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CHRISTINA COTTER
2012 WRAP-UP
The year in review is always a chance to try to get the big
picture of what went on in Athens food over the course of the
past 12 months, but it can be difficult. In some ways, 2012
contained fewer highlights than many previous years, but there
were still some restaurants that deserved more accolades than
others.
The Branded Butcher, for example, which replaced Flight next
to the Georgia Theatre on Lumpkin Street downtown, was far
and away the most ambitious restaurant to open in Athens last
year, offering up a varied array of small plates based on char-
cuterie, fine oysters, a smart and well-priced list of wine and
cocktails and, above all, a playful sensibility that never under
mines its professionalism.
Pulaski Heights BBQ, which opened toward the end of the
year and has yet to get a proper review in this column, is less
upscale in its goals, but Chuck Ramsey (ex-Five & Ten) knows
exactly what he's doing with a smoker and then some. Tucked
away in the Leathers Building, down Pulaski Street right next
to the railroad tracks, he's elevating BBQ in all aspects.
The Savory Spoon, in Jefferson, with new owners who believe
in locally sourced ingredients and clearly have a great love for
vegetables, is worth a little trip out of town.
Farm 255 obtained a new chef, in Whitney Otawka, but not
a new attitude, maintaining the same commitment to the
Five Bar
components of its dishes and being, in particular, an excellent
place for bar snacks.
And, finally, Trappeze, on Washington Street in downtown
Athens, turned over its kitchen to some new blood and dra
matically improved its menu. The place may be quiet at lunch,
but you'd be a fool to pass up its affordable and well-executed
offerings at that time of day.
As ever, chains continued to flock to the area, with Steak 'n
Shake, Chipotle, Firehouse Subs and Hubee D's all serving
as examples of what a franchised business can do right. The
Washington Street deck downtown added Fuzzy's Taco Shop
and Momma Goldberg's Deli, not exactly broadening the area's
options, and Dirty Birds, a wing shop out of California, moved
in at the other end of downtown. Copper Creek Brewing
Company added Sunday hours. Dickey's Barbecue Pit added
another location, in the former Allen's on Hawthorne, and some
local folks (Siri Thai and Taqueria La Parrilla) added loca
tions on the Eastside. Speaking of that, one of the stories that
popped up all year was the supposed abandonment of "down
town," which often came to include Baxter, for the Eastside,
but the relocation of Stuffed Burger did not a trend make.
Baxter saw its usual comings and goings, with The Sultan
reopening (hooray!) in Stuffed Burger's vacated spot, Gnat's
Landing making way for Chonell's, Skogie's (a fish place out
of Lake Lanier) opening a spot by Domino's, and Runt's BBQ
opening and then closing. Broad, too, saw a lot of change,
with Broad Street Coffee (a vegan restaurant offering all three
meals plus coffee and snacks) opening in the former Dogg
Pound, Quickly (an odd Taiwanese chain focused mostly on
bubble tea and burgers) opening with no fanfare near down
town, LongHorn Steakhouse relocating from Beechwood to
the spot of the old farmers' market and, of course, Steak 'n
Shake fouling up everyone's traffic.
The Fresh Market gave Beechwood a grocery store once
again, for those who can't handle the Kroger over in Alps,
and Stripling's General Store camped out on 78, catering to
tailgaters. Maba Grill closed downtown but, thankfully, was
replaced shortly thereafter with Yummy Pho, serving an even
larger menu of Vietnamese food, and Athens Bagel Co. man
aged to make it work as a bakery and will soon have Always
Baked cookies made onsite. Tlaloc El Mexicano opened a
second location in Watkinsville, with a friendlier atmosphere
but no less delicious food, and Donderos' Kitchen took over
the concession at the Botanical Garden. Streets food cart,
long present in downtown but not entirely legal, managed to
go legit and now can be found regularly outside the Max. Las
Conchitas Caliente, serving Peruvian on Prince for years, was
replaced by Rustica, doing the same, and, somewhat similarly,
the Chick-fil-A in the mall is now a one-off called Chicken
Burgers N Things. The Camp offered both honey-baked hams
and lighter country cooking in Homewood Hills and, interest
ingly, Sabine's Coffee Haus, promising
German grub, opened in Lexington near the
end of the year.
In addition to those already noted, we said
goodbye to Chango's, Sisters Creole Market,
Yoguri, JR's Baitshack, From Scratch Cafe in
Winterville (which also opened), Peaches Fine
Foods, The Local Jam, Gymnopedie, The Beer
Growler, Kabana, Shane's Rib Shack on the
Eastside, Graze and the westside La Fiesta
(now the location of La Cabana de Don
Juan).
< Five Bar, an Alabama-based small chain,
just opened in the Cotton Exchange Building
on Hull, in the former Casa Mia space,
and Tin Drum Asia Cafe in Beechwood,
Urban Flats in the Washington Street deck
and Herschel's Famous 34 Pub & Grill
on Washington should be close behind.
A Dunkin' Donuts (and a second Jimmy
John's) just opened up on the Eastside,
paired with a Your Pie, and Mitchell Bridge's
former Iron Grill will be Los Coyotes before long. Sloan's
Ice Cream and Famous Dave's BBQ, two more franchises, are
looking to arrive in Athens, and Golden Chick will open in
Watkinsville. The coming year will bring moves for Donderos'
and for Five & Ten, although neither very far, and the open
ing of Marker 7 Coastal Grille in Five Points, which should
be open in March, as well as Grindhouse Killer Burgers on
Lumpkin, The World Famous (mostly music but also chicken
and waffles) in the former Wilson's downtown and Creature
Comforts, a brewpub in what was Snow Tire, around the cor
ner. Two longtime projects: Ideal Bagel and La Puerta del
Sol have me crossing my fingers they'll come to fruition, and
let's hope Dexter Weaver's alarm some months ago has staved
off closure of Weaver D's. One 2012 event that attracted an
astonishing number of people downtown and I hope will be
repeated in 2013 was the Athens Food Cart Fest, which packed
the streets at the end of last March and showed that, trend or
not, people are interested in mobile eateries.
Finally, as usual, here's my wishlist for the year ahead: more
than one Korean restaurant (the population is here to support
it), someone who can make a go of it with a really excellent
upscale breakfast on weekdays (Heirloom tried but scaled back
to weekends), something good in the Local Jam and Five &
Ten spots and ramen-ya (cheap,filling and tasty).
Hillary Brown food@flagpole.com
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