LizATL's Profile
"This is Atlanta"
Ok Bob - to be fair to you, I've poked around some more and I see that you don't always recommend McKendrick's. But you do recommend them pretty frequently, or maybe I'm just happening to hit those posts where you do. Doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things, I suppose. We get it that you like it there!
"This is Atlanta"
You're not getting my point. My point is exactly that NYC has a lot of Michelin-starred restaurants, but not a lot of places like the Colonnade, so there would be more of a chance of the experience being something out of the ordinary for someone from a big, northern city.
And I have to add that I like McKendrick's just fine, but to recommend it over and over and over no matter what folks are looking for seems a bit odd to me.
Not trying to start an argument, just commenting that people's tastes vary, and sometimes dining out can be as much about the experience as it is about the food.
"This is Atlanta"
Depends on where they are coming from and what they can or can't get at home. If somebody was coming from a place with few trendy places, Holeman and Finch. If they are coming from NYC I'd consider something like The Colonnade.
First time in Atlanta
I know that this is delayed, but I still think that McKendrick's has a very corporate feel, like it could be a restaurant in a hotel. It may not be technically in a strip mall itself, but it may as well be given all of the mall traffic from Perimeter. Last time I was there for lunch they were actually sweeping the floor in the dining room while we were eating. And watering the plants. The food is fabulous but I think the atmosphere at Bone's is more enjoyable.
First time in Atlanta
All good suggestions. I am a steakhouse fan and I've had some incredible meals at Rathbun's but unfortunately it is somewhat inconsistent. I agree with the above poster that McKendrick's has great steaks but I think I would recommend Bones over it just for local color and atmosphere. McKendrick's looks so generic and strip-mallish, and that is exactly what it is. Bones is odd and old-school funky, which I think would be more interesting to me if I were visiting. Plus they have a $10 corkage fee,. Hal's is pretty fun as well, as long as you don;t mind sitting next to a lot of sugar-daddy couples where the women are young enough to be daughters, or granddaughters!
Please report back.
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Rathbun's Restaurant
112 Krog St NE, Atlanta, GA 30307
Dim Sum
Oriental Pearl
China Delight
Further out- East Pearl
Also, do a search on the topic. There are several posts but they may be outdated given Atlanta dim sum chefs' propensity to migrate elsewhere.
Atlanta without attitude
What Biskuit said. With emphasis on Abbatior (that would be my number one for you) or H&F (which can be a little "sceney" and crowded at times).
Let us know how it goes.
Atlanta trip - Craft vs. H&Fitch
I know you are leaning toward Craftbar, and I haven't been there, but I'd totally recommend H&F. They are local, rather than a celebrity-chef driven outpost. Everything I have had in my three visits to H&F has been very good without exception, and some things were truly wonderful. Very inventive and clever menu showcasing locally-sourced ingredients without being silly. Yum. Only downsides are that the space is small, which sometimes means a wait, but if you are alone or with only a couple of folks you could always eat in the bar section. Waitstaff, esp the older guy with the beard, can be a bit cranky/not helpful, but that is most likely bc they are usually slammed.
I hate the see-and-be-seen scene in general, and this is a bit like that sometimes ( you are in Buckhead, after all), but the food is totally worth putting up with any whiff of that. Tom Colicchio may be great but he doesn't live in the ATL.
Need to find great food in Atlanta to deliver to sick friend - help with suggestions??
Sounds like a very nice idea but what part of town is your friend in? That is going to make a huge difference in recommendations given the delivery piece of it. Places that jump to mind, although I am not certain that they would deliver:
Stone Soup
Alon's Bakery
Cabbagetown Market
Metrofresh
Highland Bakery
CHOW Recipe Lab #3: Coleslaw
Yep. I second this advice strongly! Aside from getting rid of excess water, this technique makes any slaw much easier to eat with a fork bc it gets somewhat soft (but is still crunchy).
