Appetizing Aperture: Lobster Rolls

Get ‘em hot, get ‘em cold. Lobster rolls, that is, enfolding tender morsels of the succulent deep-sea delicacy at Brine Modern Seafood Shack in Alpharetta’s Avalon. Order a small ($17.95) or large ($26.95) depending on the size of your craving; both come with a choice of side.

Dabble in Fine Wines and Foods for Art’s Sake,at High Museum Atlanta Wine Auction March 21-24

The High Museum Atlanta Wine Auction is the largest charity wine auction in the U.S. benefiting the arts. This year’s theme embraces “The Art of Collecting the Very Best of Wine, Art and Food.” Participate in dinners, auction-related events and the phenomenal auction itself and consider yourself an integral part of this masters-full, multi-day event. We’re excited that a host of our favorite restaurants are involved, including 5Church Atlanta, Aria,American Cut, Brine Seafood Shack, Chicken and the Egg,Livingston Restaurant + Bar, Marlow’s Tavern, Storico Fresco Alimentari, Twelve Eighty and Umi.

Decant the entire event list and buy tickets here.

First Responders and Military Save 50 Percent off Bill at Southern Fried Hospitality Restaurants Chicken and the Egg, Brine and FEED

Southern Fried Hospitality is showing gratitude to those first on the scene to protect and save lives by offering “cent-illating” savings of 50 percent off the tab for first responders and military in uniform or showing badge/identification. Police, fire and EMS workers and military personnel, you constantly put others’ lives first. Marc Taft invites you to take advantage of this open-ended offer at all three of his Southern Fried Hospitality restaurants: Chicken and the Egg in Marietta, Brine Seafood Shack at Avalon in Alpharetta and FEED - Fried Chicken and Such in The Battery Atlanta at SunTrust Park. Sink teeth into seasonal Southern farmstead fare at Chicken and the Egg. Imagine a casual East or West coast beach vacation while feasting on a Cape Cod-meets-Santa Monica menu featuring sustainable seafood at Brine. Chomp into Southern fried chicken as you like it (no heat, Atlanta hot/mild/medium or “Cluck’n Inferno” very hot) along with “Bird on Bread” sandwiches and cool crisp salads, cold drinks, ice cream, milkshakes and more at FEED. Offer excludes alcoholic beverages and gratuity. First responders save, in multiple ways.

Appetizing Aperture: Brine Seafood Shack's Portuguese Fish Stew

Brine Modern Seafood Shack’s Portuguese fish stew brims with a seaside soiree of fish, clams, mussels, Heywood’s chorizo, peppers, tomatoes and saffron ($21.95). Perfectly acceptable to slurp or sop up every drop at this casual eatery in the heart of Alpharetta’s Avalon development.

Appetizing Aperture: Brine Seafood Shack

Faced with a bowl of mussels swimming in a broth of tomato, white wine, garlic and herbs, it’s difficult to say which is more addicting…the mussels or the slice of grilled bread soaking up all of those umami rich flavors. Shell out $12.95 for a steamy mussel bowl at Brine Seafood Shack in Avalon and see what we mean.

Chef Marc Taft’s Brine Seafood Shack Opens in Avalon April 13

Ahoy, Avalon diners! Brine Seafood Shack, the latest from executive chef and restaurateur Marc Taft, opens Thursday, April 13. Drop in for succulent seafood and vacation vibe -- you’ll swear you’re in that perfectly relaxed seafood spot where Cape Cod meets Santa Monica Beach. The menu, created by Taft and Brine chef de cuisine David Connolly (previously of Two Urban Licks and Tap in Atlanta and Michelin-starred Spiaggia in Chicago), includes dishes such as tuna poke with avocado, yuzu, soy and taro; crabcake with remoulade; mini clam rolls on brioche with lemon-caper tartar; lobster rolls, fish stew, clam fritters, fresh oysters and fish tacos. Seafood menus follow Monterey Bay Seafood Watch sustainable practices, and much of the catch from New England, the West Coast and the Gulf will be geo-tagged right down to the captain’s name and boat location. This “shack” is like no other, boasting a rooftop bar featuring Tiki-style craft cocktails and a retractable roof; a raw bar and classic boat cocktails; and a New England-style walk-up window for takeout, soft-serve ice cream, milkshakes and even cocktails, wine and beer to quench thirsts while strolling Avalon’s boardwalk, err, sidewalks. Brine is the latest dining concept from Southern Fried Hospitality, which provides management and development for Taft’s Chicken and the Egg, FEED – Fried Chicken & Such (opening late spring at The Battery Atlanta adjacent to SunTrust Park) and CO-OP Community Table + Bar (opening April 2018 in Forsyth County’s HALCYON Development).

Season Openers Abound -- New Eateries and New Locations of Local Favorites Welcome Diners this Spring

Open wide and say, “Yum!” to spring’s hefty helping of restaurant openings, both those new to the Atlanta area and additional locations of local favorites.

New on the Scene 

• Brine Seafood Shack sails into Alpharetta’s Avalon retail complex this spring, ferrying boatloads of fine, fresh seafood. The newest venture from Marc Taft’s Southern Fried Hospitality heads seaward from the successful Chicken and the Egg in Marietta. Taft and Brine chef de cuisine David Connolly bridge Southern California beach vibe and Cape Cod classics on a menu brimming with lobster rolls, fish stew, clam fritters, tuna poke, fresh oysters and fish tacos. A rooftop Tiki bar with fans and fire pits draws guests upward. Ground level, a walk-up window will open for takeout as well as offer soft-serve ice cream, milkshakes, cocktails, beer and wine to enjoy while strolling Avalon.

