The One Eared Stag - Atlanta, GA (April 2012)

1) Did you ever go someplace and when you got there felt like you've been there before?  As soon as we walked in to the One Eared Stag everything looked familiar (except for the eponymous animal head above the bar).  I started to wonder, have we eaten here and I just don't remember it?  Couldn't be.  It was on "To Go To" list, not my "Been There - Ate That" list.  Then it hit me.  Me: "Did this place used to be Shaun's?"  Waiter-guy: "Yeah, years ago."  Dilemma solved.

2) It was really easy to have this conversation, because there was NO ONE there.  11:45 on a Sunday for brunch and not a soul in sight.

They gave us the option to sit outside, which we took - kind of chilly, but at least we found other people there...

Okay, take my word for it.  There were actually other people there, you just can't see any of them in the photo.  Jo is actually in this photo, deep in the corner, but you can't see her either, so you'll have to trust me. The brunch menu seemed similar enough to their dinner menu to call this a fair sampling, so on to the food:

Jo ordered the shrimp & grits.  I love shrimp & grits, but she mentioned that she was ordering it AND we were heading to Charleston later that week where I was sure to have some.  When the food arrived, all we could do was stare at Jo's plate.

Isn't that the largest shrimp that you've ever seen?

There was one GIANT shrimp in the bowl. In talking with the barkeep, he said that they were tiger prawns.  "Most folks only let them grow to four to six inches", he said, "because as they get older, they get smarter and have to be caught by hand.  When they're thrown on the grill, they spread out like a lobster tail".  There was as much meat on this shrimp as on eight - ten large shrimp.  The grits were more of a grit stew, with a sweet andouille sausage, spinach and sofrito (a simmered mix of garlic, onions tomatoes and olive oil).  Not the shrimp & grits that I was looking for (I'm more of a fan of the Carolina Gullah style shrimp & grits), but Jo did the plate justice.

I went with the fried chicken, with black pepper biscuits and sausage gravy. 

As you can see, it was two biscuits with one giant chicken breast spread across them, covered in sausage gravy.  When I cut into them, I was amazed at how perfectly the chicken was prepared.  The skin was crispy without being burned and the meat was moist, tender and cooked uniformly.  

The black pepper biscuit was the most surprising thing of the meal.  As good as the chicken was, the biscuit was better.  

So good that every time I turned around Jo was stealing a bite of biscuit from my plate.  

So good that when the waiter came back and asked if we needed anything, Jo ordered a side of biscuits.  When the biscuits arrived, they came with pear preserves that were the perfect compliment.  

We each ate a biscuit top, covered in pear preserves for dessert.  We've already planned to return, and decided we could order an app and split the chicken and biscuits.  I'd also like to try lunch and dinner, in addition to another brunch.  What a great find.

Busy Bee Cafe, Atlanta, GA (April, 2012)

For the last several years, I've seen the Busy Bee Cafe on every list that was made about places to eat in Atlanta.  Since they close at 7:00 pm, they aren't an option for dinner out most nights, but on a random Thursday I was driving through town at 6:00 pm and looking for a place to eat and ended up at the Busy Bee.

When I got there, the place was so packed that I could barely get into the door.   There was a tour bus out front and apparently the entire bus-load was standing just inside the front door.  I did find a spot at the counter.  Every review had raved about the fried chicken, so that's what I ordered.

I thought that everyone there would be eating the fried chicken.  I may have made a mistake in my thinking, as the guy next to me ordered the smoked turkey legs with gravy and was nearly heart-broken when they had sold out.   

So here's the breakdown on the fried chicken: 

• The chicken was dry  
• The creamed corn was dry
• The cornbread was dry

The place was HORRIBLY unorganized.  It took twice as long to pay as it did order and eat.  And it took a while for them to figure out who was going to wait on me.  

Honestly, it was really a big disappointment.  I might try it again some time, but I'm not in a hurry to do so.

Chicken and the Egg, Marietta, GA (November, 2011)

One Sunday, after church, we were looking for some place new to eat.   As we're pulling out of the parking lot, I hit Open Table and searched for places nearby and took a look.  Up popped Chicken and the Egg, near the square in Marietta.  We read the reviews and decided to give it a try.  