Restaurant Eugene or Canoe?
Have a great time!
If you have some time to kill after your dinner at Eugene, walk across the driveway to Holeman and Finch (owned by the same folks) and have a cocktail. It is not exactly romantic, but it is happening and fun. In fact, I enjoy it more than Eugene, but YMMV.
Atlanta Cheap Eats Comfort Food
You may be learning more than you wanted to know!!
Atlanta is actually a pretty big city if you include the burbs. I believe the metro area has more than 5 million+ at this time.
Atlanta Cheap Eats Comfort Food
I think using the perimeter makes good sense, but, then again, I live ITP! Good guess, you are correct, ITP= inside the perimeter, OTP= outside the perimeter. People here even have ITP and OTP bumperstickers - it is a sort of rivalry between the city and the surrounding burbs.
Sorry - Snack Bar is correct! So much for my authority. Actually I had to Google your original name for Ann's to see what it referred to, and then some other poster had mentioned "snack shack". Anyway, no one will know what Annie Price Restaurant is, but folks will know if there is Annie or Ann's or Anne's and then the word "snack"
Atlanta Cheap Eats Comfort Food
Just curious: you added pung and chef to "georgia" and not "atlanta" bc they are outside the city limits? If not, that is an odd distinction, since they are all three pretty close and they are all within the I-285 perimeter, which is used by locals as the geographic spearator (we refer to ITP or OTP).
No, not hong kong, just Hong's. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/135799
We also have some very good, cheap Dim Sum places like Oriental Pearl, and Royal China.
I could go on and on if you want more ethnic things...
Atlanta Cheap Eats Comfort Food
I'll suggest Pho Dai Loi for pho and spring rolls. They have a location of Buford Highway and on Jonesboro Rd.
Chef Lui and Pung Mie, both on Buford Highway, for dumplings. And San Shan Seafood noodle soup at Pung Mie is a
delicious bargain.
Also, there are a number of bahn mi places. I think the general concensus is Hong's on Buford Highway, but you may want to research that. Maybe others will comment on their faves.
Finally, no one here calls Miss Anne's "Annie Price Restaurant", we call it Miss Anne's Snack Shack. You may want to have that in parenthesis.
Single in Atlanta
Take a cab to Serpas True Food over near Rathbun's and Rathbun's Steak. It is brand new, run by an acclaimed Atlanta chef, and we loved it earlier this week. There is a bar/open kitchen counter that would be cool to sit at if dining alone.
IMHO - same price point as Fourth and Swift but better. Don't be dissuaded by their bad website. They do have a limited menu but everything was very good (short rib was out of this world) and the space, in a converted cotton factory, is beautiful. Also, they have a "reserve" wine menu and a regular wine menu. All of the glasses on the regular menu are $6 and the bottles are something like $25. Love that.
This is a gentrifying neighborhood, so I don't think I'd wander around much by myself, but if you took a cab you'd be fine,
When to salt a steak? My research.
We were converted by Judy R several years ago and routinely salt all meat and poultry for several days. Makes a huge (good) difference in texture and seasons the meat all the way through.
For those who have negative experiences based on one or two incidents, I'd suggest you read the rationale in the Zuni Cookbook and give it another try.
Best tomatos for making pasta sauce?
I "third" Marcella's tomato sauce recipe, but, just FYI, the recipe actually calls for fresh OR canned tomatoes. I always use San Marzano's since there are so few ingredients in it anyway.
For the OP - I highly recommend Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking as a great intro to Italian cooking.
A different lamb stew - Ideas?
Marcella Hazan has a terrific recipe for lamb stew with green beans and vinegar. As with a lot of her recipes, it doesn't sound like much but the whole is more than the sum of the parts! It is simple and delicious (second recipe down):
http://www.specialflavors.com/collection/meats/lamb.htm
Need Quick Buford Hwy. Help Please!
