Monties Public House - Buford Highway - Druid Hills Atlanta Georgia

You can find Montie's Public House at 1860 Corporate Boulevard NE, Atlanta, GA 30329. Heading north on Buford Highway, Montie's is on the right just past Lips. There's plenty of parking all around this standalone building that was formerly Zuffy's.

This week Montie's Public House was the next business for our Buford Highway Restaurant Crawl group, hosted by John F. I've been wanting to try Montie's as I hadn't up until now - once inside I realized that this was the previous location of Zuffy's - the resurrected Fluffy's - if you've been following along you know about the amazing Cajun menu provided by Fluffy's chef, Joe Dale (who used to have Joe Dale's Cajun Station in Buckhead). Thankfully several menu items have survived the transition to Montie's so you can still sample some of his recipes.

Honestly, I love this bar as it reminds me of all the bars I basically grew up with - this is a low-slung single-story building with a nice patio, an expansive bar and a wing with pool tables and electronic games. It's like taking Doc Brown's Delorean back to 1980 but with better food and craft beer. Sure there are some flat panel screens to watch your favorite sports teams, but all the neon beer signs and details are here, with just a little updating. Oh and I should mention that it's no-smoking, so the worst of those 80's bars, coming home smelling like an ashtray, is removed and a great improvement over my college days.

We sat at a couple of tables towards the front and started looking over the menu - more of our group trickled in until we had 8 or 9 seated so it was a good turnout. Besides a few pints of stout there was this thing called a Swamp Punch at $24 a pitcher - we went through a couple of those. I actually liked this quite a bit - very refreshing and a bit like a less intense Sex on the Beach shooter. The menu has all your usual suspects for bar food and also a couple of special items, like the Gumbo, the Shrimp Po Boy, a Cajun Club and the Jambalaya, all survivors of Fluffy's and Joe Dale's influence.

We started with a few appetizers including:

* Cajun Egg Rolls - Dirty Rice, andouille sausage, chicken and veggies stuffed into 2 eggrolls and served with shredded lettuce and sweet chili sauce. Not something I normally would have ordered but surprisingly good.

* Fried Pickles - Hand-breaded and served with homemade ranch dressing - these were delicious - savory, sour and salty and Sean's favorite.

* Basket of Cheesy Tater Tots - big basket of crispy fried tater tots covered in cheesy sauce - how can you go wrong with these?

For dinner we ordered:

* Reuben Sandwich - Deli-sliced corned beef, grilled ans piled high on toasted marble rye, topped with fresh saurekraut, homemade 1000 island dressing and Swiss cheese - I ordered  this with a side of sweet potato fries and it was quite good.

* Zuffy's Burger - charbroiled beef with lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles and tots.

* Chicken Salad Sandwich - freshly seasoned, made with celery and onions and served on toasted wheat with a side of garlic smashed potatoes. 

* Chicken Sandwich fried served Buffalo style served with steak fries. This was really fantastic!

* BBQ Sandwich - smokey pulled pork, topped with sweet BBQ sauce and served on a  fresh hoagie roll. Ordered with a side of broccoli and very tasty.

* Jambalaya - Chicken and Andouille sausage, dirty rice, trinity and veggies - no visit to Montie's would be complete without ordering this!

I think we all agreed that the food here is quite good - I thought that it was much better than our recent visit to the Rusty Nail (so take that Rusty Nail!) - even the pulled-pork sandwich was better than what we tried at the Nail. The service was, in a word, exceptional with very attentive servers bringing us food and drink like we were regulars, instead of first time visitors. It did take a while for everything to get to us but I'll let that pass as people kept joining us. I also think it's really awesome that some of Joe Dale's food still survives on the menu - I'm making this my go to place as the get together headquarters for this part of town. 

-- John

(also posted to Yelp)
  

High Velocity - Marriott Marquis - Downtown Atlanta Georgia

You can find High Velocity at the Downtown Marriott Marquis - this is that pregnant-looking hotel next to the Downtown Hyatt Regency that acts as the headquarters for much of what happens during Dragon*Con. Parking is pretty much up to valet service during D*C, however there are some lots nearby that aren't too expensive. What I do is leave my truck at Chamblee or Doraville station and take MARTA to Peachtree station and walk down the hill - that's my normal method to get into town as I lack the patience to deal with the traffic, the parking and the costs associated with the latter (parking can be really expensive during Dragon*Con).

