Great Grits!

originally published December 6, 2006

Poached: Athens is a brunchy town. It’s probably a function of late Saturday nights spent funneling poisons into one’s body, which then craves fat and salt on Sunday once one wakes up, which does not tend to be early. So the fact that Mama’s Boy (197 Oak St., 706-548-6249) was closed on the day of rest didn’t seem right. That error has now been rectified, and the cute little “Southern fun dining” place is now serving Sunday brunch from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The difference between the brunch menu and the breakfast one is mostly in the upper right corner, where a small selection of sandwiches and more lunchy fare resides, but the emphasis is on the BR more than the UNCH. The breakfast tacos, each of which consists of softly scrambled eggs, salsa and pintos wrapped in a flour tortilla, attract attention immediately, but end up a little bit of a disappointment. The eggs are lovely, as they are whenever they appear on the menu, but the beans just sit there, being beans, without much flavor. The bowl of cheese grits served on the side, however, is gorgeous. Being from Atlanta and a first-generation Southerner, I’ve never had much of a taste for grits. Why not have polenta instead, which is creamier and tends to be shaped, cooled, sliced and fried in its yummiest incarnation? So I hope you believe me when I say how damn good these grits are. It would be wrong to describe them as fluffy the way they weigh down a fork, but they contain some sort of essence of fluffiness and, clearly, something like a pound of really good butter. The best thing I’ve tried is the corned beef and potato hash, topped with a couple of poached eggs and a chive hollandaise. The only problem with the dish is that it ends up a touch too salty, but the eggs are mom-tastic, yielding their gooey yolky contents with a gentle poke and binding the starch with just the right amount of protein. The crowd is, as usual, a nice mix, from post-church normal-looking families in shiny shoes and big trucks to Venice Is Sinking, and the Peppermint Patties still make an appearance with the check.

Toasted: You might not realize the former location of Ronnie B’s/ Bulldawg Diner (699 Baxter St.) has been replaced by a second location of Kelly’s, the Jamaican place on South Milledge, but the new paint job, in yellow and green, is a clue. The menu is near identical to the original: curry goat, jerk this and that, and so on. If you’ve ever been to Kelly’s for a Jamaican meat-and-two, you know what to expect. The goat is always tasty, but you’ll end up with a pile that’s about half bones. The spicy cabbage can be sinus burningly extreme. Rice and peas, while usually good, were a little dry. The one item I hadn’t seen before, the jerk burger, promised more than it delivered; while it’s a perfectly good hamburger, on a big tasty bun, and cooked to order, there’s no hint of spice. I’d make a joke about it implying something about the proprietor’s manners, but it’s impossible when he’s such a nice fella. The interior remains largely unchanged from the previous establishment, with country-style oak furnishings and a considerable number of food storage units, all empty, scattered around the room, and the radio is firmly tuned to contemporary Christian. Kelly’s takes credit cards in theory, but has had phone line issues since it opened, so make sure you have cash as a backup, and seems to keep relatively late hours.

What Up?: Rooster’s, the local barbecue place in the Boulevard area, has closed, leaving those in search of vegetarian barbecue or who adored their peppery mac and cheese bereft. Chef Tamar Adler is leaving Farm 255 for the North and will be replaced by sous chef David Sturgis, who ran the kitchen while Adler was in Italy earlier this year. The restaurant also has a wine dinner in cooperation with Gosford Wine planned for Dec. 13. Cheng's, at the corner of College and Broad downtown, is closing, to be replaced by another location of Raising Cane’s. The space that was once Lunch Paper, then a T-Mobile store, on the other side of College, is returning to its bar roots and is currently undergoing renovations to create a two-story atrium in the entrance area, shift the door over and much more. The focus will be on high-quality wines and liquors, and the folks involved have much experience with this kind of thing. The annual Taste of Athens is moving to March this year, hopefully meaning slightly warmer temperatures than usual, and will coincide with the release of the Athens Eats cookbook. Dona Rosy’s Bakery has opened in the former location of El Pollo Criollo, in Normaltown, on Prince. The former Gandolfo’s, upstairs on Broad, is currently being transformed into an Italian eatery called La Dolce Vita, and should be open in a few weeks. Both locations of Mellow Mushroom have changed their names. The downtown location is now the Tavern at the Arch, and Five Points' location is now the Tavern at Five Points. Both have the same ownership and menu, with the addition of hotdogs, burgers and the like.

Hillary Brown

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