• Dallas, Texas-based Cowboy Chicken gallops into the Atlanta area this summer, turning McDonough (South Point shopping center) and Duluth (Sugarloaf Centre) onto its wood-fire rotisserie chicken. The bold, simple and natural style of “just” chicken, chicken enchiladas and sandwiches, salads with rotisserie chicken and healthy “Wild West” sides center on the art of cooking over a real wood-burning fire. Lassoing a menu of picnic-perfect family packs to go and catering offerings, Cowboy Chicken opens in the nick of time for outdoor concert, pool and party season.

 Favorites Add Locations

• HOBNOB Neighborhood Tavern is opening a second location in Town Brookhaven this May when it moves into the former Smash Kitchen & Bar space. The tavern with Southern flair provides a friendly gathering spot for neighbors, shoppers, moviegoers and those just out for a stroll to sit a spell and enjoy tavern specialties, signature cocktails and bourbons from the extensive selection.

• Willy’s Mexicana Grill will roll -- like its fresh and fabulous burritos -- into Smyrna (2995 Atlanta Road, SE, Suite A-160) and the Northlake area (4076 Lavista Road, Tucker) this spring. Welcome timing for those hungering for Willy’s healthy burritos, tacos and bowls to eat in or carry out to the ballpark, swim meets, tennis matches, concerts or wherever summer’s extra daylight hours lead.

• Taco Mac wings its way into McDonough with an anticipated May opening near South Point shopping center. An Atlanta institution since 1979, Taco Mac is the place to find more than 100 beers on draft, the Southeast’s Original Buffalo wings and 50+ HD TVs for sports viewing.

Stadium Winners

• Gamechanger brings award-winning chef Kevin Gillespie’s fan-fare favorites to Atlanta’s new Mercedes-Benz Stadium (200 concourse western end zone), opening July 2017. Catch craveables and popular dishes such as Gunshow’s famous Joey’s West Coast burger, Revival’s Closed-on-Sunday chicken sandwich and Buffalo pork belly sliders, a hit with Falcons fans. Gillespie plans daily specials and a signature item for each stadium event, be it music or sport. Grab draft beer and sodas at the main station, craft beers at the two satellite beer bars or a citrusy cocktail at an “adult lemonade” stand.

• As a boy, Marc Taft loved watching Braves baseball and eating his grandma’s juicy fried chicken. Now grown, restaurateur Taft is living his dream, opening FEED – Fried Chicken & Such at The Battery Atlanta this spring. Those familiar with Taft’s Chicken and the Egg are already salivating over the made-from-scratch specialties, anticipating buckets of chicken, fried chicken tenders and Nashville hot chicken; Southern favorites of North Carolina catfish, Texas-style country fried steak, meatloaf, braised greens, macaroni and cheese, green beans and fried green tomatoes, as well as healthy options such as grilled chicken and salads. Soft-serve ice cream, milkshakes, pies and other fresh-baked treats satisfy that sweet tooth. FEED will offer fast counter service on game days and a relaxed, full-service dining area for lunch and dinner the rest of the year. Bar beverages can be taken outside restaurant walls to be enjoyed within The Battery complex.  

• Sublime Doughnuts owner Kamal Grant is rolling his chef-crafted sweet treats, both round and shaped, into two outlets within Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Home team’s ahead? Celebrate with an A-Town cream. Opponents score? Guests can make their own touchdown at Sublime for one of the many creative doughnut flavors, fill a box to win points with new seat section friends or opt for Sublime soft-serve ice cream and doughnut sandwiches.

Chef and Restaurateur Marc Taft Forms Southern Fried Hospitality

When folks are flocking to your flagship restaurant and two new restaurant concepts are soon to emerge from the oven, it’s time to start a family. Executive chef and restaurateur Marc Taft has created a restaurant management company called Southern Fried Hospitality to provide management and development for his three restaurants --Chicken and the Egg, Brine Seafood Shack (debuting spring 2017 in Alpharetta’s Avalon) and FEED – Fried Chicken & Such (scheduled to open March 2017 in The Battery Atlanta adjacent to SunTrust Park). Taft anticipates offering consulting services in the future. Joining Taft on Southern Fried Hospitality’s management team are vice president of operations Tom Foust, formerly of Rathbun’s and Chicken and the Egg, and director of operations Fran Kieffer, who has worked at Chicken and the Egg, Rio Bravo, The Tavern at Phipps and Einstein’s Restaurant. The trio served in management positions for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants earlier in their careers, and they’re delighted to direct their combined management experience toward establishing a unique corporate culture, exceptional service standards and memorable dining experiences. While Alabama native Taft leans in on Southern fare, he’s spreading wings to other concepts through Southern Fried Hospitality. Family traits ring true: Southern heritage will continue to influence brands; great care will go into sourcing ingredients -- whether we’re talking sustainable, Southern California-style seafood outlined by the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch for Brine, modern farmstead fare at Chicken and the Egg or fast-casual fried chicken and Southern sides at FEED; and people, both talented employees and devoted guests play a big role.