Friday, June 18, 2010

Top FLR

Top FLR
Price: $$
Decor: Casual
674 Myrtle St. NE
www.topflr.com

My overall rating: A-

1 down, 53 to go

Well, this is the first review, and let me start by saying that Top FLR is certainly worthy of being number 1.

The restaurant is located in Midtown at 674 Myrtle St. For the geographically challenged: if you take Ponce towards Piedmont, Myrtle street is the 1st street east of Piedmont, right across from Mary Mac's Tea Room.

The restaurant is small, chic, and has a very modern feel to it. The black and white decor screams "contemporary hang-out" (maybe just a bit too much), but the ambiance is enjoyable nonetheless. The walls are tastefully decorated (no pun intended) and refreshingly unassuming, unlike many of the modern/contemporary restaurants throughout the city. To the right of the entrance is a narrow dining room, and to the left is a larger dining area - the bar is also there. There is also a second story dining area, but I didn't venture there. The only strange aspect of the decor is the wall lighting - in the main dining room, there are 2 of 3 pairs of wall lights that can be described in only one way: nipple-like.

Upon arrival, my girlfriend Amie and I were greeted by a friendly man with a welcoming British accent, and he promptly showed us to a corner table with two seats - one of which was part of a padded bench that runs along back wall of the restaurant. Unfortunately, there was a large crowd seated right across from us - a particularly loud group - and the uninsulated, open-duct ceilings certainly made the dining room exponentially louder. Still, despite the noise, the setting was enjoyable. The servers were great: very nice (but not the obviously-fake-and-overbearing-nice that makes you sick to your stomach before you even look at the menu - and believe me, I've seen that around Atlanta plenty of times - achem...Concentrics Group...achhhhchhhem), attentive, and incredibly ...hmm... eccentric; you'll have to experience them first-hand to see what I mean.

The restaurant prides itself on its wine list - which is certainly impressive - but even better was the beer selection. Though small, the list was as diverse as any of the local beer-tastic bars (Brick Store, Taco Mac, Bookhouse Pub, to name a few). Naturally, I tried one I'd never heard of: Cooper's Sparking Ale, an English pale ale that is brewed in Australia. It was excellent!

But, I digress...

...I suppose the food is what's most important, so let me run through our meal. We started with the Artisan Cheese Plate, which was superb. There were four cheeses (I can't remember the names) that were served at the perfect temperature and with wonderful accouterment - sourdough and rasin-bread tostinis. As expected, the cheeses were offered in mouse-trap-sized portions and presented on a Home Depot-esque slab of wood that made the already nearly-too-small slices of cheese appear even tinier. Still, what was lacking in size was certainly accounted for in taste - just delicious.

For the main course, I ordered the "Soft Gnocchi with Braised Oxtail, Asparagus, and Shitake Mushrooms," per the waiter's recommendation. Again, the portion was small - and let me interject here: this certainly seems to be the case at these trendy restaurants that are popping up around Atlanta. The serving size of gnocchi at Top FLR was a-la-One Midtown Kitchen (for those of you who are familiar with that, or any other, Concentrics Group restaurant) - but, again, what was lacking in quantity was more-than-accounted-for in taste. The gnocchi were cooked perfectly and were floating on top of (thankfully not submerged in) a wonderful sauce that combined the flavors of light cream, parmesan, and natural oxtail jus - or at least what I assume is natural oxtail juices; I believe this was my first encounter with the meat.

And speaking of the oxtail, it was shredded to the perfect consistency and placed atop the gnocchi, asparagus, and mushroom. The savory flavor of the meat was an unlikely companion that really brought the meal together nicely. Interestingly, what I liked most about the oxtail was the way it was served. The shredded meat allowed for the meal to have a thick and rich taste without an overbearing sauce - really a wonderful combination of texture, flavor, and seasoning.

Amie enjoyed the Orange-Apple tofu, which was served with boc choy and a japanese eggplant miso. As I'm allergic to tofu, I didn't taste the "meat", but I did try a piece of the boc choy that was dipped in the sauce - again, it was awesome. Despite strong flavors of citrus and soy in the sauce, the boc choy retained its slightly bitter natural taste - the pairing was brilliant.

