Omnivore - Scoring tables at Fox Bros and Bantam & Biddy

Visiting two Atlanta favorites

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  • Cliff Bostock’s iPhone/CL File



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Friday night was a good choice for our regular dining group to visit Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q. Our usual number of 7 or 8 was reduced to four by Gay Pride events, so we guessed we’d not have the intolerably long wait we’d found in earlier attempts to dine there.

Sure enough, the four of us were seated immediately. I don’t have much to say, thanks to the unanimous choice of my friends. All three polished the bones of tangy baby-back ribs - best in the city, I think. Me? I didn’t vary from my norm, either. I got the sloppy, heart-stopping “brisket burger,” which I first tasted in 2009 (above). Besides the smoky brisket, you get spicy mayo, bacon, pimento cheese, and God knows what else.

I did try a side that I’d never ordered before - macaroni and cheese covered with Brunswick stew. The problem for me wasn’t the stoner-esque combo, but the intense sweetness of the stew. It’s a small complaint about a restaurant that has settled into enormous popularity.

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Oh. I do have a minor complaint. The sign that advertises the Bros’ restaurant in Decatur, Big Tex, misplaces the apostrophe in “y’all,” by spelling it “ya’ll.” Well, that’s my opinion, and Paula Deen feels the same way. If Paula says it, you know it’s true.

EARLIER IN THE DAY: As it happens, I also lunch every Friday - hey, it’s the only day I feel social - with professor friends. (It’s my job to hear them complain about their students for an hour or so.) This week we went to Bantam + Biddy, a year old this month. I had my usual quarter-portion of rotisserie chicken with collards, Brussels sprouts, and a corn muffin (left photo). Friends ordered the pork loin and the (curried chicken) bangers and mash, also one of my faves.

The restaurant has become wildly popular since Shaun Doty and Lance Gummere opened it last October. I heard constant complaints about the prices back then, but they were short-lived. A brief wait for a table is common now.