I've had many occasions to eat at High Velocity - it's no mistake that I mention Dragon*Con so many times in describing this restaurant, as it's a very popular venue during that event. It's right on the atrium of the Marriott Marquis which is one of the main stages of Cosplay during the event. As such, it's continually packed during the prime-times (Friday-Sunday) and very busy from Wednesday-Monday). High Velocity is more of a bar or pub than what you would think of as a regular restaurant and as such, the food tends to be more something you would find at a bar - your basic burgers, sandwiches and the like. When reading reviews of this place there's quite a difference of opinion on the quality and service. As with any event-hosting hotel restaurant, there's a high degree of variability dependent of when you visit. For me, I accept the fact that the food will take a long time and I come in with that expectation. I also expect the food to be mediocre with a few standouts - I'll describe what I've found below.

First and foremost, visit High Velocity when you're trapped in the hotel and it's difficult to impossible to get away during events. For this, the restaurant excels (as hard as it is to get to the venue during D*C it's even harder to get away - the Uber drivers and taxis have a hard time coming in to pick you up and just about all the nearby restaurants will be packed with convention visitors). During those times there will not be tables and the wait will be quite long - what I do is sidle up to the bar and have a pint- often there's a seat available or shortly available after I've sipped down my beer. The beer selection is above average for this area with several craft of near-craft brews - I usually stick with a Sweetwater 420, a Goose Island IPA, a Sierra Nevada IPA, Guinness Stout or my favorite of this group the Terrapin Hopsecutioner. Sometimes they'll have something better but really, any of these will do for me.

Once seated I usually stick with the sandwiches - the burgers and chicken sandwiches are all quite good and the fries are freshly cut (skin on) and not bad. The little side-salad is pretty weak but passable. Two entry standouts are the ribs (the full rack is a double portion and worth the extra $4. It's not your standard smokey Southern style - more of a pull-apart with standard BBQ sauce, but quite filling and much more than I expected) and the chicken pasta (this is on their regular menu and not on the D*C menu).

And while the food mentioned above is passable, the real, real treat are the desserts and in particular the Chocolate Nachos (while the HIT ME Cake is good, the Nachos are exceptional). We end up eating several of these as a group, usually late night after the main rush. "Huge portion of cinnamon sugar tortillas, chopped Baby Ruth bars, vanilla ice cream, marshmallows, dark chocolate sauce, cherries, whipped cream, serves up to four people" - I don't know who dreamed up this dish but it's exceptional - just make sure you have a couple of friends nearby to share it - 4-6 seems to be a good total number.

Service is all over the place. I think the bartenders are the most kind, especially after you tip a buck on the first drink (seems there's a lot of D*C guests in attendance that don't tip). Be warned that it may take some time for you to get your food and compensate for it.

-- John

(also posted to Yelp)

Yard House - Atlantic Station - Atlanta Georgia

You can find Yard House at 261 19th Street NW, Atlanta, GA 30363 in Atlantic Station - Midtown near the Publix and LA Fitness. If you haven't visited Atlantic Station, this is a sprawling mixed-use development with restaurants, shops and housing nestled in the old Atlantic Station railway complex, thus the name. There's some limited parking on the streets but they really get too jammed up to use so just park on the Publix end of the underground deck.

 The restaurant is located on one end of a block-long row of buildings with both exterior (via patio) and interior seating. The appearance is retro-brownstone meats industrial loft and will be sure to get the nod from any hipster. The interior bar is rather spectacular with beer? tubing along the ceilings leading to the many taps around the center stage - while there is a full bar, this place is really about the beer and there are many options, many on draft. I found the selection exceptional with many things to try - some of my favorite locals were on hand as well as some well-seasoned regional craft.

I've had occasion to visit a few times and in every case it was fairly easy to find seating at the bar. The bartenders do a great job once you get their attention - the times I've gone this took a few minutes, not that they were that busy but the bar is massive and it's easy to miss someone newly sat (so make yourself a bit obnoxious and flag someone down!). Once you get that first draft and order up some appetizers you'll be feeling fine and can take everything in - at least everything you can see. This place is dark as Hades, so to speak, so keep the flashlight on your phone handy while looking at menus.

