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The Fifth Street Café, the newest endeavor for Hawks center Zaza Pachulia and the ADI Restaurant Group, is opening today at 800 Peachtree Street.  In supplanting ENO, the space has been completely reworked and as the picture above shows [viar facebook album], the interior looks a lot more like that of an ultra-lounge than that of a café.

The opening chef is Ian Winslade, whose name might ring a bell with those who visited Bluepointe a few years back.  The English national also spent some time at Shout, Prime, and TomTom (All Here2Serve concepts). Winslades’ last job was as the chef de cuisine at Vongericthen’s Spice Market.  Currently, Winslade also runs things over at Buckhead Bottle Bar, a new joint from the same group of guys.

The 5th Street website isn’t much more than a landing page at this point.  As such, I’m not entirely sure what the menu will look like; however, I’m guessing it will be progressive American cuisine.  I’ll see what I can come up with in the next few days.

That’s right people, another year … another opportunity to skedaddle to Downtown Atlanta for some dining deals.  Starting tonight, and running through August 8th, 27 restaurants are serving up prix-fixe menus that give adventurous eaters the opportunity to eat on a budget.  For the most part, each meal includes an app, an entrée, and some dessert.  You will have to shell out a few more bucks if you want something to drink.  In addition, I suggest you tip your server.   Details after the jumpage!

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Last we heard, Athens’ culinarian Hugh Acheson was expanding his empire to the Capital Peach.  This past April, he hoped to open Empire State South.  Things didn’t go as planned and the space (located at 999 Peachtree St) is still under construction.  Today, in Hugh’s post about bocce ball, Acheson mentioned that things might be ready in August.  Time will tell … stay tuned!

Though I don’t have an exact date, Republic Social House is set to open in the not to distant future in Grant Park, just across from Oakland Cemetery.  Located in the Jane Complex at 437 Memorial Drive, you’ll find them next to the original Six Feet Under.  Like most every restaurant in the area, Republic will be a neighborhood bar that serves food.  Thanks to their location, they were able to include a rooftop bar that overlooks Downtown …

Details are still a little sketchy at this time (seeing as their website is still just a landing page); however, there is a facebook page, so not all is lost.  It appears that the menu will include a handful of flavored buffalo wings, some pizza, and deli style sandwiches.  As it seems, there will be a walk up counter for ordering with food runners and cocktail waiter/waitresses to keep you lively.  Lost somewhere in the mix, there is reason to believe that there either was or still are plans for another one of these on Piedmont Road, but I can’t quite nail that down just yet.  I’ll update the blog once I can nail down some of the details (like menu and service style).

Republic Social House Restaurant Address & Information

437 Memorial Drive, Atlanta, GA 30312 // Republic Social House website // Republic on facebook

Hotel dinning can be the ultimate example of the slippery slope.  On the one hand, many of the best chefs end up running those kitchens, so you get top notch talent.  On the other hand, the chef’s id and ego are often held in check by the the massive corporation holding the checkbook to their livelihood.  At Park 75, the centerpiece of the Four Seasons in Atlanta, executive chef Robert Gerstenecker seems to have enough freedom and a high enough acumen to keep his puppet masters at bay while maintaining enough of himself in his art.

Gerstenecker, who recently made an appearance on ITCK, has been at the helm of Park 75 for a handful of years.  It seems he has found home.  At a restaurant known for it’s tea service and brunches, Gerstenecker has brought out progressive American cuisine with a foundation in contemporary Southern cooking.

So it was with this mindset in hand that I set out one lovely afternoon for lunch with a favorite family friend.  Having not ventured into this particular dinning space in some 24-months, I made it a point to meditate on my present and hand my brain a blank canvas to paint on.  Needless to say, it didn’t stay blank very long.

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Sauced, Ria Pell’s new fusion soul food venture in Inman Park Atlanta, has been motoring along for several months.  Though the restaurant came up for a brief breath of air in 2009, it actually opened for real in early 2010.  Soon after, Spark Plug and I made it the appetizer stop on one of our habitual dinning excursions.  Though it’s taken me a while to recap the less than stellar experience, ATLiens have been treated to several reviews during my hiatus thanks to some of our mainstream media brethren (linkage at the bottom).  It seems I’m not alone in my total lack of fandom for Sauced.

