By Gray Chapman
Atlantic Station was bustling on the weekend of Oct. 11-12 as Taste of Atlanta attendees filled the streets. The outdoor food festival featured over 70 of Atlanta’s best restaurants, from old favorites like OK Café and Six Feet Under to trendy hotspots like Straits, Dolce and Lobby. Each participating restaurant was situated in a tent with samplings of their menus’ specialties available to the public. Attendees also had the opportunity to see live cooking demonstrations from well-known chefs, including “Top Chef” star and Atlanta restaurant celebrity Richard Blais.
Guests purchased sets of tickets to use at the restaurants of their choice — and with a seemingly endless array of options, choosing the restaurant was the hardest part. In the mood for something sweet? Café Intermezzo’s carrot cake and West Egg’s cupcakes, arguably some of the best in the city, were just a few of the many choices for sweet-toothed ticketholders. For the more carnivorous crowd, Buckhead Beef was giving away bite-sized bits of grilled steak (and believe me, it was definitely worth the mile-long line).
Joli Kobe Bakery, a new bakery, café and bistro located right down the street from SCAD-Atlanta, had a little something for everyone as they served mini Kobe beef burgers (like Krystal, but infinitely better) alongside delicate sugary petit fours. Those looking for some international flair had quite a few genres before them, including spicy Mexican from Loca Luna, Caribbean snacks from Trader Vic’s, Ethiopian fare from Desta, Indian cuisine from Bhojanic, and Greek food from Taverna Plaka — and many more.
For Atlantans who wanted to sample some of our city’s most luxurious plates, Taste of Atlanta provided a great opportunity to have a little bit of everything without the three-digit tab. Star chef Kevin Rathbun, who solidified his legendary status in Atlanta when he defeated the mighty Bobby Flay on “Iron Chef America,” was there in full force with his extravagant namesake steakhouse, Rathbuns, doling out expertly crafted food to hungry ticketholders. But perhaps the restaurant most associated with celebrity at Taste of Atlanta was Straits, a chic Singaporean gourmet restaurant owned by popular rap musician Ludacris. While “Luda” didn’t make an appearance at Taste of Atlanta, his head chef, Chris Espanol, was giving demonstrations onstage.
Taste of Atlanta was a great event for foodies throughout the city, particularly those who want to scope out some of the city’s newer restaurants. Of course, it was also just fun for anyone who likes good food in general. Any attendee could sample from the endless rows of white tents — starting off with the classic “rat toes” at Six Feet Under, grabbing a plate of spicy Indian samosas at Bhojanic, then some shrimp tacos from Sal Grosso, and washing it all down with a big cup of frozen gelato from Sogno Gelato. Both the quality and the variety of food available to attendees was astounding (even Medieval Times was there). So next year, if you’re close to Atlantic Station and you can smell the thick scent of hundreds of different plates cooking, be sure to stop by and check it out. Just make sure you save room for dessert.