4th & Swift

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4th & Swift, Old Fourth Ward

New American + Farm to Table. This is a common theme in Atlanta and many are done well. I really wanted to like 4th & Swift it’s mentioned all the time on Atlanta Eats but I just wasn’t that enamored with it since nothing really brought it home for me. While the food and service were both good there wasn’t one thing truly special. I went with my friend Kiffy one evening and we were able to sit outside since it was still so nice out. We ordered the Farmstead Cheese Plate which had five selections. I will say it was presented very well but nothing I couldn’t get at Whole Foods. I ordered the Veal Chop that came with polenta, charred baby bulb Vidalias, rapini, and baby beets. Kiffy got the Hand Rolled Gnocchi with pearl onions, swiss chard, oyster mushrooms, asparagus, and tomato confit. Both dishes were decent and again beautifully plated but still nothing that had me wanting to come back. The wine we got went well with both plates and was satisfying so I would like to thank our waiter for suggesting it! I wouldn’t mind coming here again since I would like to see what they do in another season, there menu does change daily, but I think I have a few other spots that I many try first before I give this place a second shot.

 

Victory Sandwich Bar

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Victory Sandwich Bar, Decatur

Hipsters rejoice there is yet another place in Decatur just for y’all! I first went to Victory when it was still in Inman Park but recently went to their newer location in Decatur. I have a habit of going to lunch at awkward times and this day was no different. I would say this is a solid lunch spot then turns into a fun bar later into the evening. I ordered the Castro Sandwich that came with smoked pork, ham, pickles, fontina cheese, and yellow mustard. It was one of the hardier options on the menu and I really liked it. The sandwiches are on the smaller side so if you go with a group you could share a bunch or just eat two yourself if you’re that hungry. The peppered chips were awesome but you can also choose a different bigger side, the ramen and potato salad looked tempting. Right when I was about to leave in the corner of my eye I saw a few mason jar desserts and of course I had to try one. I got the Panna Cotta with strawberries and it made my day. Next time I come I’ll have to try their acclaimed jack & coke slushie!

H. Harper Station

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H. Harper Station, Reynoldstown

This place used to be a railroad station and when the owner turned it into a restaurant he kept a lot of character, I took note of the super high ceilings and exposed brick, clearly I’m no architecture buff but nevertheless I thought it was cool! The owner is a mixologist so the cocktail list is lengthy and well crafted. I went with a group of five on a Friday so I did my share of checking out what they had to offer. I had their version of a Manhattan and Dirty Gin Martini, while neither were too crazy I throughly enjoyed  both. The snacks were tasty; we ordered five and thought this might have been too much, however, they have a very literal meaning of the word  snack. We ordered the Deviled Eggs with bacon crunch, the Smoked Pimento Cheese with jalapeño red marmalade & crispy bread, Fried House Pickles which consisted of carrots, cucumbers, and radishes served with a sriracha mayo, Bacon CrackerJack- caramel corn, bacon, & salty peanuts, and lastly the Cheese Plate that had two Consider Bardwell cheeses and one Jasper Hill. I was surprised to find all Vermont cheeses but still excited since I love all three. Fun fact the Consider Bardwell logo is actually my favorite logo in the cheese world. I would order the fried pickles, the bacon crackerjack and cheese plate again but not the other two. Not to say they were bad they just didn’t leave me wanting more. They have about six to seven bigger plates. I ordered the North Carolina Catfish that was served with romanesco, sunchokes, celery & orange. I often find myself thinking that catfish will be gross since they aren’t pretty things alive but I should probably get over that notion already since I’ve had two good catfish dishes recently. This is a cocktail centric place so on the dessert menu they did a marvelous thing and paired the two together. I ordered The Dude, a white Russian (if you got The Big Lebowski reference props to you!), one of the best I’ve had and a warm chocolate chip cookie. This by far was my favorite… how could it not be? The food was good and had some fun things on the menu but I would come back more for the drinks and ambiance than anything else.