Sauced itself is Pell’s attempt to offer entry-level fine dining.  After building up her eponymous Ria’s Bluebird to the point where it’s one of the more well-known breakfast places, Pell is now serving "inspired” soul food in the midst of a late 60’s-esc dinning hall.  I use the words inspired here loosely because the only true inspiration seems to be coming from the servers.  In the world of take it or leave it, this grub is definitely a leave it.  To put it another way, it’s never a good thing when someone spends the first part of a review talking about something other than the atmosphere or the food itself.  In the case of Meridith Ford Goldman, she talked about the bathrooms.  Not a good sign.

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Just a short time ago, The Sweet Auburn Curb Market (SACM) in Downtown Atlanta was an afterthought in the cityscape.  Then, late in 2009, Grindhouse Killer Burgers got things rolling.  Since then, SACM hasn’t looked back.  In the midst of this buzz, The Greek Gyros and Pizza has hopped on the wagon and opened its countertop restaurant.  As dumb luck would have it, they opened just a few hours before the dude who feasts and I showed up.  I’d like to say that our visit was entirely impromptu, but alas, it was not!  We had planned this excursion late last night.  We both think it fun to see where things stand from the get go.  So far, the Greek is looking pretty good.

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Todd Richards is fairly well known around these parts. Richards’ restaurant group (Lush Life Group) is the driving force behind Rolling Bones BBQ and One Flew South, that high-end restaurant located in Hartsfield-Jackson’s E-Concourse.  However, his notoriety isn’t limited to the Capital of The South.

Mixed in with his stay in Atlanta, Richards spent time in Chicago, in Nashville, and in Palm Beach as the chef de cuisine at the Ritz-Carlton.  In fact, all that work even earned him a spot on an episode of Iron Chef America.  Nowadays, you’ll find him sticking close to home as he works on a bounty of different projects.  One of the most accessible is his blogs, which is one of the better chef scribed blogs to come out of Atlanta.

But of course, Richards still makes time for we poor plebeians of the pen with a stopover for Inside The Chef’s Kitchen.  So on this Friday of beautiful weather and happenings, take a peek at what Chef Richards has to say.  If you take a liking to Richards’ humor, be sure to check him out on twitter @Rollingbonesbbq. And with that, welcome to ITCK!

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Tonight, two Atlanta restaurants are getting in on the fun of April Fools with a Menu swap.  Noni’s Deli in Downtown and Top FLR in Midtown.  While there won’t be a complete overhaul of menus, visitors to Top FLR will have the opportunity to sample some of the more popular dishes from their pals down at Noni’s.  Meanwhile, Noni’s will treat its customers to a handful of selections from Top FLR.  It’s a one night thing, so get in on the fun while you can.  Happy April Fools Day everyone.  And big ups to the reader who sent me this tip! Many thanks.

(ps – that picture was emailed to me – if it’s yours – lmk!)

Noni’s Deli Restaurant Address & Information:
357 Edgewood Ave SE Atlanta, GA 30312 // 404.343.1808 // Noni’s website // Noni’s Menu

Top FLR Restaurant Address & Information:
674 Myrtle St NE Atlanta, GA 30308 // 404.685.3110 // Top FLR website // Top FLR menu

Two establishments, one building, and one curious story.  That’s the deal with two new eateries going in at Renaissance Walk, a struggling (aka foreclosed) downtown condominium complex just a few steps from Georgia State.  One Café and Yoeshi are siblings spots that have been in production for quite sometime.  If recent grumblings (spurred by self-promotion) are to be taken at face value, then the two newborns will say hello sometime in mid-February.  Still, details are muddled.

Tucked in at the corner of Auburn Ave. and Piedmont, the location for these two restaurants is not nearly as ideal as one would think.  In that same location, several restaurants have opened and closed faster than you can say recession.  Still, that hasn’t stopped one restaurateur from trying to open not one, but two, fast casual concepts.

One Café is purportedly set to offer a mind-boggling array of cuisines with everything from burritos to burgers and all the way through pastries.  They’ve actually named just about every restaurant in Atlanta as their source of unoriginality inspiration.  Speaking of names, according to the Renaissance Walk website, the name of the restaurant is actually spelled One Caffe.

As for that other gig, Yoeshi will serve Japanese street food as well as Japanese pastries and desserts.

According to their own musings, these will be a walk-up and order establishments with no service staff.  They have a chef, but no word on who that actually is at this time.  Anywho, there y’all have it.

One Cafe / Yoeshi Address:
171 Auburn Avenue NE, Atlanta, GA 30303-2552