Fried green tomato fiends, Ray’s at Killer Creek in Alpharetta should be on your radar. Ray’s crispy fried green heirloom tomatoes emerge from the kitchen with creamy homemade fresh mozzarella and pickled Vidalia spring onions ($11). Spring and summer love.
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Team in Training athletes seem to show up at every organized run, racing for the larger purpose of raising funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) and its goal of eliminating blood cancers. Southern Proper Hospitality is assembling its threesome of events in May and June to benefit the life-saving mission of LLS. The Southern Proper restaurant family includes Gypsy Kitchen, The Southern Gentleman, Milton’s Cuisine & Cocktails, The Big Ketch Saltwater Grill, Smokebelly BBQ andThe Blind Pig Parlour Bar.
Crank up the roadster and drive back in time to the Roaring ‘20s and The Gatsby Party at The Blind Pig Parlour Bar. On Saturday, May 21, Buckhead’s favorite speakeasy will throw a bash to rival Jay Gatsby’s soirees. A Gatsby-themed five-course dinner lavishes guests from 7-10 p.m. The Gatsby Party follows from 10 p.m.-2 a.m., rollicking with a limited open bar, passed hors d’oeuvre, live 1920s-era music and legal (charity-based) gambling. Buy tickets here: $250 for the All-Access Gatsby Pass (dinner, party and $50 Smokebelly BBQ gift card); or $50 for The Golden Ticket Party Pass (10 p.m. party only). Online purchase service fees will be added at checkout. Info: 404-931-2169.
Milton’s Cuisine & Cocktails executive chef Derek Dollar plans a straight-from-the-vine Bountiful Garden Dinnerexperience in Milton’s Acre on Sunday, May 22. Starting at 6 p.m., guests can tour the one-acre “farm” while enjoying hors d’oeuvre and libations. Afterward, a four-course, family style dinner with wine pairings satisfies garden-piqued appetites. Starlit skies and the soothing strums of a cellist frame the idyllic meal. Nonrefundable tickets are $200 per person (plus online service fee, tax and gratuity) with 75 percent of ticket sales moving on to LLS on behalf of owner Chris Hadermann’s campaign for LLS’ Man of the Year. Info: 770-817-0161
The Southern Proper Hospitality Golf Tournament for LLS tees off on Monday morning, June 6 at the Polo Golf & Country Club in Cumming. Tournament fees for the four-person golf scramble are $600 per foursome or $150 for singles. Fees cover greens and carts; range balls and practice facility; hot grill station lunch with menu items such as roasted corn and black bean salad, three chili Vidalia onion slaw and a burger bar; awards reception dinner featuring street tacos, a salsa bar and sides; and on-course beverages. Participants will have a chance to win tournament prizes, bid on silent auction items and compete in various tournament challenges. Sign up here; online purchase service fee will be added at checkout. Info: 770-887-7656
Cruise past the pasta and into some of the “pasta-less” culinary classes Bellina Alimentari offers. All classes take place at Bellina Alimentari in Ponce City Market. Sales tax will be added during online checkout. Bonus: Culinary Club attendees will receive 10% off any purchase in the Market. Shop away, friends.
- Be that Healthy Mamma, the one who quickly prepares appealing meals that are balanced, fun, kid-friendly and Italian-inspired. Bellina owner and mom Tal Baum leads this demo and tasting Wednesday, May 11 from 6-7:30 p.m. $35 per person; buy a ticket online to reserve a seat.
- Amaro, Italian for “bitter,” is an herbal liqueur sipped as an after-dinner digestif -- unless the Amaro-enamored mixologist crafts a cocktail around the heady libation. Explore Italy’s Amaro culture during an Introduction to Amaro class on Wednesday, May 18 from 7-8 p.m. Tickets are $28 per person.
- When “DIY” refers to dough-it-yourself, you must be in Bellina’s Pizza Making Class, 6-7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 24. Push up those sleeves and play with dough while learning how to create perfect pizzas at home and tasting the fruits of your labor. $45 per person plus sales tax; buy class tickets online. Calendar conflict? Stop in and pick up Bellina’s new pizza making kit ($35), which includes pizza dough mix, organic tomato salsa, Sicilian oregano, marinated olives, extra-virgin olive oil from Liguria and a recipe to guide you from dough-to-table.
- Explore a trio of Italy’s exquisite natural wines paired with local artisanal cheese during a guided 3 Wine 3 Cheese tasting and interactive learning hour from 6-7 p.m. on Thursday, May 26. Tickets are $28 per person.
Glean tips and recipe ideas from Ormsby’s executive chef Scotley Innis at the Westside Farmers Market (WFM) on Sunday, May 15. Innis will pop over to his neighborhood market to do the noon chef demo, then it’s back to Ormsby’s for the Sunday brunch crowd. Keep Ormsby’s in mind for brunch after shopping the 10 a.m.-2 p.m. market at 14thStreet and Howell Mill Road. Purchase Community Farmers Markets' new spring seasonal cookbook ($12) at WFM for brunch-time reading and planning the week’s menus.
Sitting down to a Garden Dinner more local than this would mean sitting on a squash. Chef Derek Dollar and team would rather plant a long table and many chairs between neatly planted rows in Milton’s Acre so guests can gather and feast outdoors at Milton’s Cuisine & Cocktails on Sunday, May 15. A reception featuring hors d’oeuvre and libations welcomes guests to the grounds around the 150-year-old farmhouse in historic Crabapple. When the dinner bell rings, guests will sit down to a four-course dinner with wine pairings. Rest assured heirloom vegetables from the garden will make their way onto chef Dollar’s seasonal seed-to-table menu. $135 per person (includes tax and gratuity). Reserve seats by purchasing tickets online. Milton’s rolls out its popular monthly Sunday Garden Dinners during the May through October growing season. Next up for picking: June 12, July 17, August 21, September 18 and October 9. Questions? Call 770-817-0161.
