Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Restaurants A review too soon, or too late?
Posted by Brad Kaplan @BradKaplanATL on Tue, Jun 19, 2012 at 11:32 AM
The restaurant in question, three months old, will remain unnamed. Though diligent readers may certainly solve the puzzle. It's a place that, right out of the gate, has turned many curious visitors into fans. But clearly not enough. There's a liquor license in the works, that lottery card of restaurant revenues that can make or break a struggling endeavor. But the founder is no longer involved. The whole concept, the feel, the menu is in question. But nothing is set in stone. So how can one write a review knowing that the subject may soon be changing majors, switching schools, or dropping out altogether?
The review I had written was mostly positive. This place has plenty to appreciate. The space feels a lot like the room described in The Beatles' Norwegian Wood: vaguely Scandinavian rustic chic, warm pillows surrounding a fireplace. It's the kind of space you want to linger in. As in Norwegian Wood, entering into the space starts off with intrigue and can sometimes move into confusion. So you sit by the fire, biding your time, wishing for wine.
The menu and the name are both vaguely European, in need of focus. A few of the items on offer are ecstatically good, and much is good enough (if not unique enough) to warrant many return visits. There's one dish I especially liked that could be the foundation for a chain of slightly upscale, European restaurants riffing on Waffle House's "smothered and covered." It could happen, right? But then there are many mediocrities, too: serviceable sauces, dishes not bold enough to live up to their names on the menu.
In the end, though, after all this intrigue, one can't help but wonder where this restaurant is headed. It could go one direction and do one thing very well (isn't it good?), or it could go another and try to be too many things to too many people. Or maybe it's simply that this concept won't fly here (has this bird flown?). Whatever the case, hopefully this won't end the way Norwegian Wood does — in conflagration.
Got your guesses? Think I should go ahead and post the whole review? Or do you just want to find out the scoop on who it is and what they're up to? Let us know.
Comments (18)
Showing 1-18 of 18
Latest in Omnivore
-
Little Five Points Corner Tavern catches fire 1
Photos from the scene
-
Should Georgia lower its BAC level? 3
Some fear the National Transportation Safety Board's recommendation could harm local restaurants.
-
Beautiful food, beautiful people at Umi
New Buckhead sushi bar is looking good
- More »
More by Brad Kaplan
-
Get in Ma Mouth: Beet Edition 1
Kill the can, cook your beets
-
Chef Zeb Stevenson's Last Supper
A story of chef Zeb Stevenson and a lamb named Kelly Kapowski
- More »
Search Omnivore
People who saved…
Top Commenters
