Friday, June 12, 2009
Restaurants Here and there
Posted by Cliff Bostock @cliffbostock on Fri, Jun 12, 2009 at 3:10 AM
I stopped in the relatively new Chocolate Coffee at 1159 LaVista Rd., 404-327-6060) today. Actually, I have no idea if it's actually spelled Chocolate Coffee, ChocoLaté Coffee or Chocolatte Coffee. Literally all three spellings are used on the shop's website. (This is a local chain of three cafes.)
In any case, I skipped the numerous chocolate-and-coffee concotions and had a good espresso macchiato. Pastries looked better than average.
One sort-of complaint: The shop offers free Wi-Fi and in fact is an advocate of free wireless everywhere for everyone, according to its website. Why, then, are you limited to an hour of service at the shop and why do you have to enter a code to log on? It took me some time to get my Itouch to work and the barista told me she had given up on getting her own Iphone to work there.
This isn't unique to Chocolate Coffee. It costs practically nothing for businesses to provide free Wi-Fi. Why the time limits, the codes and the log-on pages full of advertising?....
We ate at -- you know where -- the Shed on Glenwood Wednesday night, having become totally addicted to the $3 sliders. Last night's delicious newbie was one of ratatouille topped with goat cheese. We also ordered this plate of onion rings. The damn things were as big as the sliders, tasted sweet and almost tempura-crispy.
The Shed began a Thursday-night special this week too -- a plate of four fresh vegetables for $10. This week's choices were sunchokes, organic tomatoes, Swiss chard, arugula and sweet corn. I hope to get there next week....
We indulged our addiction to Spoon in East Atlanta Thursday night. The restaurant now has its pouring license, so you can dull the fiery curries by numbing your entire head with liquor. As usual, I trotted across the parking lot to Morelli's for ice cream -- one scoop of ginger-lavender and one of goat cheese swirled with figs.
Morelli's is featured in the current issue of the Porch Press, by the way. That's the monthly newspaper for Grant Park and East Atlanta Village. The article's not online -- none of the paper is, incredibly -- so you'll have to find a copy to read it. Writer Darin Glass reports that business has been crazy at the shop since Bon Appetit cited it as one of America's top 10 ice cream shops....
Name Change: Food 101 Morningside becomes Rosebud on July 6. This follows purchase of the restaurant by Executive Chef Ron Eyester, who has been with the restaurant as a co-owner and chef since it opened. So, there won't be any significant changes in the menu. A PR release explains the new name:
So, why Rosebud? Well, as any “regular” will tell you, Chef Eyester’s second love (aside from food) is music. An avid fan of bands such as The Grateful Dead, Widespread Panic, and The Allman Brothers, Eyester has built a reputation for offering unique music tribute dinners throughout the year. Fittingly, Rosebud is the name of one of Jerry Garcia’s custom made guitars.
Newbies on my list: RA Sushi, Evos, Nonna Mia, Midtown Mediterranean Diner, Teela Taqueria, Nectar, Noon Midtown and Bistro in a Box. I also hear stuff's happening at Saba. Any reports on any of these?
(Photos by Cliff Bostock)
Comments (11)
Showing 1-11 of 11
Regarding your newbies, I LOVE Noon - great food and design. Teela Taqueria is average at best. Same goes for EVOS. I really wanted EVOS to be better, but my burger was rubbery and grey.
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why the limit??? hello, have you evr been to dancing goats where poeple hang out for 12 hours with one cup of coffee!?!?!?!
Oh, izzy, it's best not to start this never-ending debate on Why People Deserve Free Wi-Fi. These sorts of discussions never lead to any resolution, sadly.
Jim I definitely agree with you. Shed, Spoon, Morelli. Shed, Spoon, Morelli. Snore.
Stuff's happening at Saba? Hopefully they're going back to Burrito Art. I still don't know what made them turn to a sandwich shop.
I walked down to RA Sushi just after reading this. It's been open 3 days, according to the eager young ladies staffing the door. I had just a few nigiri & an appetizer for lunch. The mackerel & mahi were both fresh tasting, with distinct flavor. $3 & $5 a pair, respectively. The appetizer was a sort of tuna tartare (chopped) heaped atop fried rice-balls (in texture, much like oversized tater tots). The tuna taste was lost under the chili sauce & rice balls, and I found the exterior of the balls got gummed in my teeth. I though it wasn't worth it for $9. The space is very attractive inside, with a lofty main space in modern Japanese steakhouse decor.
The pastries at ChocoLate are a bit above average, I think. I've always had good coffee and pastry at the Shallowford Rd location. The Lavista location is nice and surprisingly roomy.
Ms. Zyman will be giving us a report on Noon Midtown in next week's Cheap Eats column.
Saba in Emory (formerly Burrito Art) is 3 years old and going strong. FYI, we specialize in pasta but we do have great sandwiches as well. We are finally open in Oakhurst Village at 350 Mead Rd 30030. We have a full bar and full service. Hope to see you!
A friend and I visited Nonna Mia a couple of days after they had opened and found it pretty mediocre. The didn't yet have their liquor license so no wine or beer was available. I tried the night's special, veal piccata (the server didn't remember the name, just the description!), my friend had the lasagna and we shared a starter of breadsticks. The order of breadsticks was huge, enough reasonably for a table of four, too much for a pair of diners, and clearly started life as a pizza crust which was cut into strips and reborn as breadsticks. Served with a very fluid "pesto", they were fine, though nothing special. The veal medallions were reasonably breaded and not over-cooked, but the sauce lacked brightness, being a bit bland for my taste. My friend didn't like the lasagna, complaining about the lack of meat (per the menu, (Italian sausage) and the taste of the sauce. My small bite of it revealed an overly sweet sauce. In summary, the very early look shows a lot of work necessary if they hope to hang around with the well-established and more flavorful Italian restos intown.
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