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It would seem that The Burger Club has gotten off to a rocky start.  First, there was the name fiasco; then the opening date was repeatedly pushed back.  After all that, the lukewarm reviews started to come in.  Despite these adverse factors, this Vinings burger joint seems like a bustling hotspot; at least that was the case during lunch the other day.

Packed near capacity, families, local businessmen, and a slew of shopping entourages lined up to get their fill of classic American gluttony.  Inside this friendly little space, meaty food trays flew about with purpose.  Severs and food runners ran around with haphazard fervor and there seemed to be a 50’s diner energy to the restaurant.

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I’ve had a few watershed traffic days in my soon to be 12-months of blogging.  One of those days came from a little blurb about the devastating flood damage to Canoe, that effervescent contemporary American restaurant which sits on the banks of the not-so-mighty ‘Hooch.  While the restaurant may or may not be in your daily dialect, it is almost always mentioned as one of the elite Atlanta restaurants.  Further to the point, after roughly 14-years, Canoe has the longest legs in the notoriety department of any restaurant in the Vinings/Smyrna area.

Sure enough, there was a big outcry when word spread that the restaurant was forced to close because of ridiculously high waters (yes … that’s the absurdly high waterline).  If there was ever any doubt as to its status in the “pantheon” of the ATL dining-scape, the public support that followed, which was swift AND substantial, would quell most any doubts. 

Some two-months later, riding the hardworking backs of executive chef Carvel Grant Gould, special events manager Laurie Vance, and the rest of the team, Canoe is back.  The excitement was pronounced enough to draw John Kessler’s attention, he returned to wax-foodetic in his last post of the awesomeness that was 30 restaurants, 30 days series.  It’s a great read.  Though I didn’t check it out until post meal, I noticed some subtle differences in the mutual dishes.

Anywho, when Papa Buddha and I headed over there for lunch a few days ago, something happened to me.  I got all giddy like a school girl.  You should consider just how disturbing that statement is … remember, I’m a straight dude.  But back on point, regardless of the culinary experience that was immanent, I just got all warm and fuzzy inside.  I wouldn’t be surprised if the same would happen for most any “culinarian” with Canoe on their schedule.  That alone may make a trip there worthwhile.

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Being out of town sucks!  It means I don’t have the chance to check out Community BBQ just yet, I am not able to hit the town for more research, and I don’t get to hit up celebrations that I most certainly wish I could attend.  Such is the case with Canoe, which was devastated by the Atlanta Flood.  So do me a favor, and head over tonight and have one on me (figuratively speaking of course!).  The restaurant is back in the game!  I strongly suggest you make reservations, I hear that quite a crowd is expected over the next few days.

Canoe Restaurant Address & Information
4199 Paces Ferry Rd NW, Atlanta, GA 30339 // 770.432.2663 // Canoe reservations // Canoe website // facebook

When word spread that highly regarded Canoe was knee deep in water, Atlanta’s food community took a collective gasp.  Now, in just over two months, the staff has put things back together.  We can all let out our breath and get ready to visit one of Atlanta’s most notable restaurants.  According to the press release, the restaurant will open for business on November 23rd.  Congrats to Canoe, they’ve all worked very hard and I, along with many others, are glad to hear the news.

Yesterday’s impromptu post on the unfortunate state of Canoe in Vinings resulted in an unexpected explosion of traffic.  As such, I thought I’d take some time to update people on the status of the restaurant.  In addition, it looks like Love Is Love Farm has its own share of water damage to deal with..

Canoe

I received an email from Canoe’s Special Events Manager who told me that they intend to re-open as soon as possible.  However, there is no timetable yet as the assessment and repairs are still in their infantile stages.  I also caught word from a reader that until things move farther along, they don’t seem to know if they’ll be able to open in full or in stages.  I’ll keep in touch with the folks over at Canoe and see what’s what.  As an aside (and an important one in that), they took some time in the email to communicate just how sad they are for those who lost friends and/or family members during the past few days.  A classy group no doubt.

Love Is Love Farm

The above picture comes from Savory Exposure’s via his twitpic account.  This past Saturday, Love is Love Farm hosted their Outstanding in the Field Dinner with local chef Kevin Gillespie.  My understanding is that the event did go down, but under very wet conditions.  Since then, the farm has flooded but I hear that everyone is okay.

It seems almost shameful.  Not only am I deeply passionate about Japanese culture and cuisine, but I pride myself on visiting most anything that resembles a Japanese restaurant here in the Dirty.  Such was the basis for my dismay as I met up with ChowDownAtlanta (website) for a little grub late last week.  After our usual game of who’s gonna make the call, we finally settled on the long standing Yakitori Jinbei for our lunch endeavor.  Located up Cobb Pkwy, just outside I-285, it is beyond shocking that I had never before ventured into the tiny strip mall eatery.  Open since ‘02, I lived not more than 3 miles from the place for many a year.

Walking into the 40 some-odd seat room, you can’t help but identify the formulaic Japanese décor.  Heavy on the soft, and accented with the deep, the simplicity of the space is both expected and demanded.  It is a style that I will never tire of.  My affinity for the layout, however, is inconsequential.  What is of importance is that the place is clean and the furniture and such are all of relatively high build quality.

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This weather has been a harbinger.  With news of at least four deaths in the metro area, we need to put these things in perspective.  Still, this is a food blog, so that’s what we’re here to talk about.

Not surprisingly, a ton of flood tweets are popping up under the twitter term #atlflood.  One that has particularly caught my eye, and that of a bunch of other people, was a picture of the ever popular Canoe.  The picture, which comes to us from Jessica Dauler of JessicaShops.com, shows us just how bad this weather has been.  As a quick note, I’d hyper link to Jessica’s website, but it seems to be down at the moment!  In the meantime, hit her up on twitter.

Not quite as devastating is her picture of Ray’s on the River.  We’ll have to see what kind of affect this will have on Canoe, and other area restaurants.

[Via twitter]

UPDATE: Thanks to @savoryexposure for sharing this video with me: (courtesy of @wei_yang)

On the 10th, I ran a post about an upcoming burger joint from Paul Albrecht and his Great Food Inc. restaurant group.  Turns out, the restaurant has already gone through a name change.  What was once the Burger Lounge is now The Burger Club.  Yeah, not the most earth shattering blurb ever, but it is what it is.

Paul Albrecht is no stranger to the Atlanta dining scene.  A founding member of the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group, he is the purveyor of the namesake Paul’s Restaurant and the newly minted Social Vinings.  Now he and son Patrick, who collectively run the Great Food Inc. restaurant group, are set to open The Burger Lounge in Vinings.

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At first glance, C&S Seafood and Oyster bar is another in the long list of Atlanta restaurants that under delivers and over charges.  As with all first impressions, it’s hard for any single diner, myself included, to ascertain the differences between systematic failure and the anomaly of a bad meal.  If I had to venture a guess, I would say that my experiences to date at C&S include some failures on both fronts.

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