New Year, New You stocks an arsenal of healthy ideas. Raid the kitchen instead of the drug store for cold and flu fighting drinks and detox-ers. Prep for the work week by portioning out skinny Southwest chicken salad or honey sesame chicken into lunch bowls, making protein stacks that actually fill you up or compiling a grocery list based on no-cook meal preps for 1,200-1,500 calories per day. Greet morning sipping a groovy mango-orange-banana sunrise smoothie then stick a straw in a chocolate peanut butter or cucumber avocado smoothie to fill up and hydrate midday. And yes, Santa, there really are comfort foods and healthy dinners coming in under 500 calories. Believe.
Those scared to dive, cold turkey, into a healthier new year will find encouragement and tons of inspirational eating ideas like simple bowls, smoothies and sea salt chocolate chip cookies (slightly healthy) at @shutthekaleup. The feisty and fit mom and yoga sculpting instructor goes the extra mile by blogging at shutthekaleup.com.
Santa hats and elf ears go back in the box this week as ringing jingle bells morph into ringing in the new year. Polish the baubles and get ready to pop open some bubbly because Atlanta restaurants have big plans and they’d love for you to join them. Our blog rings true with celebratory dos, whether the preference is a quiet dinner, cocktails on a rooftop patio or dancing your way into 2017.
Rifle through your calendar app and mark Thursday, Dec. 29, as the bull’s-eye day to buy individual tickets to the first Gunshow “Hired Guns” dinner of 2017. For the Sunday, Jan. 29 event, chefs Kevin Gillespie and Joey Ward are crossing the border to bring in guest chefs Hakim Rahal and Pablo Rojas of Provisions in Montreal. Rahal and Rojas have garnered attention from critics and diners alike for their five-course family style menu created around the ingredients of the day from local purveyors. Prior to Dec. 29, tickets to this event were only available to those purchasing the entire “Hired Guns” series. As with the remaining five events, any tickets still available will go on sale for $95 per person one month prior to the dinner via Xorbia. Seating is limited to 100 guests at the intimate dining experience where chefs create and come out of the kitchen to mingle with guests. Next up, Jennifer Carroll of Requin in Washington, D.C. on March 12; Grae Nonas of Tullibee in Minneapolis on May 7; Justin Devillier of La Petite Grocery in New Orleans on Aug. 6; Jamie Bissonnette of Toro and Coppa in Boston on Sept. 10 as well as one more surprise visitor on Nov. 5. “Hired Guns” began in 2013 as a way to lure some of the country’s most-talked-about chefs to Gunshow to share their styles and personalities alongside those of Gunshow’s own “kitchen dudes.” The Glenwood Park restaurant is open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday from 6-9 p.m. Reservations are encouraged but not required.
Reading tea leaves? Nope. We’re going straight to those in the know, Atlanta’s trendsetting chefs, for insider predictions on the culinary keen for 2017.
- Red Beard Restaurants chef/owner Kevin Gillespie sees chefs zeroing in on the thing they do exceptionally well, scaling restaurants down in size, serving one thing or offering a very limited menu.
- Executive chef Matthew Ridgway of Gypsy Kitchen agrees, predicting smaller restaurants “focused on a simpler ‘bistronomy’ style of cooking that puts the emphasis on the food and flavor.”
- Doug Turbush (Seed Kitchen & Bar, Stem Wine Bar, Drift Fish House & Oyster Bar), like many in the industry, is keeping an eye on skyrocketing meat prices and sees chefs moo-ving toward alternative cuts and “the creative use of vegetables.”
- Southern Fried Hospitality’s Marc Taft also is looking at alternatives to protein, “maybe mixing mushrooms with beef for burgers” and also predicts “vegetables will take center stage.”
- Dolce Italian chef Paolo Dorigato sees a sprouting love affair with fresh vegetables and less reliance on meat leading toward more seasonal vegetables and fewer proteins to create something good, accessible and reasonably priced.
- The emphasis on locally sourced veggies will tighten bonds between farmers, chefs and diners. Ormsby’s chef Nick Anderson believes “farmers markets are going to blow up, becoming even more popular as farmers come to markets to supply demand.”
- Bellina Alimentari creative director Alice Fabi agrees. “The relationship between the chef and the farmer is becoming crucial, with both parties working creatively and efficiently together. Chefs become storytellers, going to the source of ingredients and interpreting what is in season directly from farm to table.”
- Revival chef Andreas Müller sees restaurants sourcing products from their own farms and smaller local farms growing greens and vegetables for one restaurant only.
- Takeout windows and home delivery are booming as weeknight options for time-starved hungry diners. Gypsy Kitchen’s Ridgway predicts more chefs plow into this growing consumer need “using really good ingredients alongside an increasing mix of ethnic ingredients.”
- As food delivery grows, Southern Fried Hospitality’s Taft says chefs “need to create food that travels well and be able to capture the art of presentation in the foods that are delivered.”
- Jamie Lynch of 5Church thinks chef-inspired meal kits are going to take off. “People can put together some of their favorite chefs’ dishes at home. There are a couple of kits I’d like to grab for myself, just to see how they do it!”
- HOBNOB Neighborhood Tavern director of operations Mark Nelson foresees growth in walk-up ordering and delivery as well as a return to more casual restaurant environments and a more technologically wired customer who may order drinks or food through smartphone technology.
- Johnny’s Hideaway owner Chris Dauria also predicts an uptick in mobile device ordering “but not at the Hideaway!”
- Ormsby’s Anderson says “Asian restaurants are going to start doing American takeovers, like Korean barbecue doing Southern barbecue ribs.”
- American Cut executive chef John Adamson is excited about “an emergence of ultra-regionalized ethnic food.”
- On the cocktail front, Marlow’s Tavern’s Rick Blumberg sees more wine and cocktails on tap in our imbibing futures, plus cocktails enhanced with fortified wine. “I think we will continue to see more sherry, Madeira and port cocktails.”
- Ben Yabrow of Himitsu says guests are moving toward more refreshing drinks rather than the boozy and stirred variety. He says, “It’s exciting to see more people putting their faith in the bartender's judgment.”
- Sublime Doughnuts founder Kamal Grant predicts a growing hunger for spicy and savory/sweet combinations, saying “Thanks to the popularity of Sriracha, Americans’ tolerance for heat has increased, and they want more.” Here’s where lasagna cupcakes and doughnuts filled with salad, vegetables or meat enter the scene in traditional sweets made in a savory style.
