Bites and Flights

No more gloomy post-holiday faces, everyone.

The latest installment from James Connor, Atlanta magazine’s publishing systems administrator (our IT guy)/will-drive-for-good-food blogger.

Maybe it’s just because I’m getting older, but certain objects evoke memories and connections to things I only now appreciate. Something as simple as an old door reminds me of home and home cooking.

The old door that has grabbed my fancy for the past two years hangs at the front of a small, orange cinderblock building on West Marietta Street, at Carver’s Country Kitchen. Open that door and you will be greeted by a line of Tech students, Downtown executives, and the occasional politician queuing up for some of the city’s best home-cooked food.

Carver’s is a hidden gem of a restaurant that reminds me of all the foods of my childhood (I grew up in Eutawville, in the South Carolina Low Country). Sharon Carver and her husband, Robert, have turned this old grocery store into one of Atlanta’s best meat-and-threes. (For anyone unfamiliar with the term “meat and three,” it means you get one meat selection and three veggies.) But they really load up your plate at Carver’s, so you may want to just go with a “meat and two.”

As you stand in line and make your way toward the serving area, you’ll need to make a quick note of the items written on the whiteboard on the wall. Pick one meat and two veggies from the list and pray that Sharon or one of her helpers doesn’t come out from the kitchen and erase an item off the board before you get to place your order. You’ll sometimes hear a collective groan from the line as an item is removed. I can honestly say that everything I’ve eaten here is like my mom used to make. The selection (which changes almost daily) might include chicken pot pie, meatloaf, beef stew, fried chicken, fried catfish, barbecue pork, collard greens, macaroni and cheese, pinto beans, cowboy beans, lima beans, rutabaga, sweet potato casserole, broccoli and rice casserole, corn fritters, cornbread (regular and jalapeno), and biscuits. Desserts usually include Coca-Cola cake, peach cobbler, carrot cake, or banana pudding.

  A recent meal of meatloaf, mac 'n' cheese, and broccoli and rice casserole at Carver's

Seating is boarding-house style, so sit down with some strangers and strike up a conversation—but it will be difficult to talk about anything but the food once you taste the first bite. Also, take time to admire the environs of the seventies-era grocery store, which still has a key-making machine and security cameras the size of shoeboxes positioned in the corners of the ceiling. You can’t help but laugh at the kitsch the couple have collected over the years, and you will admire the many awards and accolades they have received. Pay as you leave, make some small talk with Robert, and be sure to get a to-go box (because you won’t be able to eat it all).

Note: Sharon and Robert sometimes close up on a whim so they can head down to their place in Florida; it’s wise to call and make sure Carver’s is open before you drive over.

Open Monday–Friday 11 a.m.–3 p.m.; 118 West Marietta Street, 404-794-4410, carverscountrycooking.com; cash only

There’s always room for one more pub in beer-loving Decatur, especially one that plans to serve something called beef olive.

Described as a sirloin roll stuffed with bacon, the dish is “a favorite specialty of our Auntie Mary from Galway,” says Amanda Comer, wife of Darren Comer, who owns the forthcoming “Dublin pub” The Grange with his siblings Jennifer, Colin, and Alison—all of whom were born and raised in Dublin. Darren moved to Atlanta in 1996 to work with the Olympics. Here, he met Amanda (who works in marketing for TBS and TNT and is also offering her services for the family business) and never left. (A recent AJC story offers more details about Darren's Olympics experience.)

The Comers classify the pub, which is slated for a soft opening in early- to mid-September in the space formerly occupied by The Angel, as traditional meets contemporary. “We know we’re not a gastropub, but it’s not going to be ‘diddly-iddly,’” Amanda says. “It won’t be a fabricated, country-style Irish pub.” She points to Dublin pub Searsons of Baggot Street as a pub the family admires. According to Searsons’ website, the pub “has a contemporary feel with a traditional Irish bar atmosphere including a very popular snug.”

