked really well with the yogurt.
If you’ve never had this brand of yogurt before, I definitely recommend it. On its own, the yogurt is very sour. But it’s the thickest, richest yogurt available.
I thought I was kind of over the “upscale southern” food trend. But then I went to Local Three. Housed in the former Joel space, the owners have completely transformed the restaurant from a hall of European elegance to a modern barn with velvet Elvis portraits on the walls. The place is a bit hard to find, but was packed when I visited on a recent Friday night.
The thing that struck me the most was our server. She was upbeat, friendly, and helpful. It’s sad that this is so rare that it’s worth commenting on, but she was truly a delight and made our meal that much better.
After perusing their beverage list, I decided to start with an Old Fashioned. The amount of Bourbon they offer (at least 30 bottles, including Pappy Van Winkle) was a good signal that they take their cocktails seriously.
We also ordered one of our favorite bottles of wine, Quivira Sauvignon Blanc. Local Three has a well-curated wine list with some hard-to-find bottles.
We started with the crispy brussel sprouts and the chicken liver pate. Both were excellent. The sprouts were roasted, I think in duck fat, which gave them a rich flavor and a nice texture as well. This was one of the best versions of chicken liver pate that I’ve ever had, mainly due to the house-made marmalade spread on top of the liver. Yum! Apparently they change up which fruit they use fairly often.
(Also note the adorable vintage salt & pepper, they had a different set on each table)
We also had a perfectly nice salad of winter greens. But the standout of the night had to be our North Carolina Flounder with linguine, shaved garlic and lobster butter. The fish was perfectly cooked and lightly breaded. The linguine with lobster butter was one of the better pasta dishes I’ve had at a restaurant. Silky pasta lightly coated in a super rich sauce…I’m salivating just thinking about it. The restaurant was kind enough to split our dishes onto two plates without making a fuss or including an extra charge.
I want to go back and try the Chicken Pot Pie- it’s been getting a lot of buzz as one of the best versions in town. They also have a great cheese plate and a charcuterie plate playfully called the Notorious P.I.G. If you come in for brunch, $18 gets you a pass into the famous $1 Million dollar kitchen for an all-you-can-eat buffet. The placemat is a map of the kitchen.
Considering everything up until this point was great, we opted to have dessert. We chose the chocolate pudding cake with Captain Crunch ice cream and salted caramel.
A perfect end to a nearly perfect meal. Local Three has earned itself a spot on my “favorites” list.
Our meal total came to about $80, but at least half of it was alcohol. Appetizers run from $3-11 and mains are between $10-25. They also appear to have a nice private room for a special occasion. I’m considering it as an option for a graduation dinner :)
Rooster14 makes some of the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever bought. They’re big, come in a distinctive ice cream scoop shape, and are slightly salty, giving them a unique flavor. If you need to bring a quick gift to someone, I definitely recommend a box of these!
Lemelson Pinot Noir (2008) Thea’s Selection from Willamette Valley, Oregon. We ordered this Pinot last night at Abattoir, and I couldn’t get over how good it is. It had a smooth, velvety texture and tasted slightly like cherries. It was a random pick off the menu, but is now a new favorite. For all my Pinot-loving friends, run out a buy a bottle if you can find it.
Update: This bottle was $32 at Abattoir, which seemed like the regular retail price when I looked it up. Then, I happened to be looking over the wine list for Local Three (review coming soon) and noticed they list it at $67! Lesson: go to Abattoir now and grab this bargain!
I was temporarily confined to the house during Atlanta’s snow storm in early January, but I had luckily just visited Ale Yeah!, so I had plenty to keep me busy. Here’s some of what I was doing:
Hitachino Red Rice is a Japanese beer that tasted unlike anything I’ve ever had before. There’s a strange, but not altogether unpleasant, hint of strawberries in there. Nice and light, very refreshing. I would recommend you try it at least once. It’s not going to be a staple in my life, but it was definitely worth drinking.
A classic. And a *serious* beer. If you’ve had it, you know what it’s about. If you haven’t, go buy one now.
Had this one at the Brick Store Pub during the snow week. It’s another HUGE beer with lots of flavor and alcohol. I had it at the end of my night, and it blew my socks off. In the same way that it’s recommended to do a cheese plate from the most mild cheese to the strongest (ending with blue cheese/rocquefort/etc) I would recommend drinking this one last. Not subtle, but mega tasty.
I’m cheating now, as I had this one last night. Same Japanese brewery as above. This is a dark beer (a stout) with a strong coffee flavor, also some chocolatey flavors in there. Upon doing some research, it appears the brewery uses a Russian Imperial Stout as the base, then adds the espresso beans. This beer would make a nice dessert.
When I got home from holiday break, I found this lovely surprise waiting for me. 4th & Swift sent me a present (does that tell you how often I go there?).
They sent me an Indian Spice rub and some Himalayan Pink Salt. Both can be used to season roasted meats or fish. Vert excited to try these out in a recipe soon. Also- wanted to give props to one of my favorite restaurants for showing some customer appreciation.
This is another review which is completely unnecessary. Fox Bros is an Atlanta institution, and my opinion is just a drop in the bucket. This is, however, hands down the best BBQ I’ve had in Atlanta. (Sorry Community Q, you’ve been bumped).
No pretense here, it’s an old-school BBQ joint, complete with a smoke shack out front. The casual vibe and extensive menu of bbq classics (ribs, brisket) along side crazy experiments makes for a damn good time. I wasn’t adventurous (or crazy enough) to try the Tomminator (it involves tater tots and chili), but I did have some of the specials on the night I went in.
We had a combo plate with (L to R) burnt ends, country-fried ribs, and beef tenderloin. (corn bread and collards in back). The burnt ends and fried ribs blew my mind. Insanely tender meat with a great flavor. I would definitely recommend both.
Also- the collards. Jesus. These were the best I’ve had in Atlanta. Not a trace of bitterness, and properly cooked with pieces of bacon mixed in.
After one visit, I’m dying to go back. And I can’t wait for the Fox brothers to open their Tex Mex place in Decatur (off Ponce, in the old Natalie’s Fish Market spot).
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