Their premise is "Modern Farmstead Fare".  Apparently, every new Southern retauranteur's grandmother (regardless of their place of birth - Atlanta, GA, Jackson, MS or Long Island, NY) served pimiento cheese and deviled eggs at all dinners.  They're on EVERY menu.  So we started with the pimiento cheese to see how it stacked up.

Fairly well.  Not as good as that as Rosebud (in Morningside) or Local 3 (kind of in Buckhead) - my current favorites - but very tasty.   We (technically, I) emptied the jelly jar.

Jo ordered the Farm House Burger - house ground beef, fried egg, Nueske's bacon - with fries and said it was good.  

In case you aren't familiar with Nueske's bacon, it is mighty good stuff.  Apple wood smoked and cured with love.   Mmmmmm.


I believe the true test of the caliber of a southern cook is in their ability to properly fry chicken.  You'd think that a place with such a fowl name would prominently feature their chicken.  So I ordered the fried chicken with mac-n-cheese and green beans.   On a side note, ordering the green beans was a challenge - I was trying to determine how they were cooked (French-style? Slow-cooked?) and couldn't seem to get the waiter to understand my question.

When my meal arrived, the beans were indeed Southern style.  The mac-n-cheese was fresh.  And the fried chicken was good.  Not great, but good.  I'd go back and eat there again, but don't feel the need to have the fried chicken again.

LeRoy's Fried Chicken, Atlanta, GA (August 2011)

About two months ago, I noticed a new place on Howell Mill - LEROYS FRIED CHICKEN.  I'll admit it - I got very excited.  Immediately, a picture came to mind.  Leroy -   white t-shirt, apron, that old-time cook's cap that fits like a Navy hat, standing over a deep fryer, cigarette butt hanging out the left side of his mouth.   In my mind, before I ever went, this was going to the PERFECT fried chicken.

You see, the sign on Howell Mill has everything in all caps.  But when you get to the menu itself, it's not Leroy's, but LeRoy's Fried Chicken.   Very different.  "LeRoy" is Julia LeRoy.  Not quite the cook I had in mind.  Or the fried chicken.   LFC is a walk-up, for all intents and purposes.  They have three tables and a total of six chairs.   I stood, as there was  a party of three (rudely using a fourth chair for their bags) and a table of two.   I think they intend to be a carry-out place.   More about that in a minute.

To the chicken -  I went with a  one piece meal:  a breast with macaroni and cheese and a biscuit.

This was one pretty piece of fried chicken.  The outside was crispy.  Their claim on this chicken is two fold - local hens, fried in lard.   I can testify to the fried in lard.  It tasted like lard.  It tasted like garlic powder.  Strongly.  The chicken WAS moist and tender.  It just didn't taste good.

That's in contrast to the mac-n-cheese, which didn't taste at all.  Bland.  Bland.  Bland.   The biscuit was the saving grace - exceptional.  Light and flaky.  I'd go back for a biscuit.  Or three.  I might want to do it soon, because as soon as everyone tries the fried chicken for the first time, they'll lose their potential client base and won't be open, IMO.

Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room, Savannah, GA (March 2011)

For Colleen's spring break, we headed down to Savannah for a couple of days to scout for an apartment for her pending move.

Come Monday, we were making the requisite food plans and Jo wanted to go to Paula Dean's restaurant, Lady & Sons.  I had read about Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room for years, but we had only been in Savannah on the weekends previously.  This was the day.

We started the morning putting in our name for a dinner reservation at Lady & Sons, then made our way over to Mrs. Wilkes to wait in line there.  They open at 11:00.  We got there at 11:30 and ended up waiting about 90 minutes to get inside.   The view to the right is as you walk in the front door.  Mrs. Wilkes has been open since the 40s, originally as a boarding house.  It was converted into a restaurant and now has family-style lunches at tables for ten.

The table was covered in a veritable cornucopia of food - fried chicken, barbecue, roast beef, macaroni and cheese, green beans, field peas, butter beans, fried okra, squash, mashed potatoes, tomatoes, biscuits and cornbread, and at least ten more bowls. 

The result for me:

the biscuit?  okay

the fried chicken?  blue ribbon best, among the top 10 I've ever had

everything else?  Somewhere in between.

If you're going to have one truly Southern meal in Savannah, make it at Mrs. Wilkes.

c