She also offers this helpful comparison: “Think Colin Farrell’s Irish accent, not Tom Cruise’s,” Amanda explains. If you need help (or just want a good laugh at Cruise’s “brogue”), check out the trailers below from Farrell’s recent movie, In Bruges, and from Far and Away, in which Cruise stars as country boy Joseph Donnelly:

While the atmosphere might be a bit more sophisticated than most American-style Irish pubs, Amanda says prices will be reasonable. “We don’t want it to be expensive [for our patrons] to go out for fish and chips and a beer,” she explains. “We want people to feel like they got a good deal.” The Comers plan to have an extensive list of international beer and wine, and are working hard to get one particular beverage—Magners Irish Cider—which happens to be one of my personal favorites. It is currently not available in Atlanta, and you can find it in just a handful of U.S. cities outside of Ireland (where it's called Bulmers).

The menu will include pub-style food, with classics such as meat pies, Irish stew, and cod and chips—“as close to a Dublin chipper as you can get,” Amanda says. The Comers also plan to serve a selection of Irish cheeses, served with a spot of Irish tea, of course (might we suggest Bewley’s?).

What you won’t find on the menu? “Corned beef and cabbage,” Amanda groans. “Darren didn’t have that until he moved here.”

The Grange Public House, 426 West Ponce de Leon Avenue, Decatur

Just got this news from Fifth Group Restaurants (which owns Ecco, South City Kitchen, and La Tavola). I am excited to see that the restaurant, which will be called The Original El Taco, will remain a Mexican joint and that Shaun Doty (of Shaun's, in Inman Park) is behind it. Here's more information from a press release:

“The owners of Fifth Group Restaurants have joined forces with Executive Chef Shaun Doty, owner of Shaun’s, to create The Original El Taco in the former Sala space in Virginia-Highland. The new restaurant will open in mid-October. Doty is developing recipes for creative Mexican fare like tacos, tortas and salsas, and the Fifth Group Restaurants team is working with William Peace, Peace Design, to change the look and feel of the restaurant.

And if you still have any VHS cassettes around the house, Rupert wants those too—to play on the retro TV in the restaurant’s “living room.” When I dined at Noni’s a few nights ago, our server told us that the living room—a small area with wood paneling, a comfy couch, large round coffee table, grandfather clock, and 1980s-style television (I am guessing its from the 1980s, because it looks exactly like the TV my family had when I was growing up…) is meant to remind patrons of their grandma’s living room. And of course, grandma never would’ve had a DVD player.

All week long (through Saturday, August 16) Asian restaurants across the city are offering special menus and discounts as part of the first-ever “Taste of Asia.” Here is more information from their website:

During a quick tour of the new H&F Bread Co. (the heavenly smells of which I wish I could bottle and dab on my wrist every morning), Andy Minchow, of Holeman and Finch Public House, mentioned that he and fellow bartenders Greg Best and Regan Smith have been doing some “cross-training” with the folks at The Brick Store pub, in Decatur. Since The Brick Store (and their wonderful upstairs Belgian beer bar) is one of my favorite spots (along with our Restaurant of the Year, Holeman and Finch, of course), I quickly perked up. Details, please!

Turns out Brick Store bartender Miles Macquarrie (who knows his beer and his cheeses—he’s never steered me wrong with a cheese plate selection) has been working behind the bar at Holeman and Finch this week—learning the art of the cocktail—because he's been picked to open the highly anticipated new gastropub from Brick Store owners Dave Blanchard, Mike Gallagher, and Tom Moore. The restaurant is slated to open by December in the old Rue de Leon space around the corner (131 East Ponce De Leon Avenue, Decatur).

In exchange, Team Holeman and Finch spent some time behind the bar in Decatur, learning more about beer (I would looove to see an expanded beer selection at Holeman and Finch). And they brought their bread over too—H&F Bread Co. breads are now being served at The Brick Store and at other area restaurants, such as Cuerno.

If you haven’t tried the bread yet, the shop is open every morning at 7 a.m. and is available on Saturday mornings at the Peachtree Road Farmer’s Market. But be sure to get there early (they open at 8:30 a.m.)—Minchow said they usually sell out in the first two hours.

H&F Bread Co. 2255 Peachtree Road, 404-350-8877, hfbreadco.com

 
UPDATE: I learned from DecaturMetro.com that the name of The Brick Store guys’ new gastropub will be Leon’s Full Service (the space was originally a gas station/body shop). Read more about the concept (which will focus on “small farms, small wineries, small spirit producers, and small breweries...”) here.