Freds Meat and Bread - Krog Street Market - Atlanta Georgia

You can find this location of Fred's Mean & Bread in what I think of as the food court of Krog Street Market at 99 Krog St NE, Atlanta, GA 30307- along the back-side across from the restrooms near  where the line to Hop City forms. Parking is a bit sporadic for Krog Street Market - meaning that the spaces get filled up quickly and there's usually some attendant out there collecting money (not sure if that's legit or not). I generally park on one of the side streets and walk a couple of blocks.

If you haven't been to Krog Street Market (which was formerly some music studio) - it's basically an open-air building that's been divided along the sides, ends and down the middle with various stores, food stands and restaurants. I don't think there's a food court per se, rather there are a few tables and standing counters in an open area in front of Hop City where you can eat your food and have a great craft draft. On this evening we hit a few of the food stands including my favorite Gu's Dumplings - we also got a few burger-and-fries from Fred's. 

The menu at Fred's is very simple, and you know how I like simple:

* Bacon Cheeseburger
* Burger Stack
* Veggie Burger
* Meatball Parm
* Korean Fried Chickn Sandwich
* Cheesesteak Sandwich
* 'Shroom Shire Cheesesteak
* Pimento Cheese Club
* Crispy Smoked Catfish Po-Boy
* Italian Grinder
* Cauliflower & Eggplant Banh Mi
* Roasted Turkey
* Various sides including Hand-cut fries, garlic fries, pommes frites (not sure how these are different other than the aioli), bbq fries and old bay fries

On this occasion we ordered the Bacon Cheeseburger and it was quite good - juicy, cheesy, bacony. The Roasted Turkey Sandwich that someone ordered was okay but nothing special (guy was on a "healthy food kick"). The fries were excellent. The other thing to buy from Fred's is the cheesesteak sandwich - it's quite good but we refrained on this occasion. The hand-cut fries everyone raves about - they're good but a bit greasy. I've been meaning to come back and try everything else but I usually end up at Gu's - now that Gu is opening a new restaurant back on Buford Hwy I'll have a better excuse to try the other sandwiches.

Service has always been pretty good - it is an order-at-the-counter type place though so my expectations are fairly low. The line to order can get quite long - which for me sucks and will keep me from getting in it - be smart and have one person order the food while others are picking up the beers from Hop City (and have a third grab some table or counter space).

(also posted to Yelp)
 

The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar - Perimter Mall - Dunwoody Atlanta Georgia

You can find The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar at 4400 Ashford Dunwoody Rd, Atlanta, GA 30346 next to the main entrance (facing Ashford Dunwood Rd) of Perimeter Mall. This was coincidentally the same location of Tom Catherall's sushi restaurant Goldfish. There's plenty of mall parking out front - unfortunately there's also a huge area roped off for the valet so you will probably need to walk a bit unless you can stand waiting for your car when you're ready to leave (pet peeve of mine).

I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with The Cowfish - it's near my work so it's convenient and I think in general the food is good here. To understand this place, think of two contrasting food types, in this case hamburgers and sushi, and mash them together into interesting combinations. I have eaten here a few times and did not have a high opinion - the food flavors work but in general, I thought it a bit pricey for what you received (more on that later) and really, why eat here when there are so many good burger and sushi joints nearby? My opinion improved during a Yelp Elite event when I was able to taste much of the menu and met one of the owners (from Austin Texas). This owner-chef really gets things and I could tell he had a genuine love of food and was all-in regarding the success of Cowfish.

The interior of The Cowfish is Industrial-Modern with concrete floors and plenty of tile and wood finishes. The place gets packed during lunch and dinner, but a bit less so during the time in-between so I would recommend either a late lunch or early dinner - or if you're by yourself sit at the bar and avoid any waits. I love the homage artwork on pretty much all the walls - these are common graphic designs with an intentional Cowfish element working into the graphics - it takes a lot of time and talent to do this and these artists do it well. There's well designed elements everywhere you look - even the bathroom signs on the doors add an element whimsy you rarely see - I like a restaurant that doesn't take itself too seriously. There are also as you would expect fish tanks so you can stare at what would otherwise be food (make sure you visit an actual Cowfish behind the bar).

The initial meal I had here got me into a negative path - the restaurant was newly open and my expectations were fairly low. We started with the Crab Rangood Dip and it was unusual and good. I ordered a Burgushi Bento box and my friends ordered burgers with fries. I figured the Bento would give me an overall taste of what the restaurant was about as it included a slider and a few pieces of sushi. The problem with both dishes has to do with the amount of fries and fodder included to keep the pricing low. I love fries and edamame as much as the next guy but if that's all I remember from what I've eaten it puts me in the wrong mindset. In a word, the bento was just not worth what I paid for the little bit of real food compartmentalized in the box - and frankly the slider was tiny, maybe 1.5 inches square (small enough that I could have eaten it in one bite - instead I tried to stretch it to two). Ugh.

Since that initial visit I've had pretty much everything on the menu. For appetizers I'd go with the Blackened Tuna Nachos or the Spicy Poke Dip. I also like in general the salads and the burgers, provided you sub a salad for the fries (unless you really, really like fries as there's a lot of them) or get their very good cucumber salad. If you opt for the a side-salad then get the Parmesan Bacon Truffle Fries as an app. I think the sushi here is good and the rolls tasty - but I prefer nigiri over rolls and fortunately the fish here is fresh (not that frozen crap you get at buffets).

The service here can be a bit hit-or-miss but has improved to the point where I've revised my opinion, rounding up and give The Cowfish 4 of 5 stars. This is an improvement over my initial opinion of 2.5 rounding to 3 stars.

(Also posted to Yelp)

Village Burger - Dunwoody - Atlanta Georgia

You can find Village Burger at 1426 Dunwoody Village Pkwy, Dunwoody, GA 30338. This is a standalone building that if memory serves used to be a Brusters Ice Cream. Parking is out front and along the sides, the shopping center is Dunwoody Plaza.

If you haven't been to Dunwoody then you probably don't really have much of a reason to go - it's a sleepy town that services the neighborhoods that surround these plazas that make up the core local shopping. Dunwoody has only been a city for a couple of years, following the recent cityhood efforts of Sandy Springs and Brookhaven. I've been visiting for many years as an alternative lunch destination to my office near Abernathy. This place gets quite busy during lunch and especially on Fridays.

Village Burger is a local privately own burger shop serving up delicious cheeseburgers via fast-casual counter service. You have a few options and specials including a double-patty Village Burger, a single-patty house burger, a Turkey Burger and a Veggie Burger. You select your cheese and toppings (some are premium like the fried egg but well worth it!) and sauces. They also serve Hot Dogs, Grilled Cheese and BLT Sammies, Tenders, Salads and a few different sides (the seasoned fired are quite good). They have a limited selection of bottled and draft beer - I'd recommend enjoying these out on the patio if it's not too hot.

I've now eaten here about a half-dozen times and the burger is quite good. The toppings are fresh when they should be and pickled when they're not. I always get extra jalapenos, the pepper jack cheese and bacon on the wheat bun. I've tried the Southwest salad with chicken and it was quite filling. I'd recommend this as an alternative to Farm Burger - the prices are quite competitive though the patties are thinner (more like Five Guys but the quality is better and you aren't fighting all the grease). Service is also very good with every responsive food runners depending on fast turnover.

-- John

(also posted to Yelp)