Speaking of menu, it's fairly extensive with many options - on the occasions I've visited (once before a movie - there's a large Regal cineplex in the same long row of buildings - quite handy to have a bar so close, actually; and a couple of other times while hitting technology meetups in nearby venues) I've tended to feed on bits of spicy chicken - they have these boneless firecracker wings - they're supposed to be hot but they're more spicy than hot if you know what I mean. I've also had the calamari and the moo shu eggroles - all of these were good and satisfying. Nothing great, mind, but still worth giving a whirl. I've also had the :Gardein™ Fried Chicken Strips" with fries and thought them almost inadequate - tons of breading and cold fries.

All this being said, while Yard House hits things off well it finishes a bit flat. I think the service and food can be a bit better - it's not horrible but not what I would call great. Still, it's worth dropping in, especially if you're waiting on a movie, happen to overlap the happy hour and want to sample the exceptional beer selection. I think it's a pub that wants to be a restaurant but needs a little shake-up or maturing. I have high hopes for it  and it's certainly competitive to the nearby Meehan's.

-- John

 (also posted to Yelp)
 

Sound Table - Old Fourth Ward - Atlanta Georgia

You can find Sound Table at 483 Edgewood Ave. SE, Atlanta, GA 30312 in Old Fourth Ward across from The Church, right at the intersection of Edgewood Ave and and Boulevard. The building is on the South-side of the intersection, painted black with a large mural of yellow-goggle-wearing kids on the side. Parking is mostly paid-street or you can use one of the many paid lots but may need to walk a bit.

Coming back from a visit to the Eventide Brewery, we decided to drive up through town and try out some places along Edgewood - initially we hit The Church but decided to look for something a bit more substantial - if we hadn't already been drinking a bit at the brewery we would have stayed for a bit longer - plenty to look at in The Church (spotted quite a few Talking Peewee Herman toys). The Sound Table is across the street so no sweat - this was during the week so there were only a couple of tables, mostly of people drinking. We were there early enough that there wasn't anyone on stage (not sure if they schedule entertainment during the week as it is).

The interior is long and dark with a well-stocked bar along the back edge - there's additional seating upstairs. The interior is warm and inviting with great wood finishes and concrete, a bit eclectic-modernist. There's a short platform as a stage across from the bar and seating that stretches from the stage out towards the front window - I'd rate the place above casual and almost fine-dining (not that this is the expectation - I believe Sound Table is more known for the music, attitude and bar than the food).

It took a few minutes for our server to come by, but once things got started the service was quite good. This night's rotating tap featured the very excellent Creature Comforts Tropicália - if you haven't tried this local Athens brew, trust me in saying it's one of the best things to recently peek its head out of Athens. As many of you know, I tend to stay away from anything sour, citrusy or with added fake-tasting flavors. This delicious American IPA has gorgeous color and an out-of-this world fruity-hoppy aroma. You'll get all kinds of crazy flavor hints: mango, orange, passion fruit - stuff I typically can't stand in beer but this all works together to produce something amazing. On draft this night so extra special and probably not pasteurized - make sure you try if if you ever see it on draft!

We were presented with two paper menus - one narrow two-sided menu with food (which seems to rotate seasonally) and a wider menu with drink specials. We started on some apps then went for entrees:

Smoked Wings - these, in a word: fantastic! Smokey dry-rubbed wings with a delicious smoked chipotle aioli - I could have eaten several pounds of these and was left wishing we had a double-order.

Shrimp Chorizo Tacos - Three soft-corn tortillas with grilled shrimp, chipotle aioli, cilantro slaw and salsa. I liked these the least, but because they were bad, but because the other items we ordered were so good! These could have had a bit more kick, perhaps with a jalapeno coleslaw.

Lamb Burger with Fries - the burger was juicy and the clever Mediterranean toppings - cucumber, tomato, chevre, arugula and tzatziki sauce, perfection.

 
Brick Chicken with Steamed Broccoli - all I have to say is that whomever is doing the cooking at Sound Table understands fried chicken.

Service was very good once it got started - the food was slow to hit the table but very well worth it in the end. In all I think the food here is very good and worth sampling - this is truly a hidden gem when it comes to Old Fourth Ward. I want to try it on a busy night to see how things work and if I'm lucky, they'll have more of that Tropicália on tap (wishful thinking!).

-- John

(shorter version posted to Yelp)