Zula

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Zula, Cincinnati (OTR)

I was back in Cincinnati for work but this time for a much shorter trip all the while I was still able to try one new restaurant! It was a bistro specializing in Mediterranean flavors and wine! A friend raved about the mussels so while I already knew my friend Lindsey and I were sharing a pot of those we had many other small plates to choose from. If you happen to love bacon this would be an especially good place for you since it was included in many of the dishes. We started out with the Plancha Mushrooms with smoked bacon, scallions, lime, & cilantro. The Yellow Fin Tuna Crudo with tomatoes, avocado, citrus, & Serrano peppers; I just loved the spiciness of the peppers and coolness of the raw fish. The Roasted Beet Salad with bleu cheese, herb salad, pistachios, & beet vinaigrette. The beet on beet flavors was cool to see since I would never think to do that myself. Then we pigged out on the Mediterranean Mussels the broth included scallions, Serrano peppers, garlic confit, lemon, parsley, mint, & sun-dried tomatoes. We ordered a side of bread too and were able to soak up all the soup we wanted, literally two meals in one! We shared a bottle of Kermit Lynch Côtes du Rhône, which may have been a little heavy for what we were having but we both enjoyed it since we tend to prefer heavier/ earthier wines! We finished the meal with a dessert that was out of this world. The Raspberry Marsala Cake was both light and sweet. It came with mascarpone cream and vanilla bean panna cotta. While both Lindsey were polite this is a dish you want the last bite of! We came on a week night so it wasn’t too busy and the waitress was great, she never loaded our table with too many dishes at once. The parking was a little problematic due to construction but besides that I wouldn’t say there were a whole lot of cons. 

Iberian Pig

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Iberian Pig, Decatur

It was fate that Marge and I were able to find two seats at the bar on a Friday night. This place has been popular for a couple of years years and is loved by all. If you’re on the hunt for wine & small plates seriously look no further. Their variety of wine by the glass is awesome, regardless of your preference they will have something for you. I tried two different Tempranillo‘s and a was pleased with both. We started with a cheese plate, which consisted of a Mahón D.O., Valdeón D.O., & Monte Enebro. Then we shared three small plates. The Pork Cheek Tacos were my favorite but don’t think that the Spanish Tortoloni & Lamb Ribs weren’t just as good! Our bartender was knowledgeable and gave us good suggestions on the cheese plate. I wish I could have tried their dessert but was just too full. The only things I would keep in mind when going here is that reservations are highly recommended and parking can be a pain but other than those two minor details go & enjoy!

 

 

Bar Meatball

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Bar Meatball, Virginia-Highland

Holy balls or holy meatballs I should say this place is only three blocks away and could become dangerous. Bar Meatball was once Pazole but after 8 years the owner decided to make a change; he’s first generation American so many of the recipes come from this mother and grandmothers. The pictures on the wall are also of his actual family members. Sorry Bucca di Beppo this guy has you beat with authenticity. To be clear come for the meatballs, there are five on the menu along with a daily special. You can either choose a meatball, sauce, and a side or can go with one of the already crafted combinations. Regardless of what you choose go with your side “down low” as this assures the best sauce to item ratio. The cocktail menu looked artfully put together but I stuck with a carafe of wine, which if you’re going to drink two glasses buy the carafe as it is more economical! We went with the restaurant only being open a week but I didn’t notice any major kinks. The owner was walking about and welcomed every table. He told us once the place gets going they might do wine & meatball dinners on Sunday nights and my table assured him that would be a great idea. Taylor and I both ordered the Sausage & Pepper Meatballs with classic tomato sauce and rigatoni down low. Kiffy ordered the #3: Chicken & Rosemary Meatballs with mushroom gravy and parmesan mash down low. This was honestly thanksgiving with Italian flavors all in one bite. If you want something a little lighter they also have sliders that come individually. Next came dessert, Kiffy got a Root Beer Float and Taylor and I shared an Ice Cream Sandwich, peanut butter cookies and vanilla ice cream along with an order of Zeppole, which are light fluffy Italian donuts with powder sugar that come with a Nutella dipping sauce. This place rocks old school flavors and has a super comfortable vibe. If you come hungry you will without a doubt leave happy.

