Quick Bites: Ben's Brown Bag to close, Ron Eyester's Nasty McAlister, and more

Atlanta restaurant news roundup

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On Wednesday, Ben's Brown Bag announced via Facebook that it would cease operation at 1021 Howell Mill Road. The drive-up restaurant, known for serving burgers made with Brasstown Beef and top-notch chicken sandwiches, opened in April on a precarious slice of real estate that previously housed Leroy's Fried Chicken and Curly's Fried Chicken. Owner Ben Pierce tells CL that the customer traffic following his announcement has been especially heavy, but he still plans to shutter after Friday, with designs to resurface soon. In the meantime, Pierce hopes to take on consulting work with other restaurants.

Better Half, the brick-and-mortar restaurant from PushStart Kitchen founders Zach and Cristina Meloy, is slated to open on December 16, Zach tells CL. Originally slated to open in late summer, the Home Park eatery - located at 349 14th Street - will feature Southern-Latin cuisine. The construction process has been documented on PushStart Kitchen's Facebook page. Click here to check it out.

MetroFresh will soon close its Atlanta Botanical Garden offshoot, What Now, Atlanta reports. The second location of the Midtown-based "fresh fast food" restaurant opened in the Garden House during the Spring of 2011, serving healthful and sophisticated soups, salads, and sandwiches. After January 4, owner (and actor) Mitchell Anderson will shift his focus to the flagship location at 931 Monroe Drive.

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New Mexican restaurant, El Bandido, will soon replace Stir it Up at 1083 Euclid Ave. in Little Five Points. The eatery should be a welcome addition to the popular nightlife neighborhood of Little 5 Points.

"Angry Chef" Ron Eyester has been up to his usual antics. After a cease-and-desist battle and Twitter war of sorts with Charlotte, NC-based McAlister's Deli over the name of popular breakfast sandwich, "The Big Nasty," at his Morningside restaurant Rosebud (1397 North Highland Ave.), he has conceded to demands by renaming the fried chicken, scrambled egg, bacon, and cheese delicacy "The Nasty McAlister," Eater Atlanta reports. The menu snarkily prompts diners to ask their server for the story.

Asha Gomez posted to Instagram that her newest concept, Spice to Table, is on track to open at Studioplex by January (H/T to Eater). The award-winning chef is perhaps best known for her Westside Kerala Indian restaurant, Cardamom Hill, as well as her Spice Route Supper Club, which she revived this fall. Her cooking class and event venue, The Third Space, opened at Studioplex in May, in the same suite set to house Spice to Table at 659 Auburn Ave. Details as they arise.

After heavy rumor-mongering around the culinary circuit, Arianne Fielder has been named the new mixologist at Parish, the Inman Park restaurant that recently welcomed chef Zeb Stevenson into the fold.

Over at theAJC, John Kessler offers a glowing review of the Indonesian-inspired Soup Cart that can now be found at the Goat Farm Arts Center every Wednesday from 12:30 to 2 p.m. Noting the "thoughtful ingredients," Kessler describes a savory puree of coconut, curry and chickpea with mustard seeds, along with a quesadilla featuring frozen roti, shredded cheese, sauteed greens, and chutney served by Jessamine Starr, who also owns the Good Food Truck.

Tomorrow's News Today has the scoop on a new lounge slated to debut soon in Midtown. Come early 2014, The Daiquiri Factory owner Kechia Matadin will open Cirque in the unusual round building and tented space at 2160 Monroe Drive, a location that previously housed Piebar, Eros Tapas Bar, and Ixtlan Ultra Lounge.

The Spence has announced a new tableside dessert demo menu, care of resident pastry chef Andrea Litvin; it features liquid nitrogen ice cream sundaes with always-changing flavors and toppings. The treats are a natural move for the Midtown restaurant founded by Richard Blais in May 2012, a chef perhaps best known for his molecular gastronomy and liquid nitrogen creations.

Zagat, which introduced Atlanta-area blog and video coverage just last month, has named Bacchanalia (1198 Howell Mill Road) to its list of top 20 American restaurants. Chosen as part of votes from 224,000 diners in 36 U.S. markets, Atlanta's No. 1 pick is lauded in every category: food, decor, and service. In related news, Woodfire Grill (1782 Cheshire Bridge Road) executive chef and Abattoir alum Tyler Williams was recently named Eater's 2013 Atlanta Chef of the Year. Williams beat out Kevin Gillespie, Todd Ginsberg, Josh Hopkins, and Joe Schafer for the tony honor.

After a bit of an uproar from members of the Miami Circle Merchants Association, interested parties met for an appeal regarding permits for the Painted Pin, restaurateur/sommelier Justin Amick's forthcoming "boutique bowling alley," on Thursday afternoon at City Hall. But following unanimous approval from the Buckhead Development Review Committee and Neighborhood Planning Unit, the Painted Pin also won support from the local Board of Zoning Adjustments, confirming that the new entertainment complex meets all city of Atlanta zoning code requirements. Save any additional snags, the Painted Pin should open at 727 Miami Circle in early 2014.





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