For dumplings, I'd go with Pung Mie, although where ever you get them, I don't think that steamed dumplings travel all that well. That bieng said, I have taken Pung Mie's home and been happy. Chef Liu gets great reviews (or they used to) but I haven't been.
For spring rolls try Dai Loi. It is in a small strip on the west side of BH a bit past the Burlington if you are heading north. There is also a shop that sells bahn mi in that same strip but I haven't tried it. A lot of folks like the bahn mi at Hong's.
Atlanta - Near Piedmont Park and Masquerade Theater
aka frank has some good suggestions.
I also thought of Dynamic Dish when I first read your post. It is pretty hip, vegetarian, into organic/local stuff, etc. It is not super close to Masquerade, but if you have a car, it is maybe two miles away (straight down North Avenue and left on Boulevard than a short right onto Edgewood). The place has been getting some good reviews on the local Atlanta board. The one negative thing is that it is not cheap.
Moving to Portland: need food recs
Rejoice, snufkin, for you are about to be delivered! You will soon be entering a poor college student food paradise.
I just got back from my first trip to Portland on Thursday night. Wonderful city with great walking access and tons of great restaurants. Super cool vibe downtown and to the west/northwest of the city, but not at all pretentious or fake. We didn't get a chance to see other sections so I can't comment on those.
The two main words you want to remember for dinner are HAPPY HOUR. I don't know why it isn't mentioned more on this board (with my limited perusal of it), but I am so jealous of the happy hour scene in Portland that I am trying to start one in Atlanta. Happy Hour deals seem to be had at tons of good places, from super casual to pretty upscale. Hours generally run anywhere from 3-7, with lots of variation. Most places seem to have discounted drinks, but the real deal is the great, cheap food. The places we went to generally had three or four levels of cost, the cheapest we saw was $1.95 for a good small greek salad, to $5.95 for more upscale protein options. With one or two exceptions, everything we had at happy hour was great. If you do a Google search on "Portland happy hour" you should find at least one site with a lot of details. They even have a book out, which can be conveniently found at Powells books in the heart of Portland.
The only problem is that eating so early left us a bit hungry because we tend to usually eat late and stay up prett y late. Leftovers from happy hour are a defiinite possibility, though, and we throughly enjoyed our boxed up truffle fries later in the hotel room. Yum...
I will post more specifics later with a detailed Portland report.
dining in downtown Atlanta
Hi - if you provide us with some more specifics of what sorts of dining experiences you are looking for, we could be more helpful. Also, if you do a search, you will find tons and tons of people asking the same general question and lots of recommendations.
Hope you have a good trip!
under-used treasure or garbage? what ingredient do you think people are wasting?
I am not sure how they would come out with brown eggs. The onion skin color is more orangish than brown eggs are. You should try it and let us know!
Also, I haven't done it for a couple of years, but my uncle always used to use a pin or a needle to scratch a drawing or design on the dyed eggs. The pin scrapes off the brown, letting the original white of the egg show through. Fun memories.
under-used treasure or garbage? what ingredient do you think people are wasting?
I just use a relatively small stainless pot.
I got a kick out of seeing your post too!
coll - they come out a lovely rich brown color. Kind of hard to describe, exactly.
under-used treasure or garbage? what ingredient do you think people are wasting?
We do the onion skin dye every year! A couple of years ago I figured out to boil the onion skins in the water the night before, rather than trying to cook the eggs with the skins. I save the water overnight and the scoop out the skins and cook the eggs in the morning. The resulting dye water is a lot stronger and the eggs don't get over-cooked.
Atlanta and Macon: Vacation Report
Thanks so much for posting a report! It makes reading this board a lot more interesting and valuable. Have to get back over to Bacchanalia!
Fritti (pizza) - ATL
Mmmm, New Haven. Mmmmm Pepe's...
The one time I was at Fritti I was not impresssed. Frito misto was greasy and the pizzas thin but soggy.
What style of pizza are you looking for?