Even those butting heads over where to dine can agree Food that Rocks is the place to sup from 7-11 p.m. in Sandy Springs this Saturday night, May 14. The Hammond Park festival, produced by fest-expert Taste of Atlanta, is a suppertime fantasy come true for the indecisive set, those seeking new dining destinations and diners spying their favorites on the list of participating restaurants. Noshers at the 21-and-over event can enjoy samples of beer, wine and craft cocktails between bites. Local artists the Tommy Dean Trio, Tony Levitas and Friends, and Ed Roland and the Sweet Tea Project amp up musical vibes while guests vote for their favorite restaurant of the evening. Winning chef takes home a custom Bohemian guitar. This party is going somewhere -- to benefit Sandy Springs-based charities Second Helpings Atlanta, Ian’s Friends Foundation and the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance. All-inclusive tickets are $55 each in advance (plus small service fee); $65 at the door if still available.
Last Saturday, chef Matthew Ridgway hosted the quintessential Derby Party for Kentucky Derby viewers at The Southern Gentleman. This Saturday morning, May 14, the executive chef, who straddles both Gypsy Kitchen and The Southern Gentleman, saddles up for a ride from The Shops Buckhead Atlanta to the chef demo booth at the Piedmont Park Green Market in Midtown. The market unpacks inside the 12th Street and Piedmont Avenue park entrance from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Earlier is better than later for the best selection and checks shopping off the list before the chef demo begins.
Always a beauty, Aria is back after a quick, albeit luxurious and rejuvenating, spa treatment. Chef-owner Gerry Klaskala is behind the kitchen door, creating critically acclaimed dishes as he has done for the past 16 years. The front of the house sports a frisky new look leaning toward daily comforts over more formal occasions. “Before, the room made you feel like you needed to wear a jacket, a place for a birthday or anniversary. We wanted to make it feel more comfortable, soothing, and relaxing. I’m digging it so much,” Klaskala told Atlanta Magazine. We won’t spill all of the beans here, come glimpse the easygoing glam by making dinner reservations online. Living spontaneously, without reservations? No hesitations. The bar area offers no-reservation-required seating for casual diners. Photo by LuAnne Demeo.
No worries about how to squeeze in shopping for fresh veggies and grabbing something more substantial for evening chow call. Chef Kevin Gillespie’s Terminus City BBQ is popping up at the midweek Peachtree Road Farmers Marketon Wednesday night, May 11. Shift your market basket to the non-dominant hand to finagle a strong grasp on TC’s chopped whole hog BBQ sandwiches ($6). The big dilemma is how to wipe the awesome sauce off your chin. That’s what friends are for...stagger those bites. The midweek Peachtree Road Farmers Market rambles at The Cathedral of St. Philip in Buckhead from 4:30-8 p.m.
Jackie Gebel (@jrgebel) of No Leftovers
Food & Travel snaps incredibly succulent shots at restaurants,
bars, culinary finds and hotspots. Forget the doggie bag. There will be no
leftovers when feasting on these photos.
Barramundi, also known as Asian sea bass, rates a “best”
in the sustainable seafood arena from the Monterey
Bay Seafood Watch. Locally, the new spring menu at Marlow’s Tavern is one of the
best places to catch this big boy. Mild, sweet barramundi is scallion-crusted
and pan-seared before landing on the plate alongside quinoa “fried rice” with
edamame, baby carrots, Napa cabbage, ginger, scallions and sesame-soy glaze
($16).
“Paws” for a breather after a beastly week and enjoy the
human equivalent of a good ball toss or belly scratch session at A Toast for Tails Party hosted
by Ray’s at
Killer Creek on Friday, May 13. Bring the pack to this 5-8 p.m.
shindig benefitting our furry friends at the Atlanta Humane Society. Woof down, or
slowly savor, chef Mike Fuller’s specialty dishes hot off Ray’s Big Green Egg,
buy drinks at the cash bar and ease out of workweek mode to live music on the
patio. Tickets are $20 per person. Call ahead to reserve a spot or two,
770-649-0064. “Wine” down further by staying on for Ray’s at Killer Creek’s regular
Friday special of half-off wine bottles priced $200 and under.
Chefs and farmers are key drivers on the road from farm
to table. So tight is their relationship, they’re practically married.
Sometimes it’s a match made in heaven. Sometimes counseling could smooth ties. Nosh Talks, partnering with Slow Food Atlanta, explores the
unique bond between chefs and farmers, how they work together and their
respective perspectives at a Chefs
& Farmers panel discussion Monday, May 9 at Monday Night Brewing.
Repping the chef angle are Gunshow executive chef Joey Ward, Nick Leahy of
Saltyard and Jarrett Stieber of Eat Me Speak Me. Steve Whitmire of Brasstown
Beef, Lauren Cox of Woodland Gardens, Charlotte Swancy of Riverview Farms and
Sue Pavlin, director of The Common Market Georgia pitch for farmers at the 2-5
p.m. talk. Buy tickets at Eventbrite;
$10 student, $20 restaurant industry community, $40 non-industry members.