Unfortunately, we did not try the dessert, although the menu consisted of home-made after-dinner delights. Next time, I will certainly give it a shot.

And believe-you-me there will be a next time at Top FLR. Overall, an excellent meal that was reasonably priced and presented beautifully. If you go - and you should - but if you go, be sure you ate a hearty lunch.

1 down, 53 to go.

--Dan

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

The List

I am one - one of many, I'm sure - who claims that food is one of life's greatest treats. It is one of many factors that distinguishes countries, cultures, and people; it is also one of the only tangible distinctions, second only to physical borders. Yet, despite it's ineffable role in culture, it is really the only cultural aspect over which no one fights. Unlike land or religious beliefs or politics, food is benign; despite vast differences between people and locations, disparities in cuisine are accepted, even welcomed by outsiders. Cities across the world are renowned for their foods -Chicago has the deep-dish and the hot dog, Philly, the cheesesteak - yet the Atlanta dining scene is relatively esoteric outside of the perimeter. The truth, however, is that Atlanta has some of the best restaurants in the country - of the cities I've visited, at least. My goal is to discover those restaurants, eat at them, (hopefully) enjoy the experience, and share it with you.

Below you will find the list. It consists of 54 restaurants (I may add some more along the way), each chosen for a specific reason. A lot of research has gone into this list, and, as you will see, no pattern, random search, or algorithm was used to choose the restaurants on it. This list is, in the most basic form, a research project. After reading reviews (both user-generated and professional), studying menus, asking around, and (sometimes) passing by restaurants that have caught my eye, I chose 54 restaurants that, in my opinion, epitomize the diversity, class, and/or uniqueness of cuisine. Some are fancy, others just greasy spoons, but each is bound to be excellent, and I am ready to try them all.

--Dan

The List

Name Cuisine Attire Price
10 Degrees South South African Dressy $$$
4th & Swift American Dressy $$$
57th Fighter Group Restaurant American Casual $$
Anis French Casual $$
Aria American Dressy $$$$
Babette's Café Breakfast & Lunch/French Casual $$
Bacchanalia American Dressy $$$$
Bistro Niko French Casual $$
Bocado American Casual $$
Café Agora Mediterranean/Turkish Casual $$
Café Bombay Indian Casual $$
Cakes & Ale American Casual $$$
Canoe American/Seafood Dressy $$$
Chat Patti Indian Casual $$
Craftbar American/Bar Dressy $$$
Dogwood Restaurant Southern Dressy $$$
Ecco Modern European Dressy $$$
ENO by Zaza Italian/Wine Bar Dressy $$$
Enoteca Carbonari Italian Casual $$
Fat Matt's Rib Shack BBQ Casual $$
Feast American Casual $$
FLIP Burger Boutique Burgers Casual $$
Fox Bro's Bar-B-Q BBQ Casual $$
Hal's On Old Ivy Buckhead American/Traditional Dressy $$$
Haven Southern Casual $$$
Holeman & Finch Public House American/Gastropub Casual $$
Home Southern Dressy $$$
La Grotta Ristorante Italiano Italian Dressy $$$$
P'cheen International/Pub Casual $$
Panita Thai Kitchen Thai Casual $$
Papi's Midtown Cuban Casual $
Parish Cajun/Creole Casual $$
Park 75 American Dressy $$$$
Park Tavern American Casual $$
Parke'rs on Ponce Stakehouse Casual $$
Pasta Da Pulcinella Italian Casual $$
Pasta Vino Italian/Pizza Casual $$
Portofino Italian Casual $$
R. Thomas Deluxe Grill American Casual $$
Rathbun's American Dressy $$$
Ria's Bluebird Southern/Breakfast/Lunch Casual $
Room Stakehouse/Sushi Bar Dressy $$$$
Shaun's Southern Casual $$$
Sotto Sotto Italian Dressy $$$
South City Kitchen Midtown Southern Casual $$$
Straits Asian Fusion Dressy $$$
Sushi House Hayakawa Sushi/Japanese Casual $$$
Top Flr American/Wine Bar Casual $$
Toulouse French Casual $$$
Trader Vic's Hawaiian Casual $$$
Wahoo! A Decatur Grill American/Seafood Casual $$
Wisteria American/Southern Casual $$$
Woodfire Grill American Dressy $$$