Rathbun’s

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Rathbun’s, Inman Park

Alas, restaurant week in Inman Park meaning I can eat out during the week for no particular reason without the guilt! Sir Rathbun needs no introduction in the Atlanta Restaurant Community. He’s a frequent guest on Atlanta Eats, was on Iron Chef, and has countless awards for this restaurants. While I often choose to go to Rathbun’s Steak I thought I’d take a walk on the wild side on this particular Monday and head over to his namesake instead. I cozied up to the bar and got right to business. I had two menus to choose from and  although I was tempted by the beef carpaccio on the regular menu I decided to pick from the prefix instead. Warning I did not take this meal lightly and fully enjoyed every bite. I started out with the Crispy Calamari, then had the Hanger Steak with roasted garlic polenta and Asiago crust, and finished with the Salted Caramel Pot de Creme with pretzel crunch. I liked the calamari but it wasn’t particularly special. The Asiago crust gave the steak a good crunch and paired well with the creamy polenta. The dessert was the one that blew me away. I’m not a huge fan of caramel but for some reason I wanted to try it. I thought if I’m going to like it anywhere it’s going to be at a Rathbun establishment! Having never had a bad dish or experience I can fully endorse any restaurant Mr. Rathbun cultivates but I will say go when you can go all out or during the restaurant week since going on a budget just wouldn’t be as fun.

Dave’s Cosmic Subs

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Dave’s Cosmic Subs, Emory Village

I’m not sure if I wanted to go to a place that reminded me of my job in college or perhaps just eat one meal for the whole day. I’ve heard of Dave’s from friends in and around the Cleveland area and after driving past the one on the Emory campus a bunch I decided to take the plunge one Sunday. I ordered the Dave’s Best Meatball Ever sub (#17). Warning do not order this if you A) need to impress some while eating this or B) care about looking good while eating this. The meatballs are huge and due to this it can be an experience eating this sub. The options are endless (for meat eaters) but the chips and drinks are straight to the point. This is a funky joint and all in all I’d say I’m a fan. Also, if I need to for some reason want to feel like I am in the 60’s  I will know where to go.

Miller Union

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Miller Union, the Westside

“New American” is becoming a synonymous with restaurants in Atlanta but I won’t complain because while many have similar takes all have a little twist that makes them stand out in their own way. I went to Miller Union with Kiffy and her mom, Patti. While I didn’t know this Miller Union is also very aware of their carbon footprint and try to limit in every way possible including what they print their menus on. This may not be a factor to many, however, I think it’s super cool to have a restaurant care that much. Now back to the food! Their cocktail menu was impressive and one of the things that made me want to come. I ordered a Miller Thyme that really was too good as it went down rather quickly. As a table we shared the Feta Snack & the Farm Egg baked in celery cream served with grilled bread. Warning if you happen to be lactose intolerant these are not the dishes for you because holy dairy both were superb! Kiffy then the got the Country Captain Chicken, which came with almonds, coconut, and chutney. Patti ordered the Ribeye with fingerlings, Vidalias, and mushrooms. I ordered the Seared Duck Breast with farro spaetzle, buttered cabbage, and duck sausage. And now this is where I wished we stopped the meal. Up until this point we were not disappointed. The desserts did look pretty unique but I don’t think we really thought about it. We ordered the Beet Red Velvet Cake with goat cheese and tarragon ice cream and the Chocolate Ganache Cake with peanuts and fig-balsamic ice cream. While certain parts of the desserts were good I couldn’t fully recommend either but at least I know that I do not like beet red velvet cake. I do consider myself lucky though because I eat out a lot and am normally not this surprised with the actual outcome. This restaurant is constantly being raved about and I am now glad I can say I’ve been!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Floataway Cafe

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Floataway Cafe, North Druid Hills

While I realize that I won’t be a regular at Bacchanalia anytime soon I can be comforted by the fact that Floataway exists and is less formal along with being much more affordable for a twenty something. This French cafe is tucked away in North Druid Hills and in a renovated warehouse. I went with two friends and we shared the Maplebrook Burrata  to start that we needed a spoon to eat it because it was that fresh. Taylor got the Roasted Chicken over polenta, Joel the Porkchop with cabbage and chutney, and I got the Gnocchi with lamb ragu. We all shared a bottle of Malbec that was reasonably priced and enjoyed by all. For dessert we ordered the Toffee Cake with caramel sauce and the Chocolate Gateau with Chantilly cream. While we didn’t need to we finished both since they were outstanding. I never like ranking my courses but these two desserts really hit the sweet spot (pun intended)! Honestly, the service was great and the ambiance suited the food very well. I’m not sure why or how one wouldn’t have a good experience here.