Atlanta etc.: Marilyn Wolf's Food Blog and Restaurant Blog

Helen and I made a Gang of Food visit to Hop's Chicken to try their fried chicken. They sell it by the piece, a half bird, or a whole bird. Here is a breast: very moist and tender; crust is crispy but not extra crispy. It was excellent.

Hop's Chicken is one of Chef Linton Hopkins' two venues in the Ponce City Market food court. It's next to H&F Burger, his other venue. Hop's doesn't offer any interior seating. Just take your bag and grab one of the food court tables either inside or out. The menu is relatively simple and straightforward. Interestingly, they offer not just sandwiches but full fried chickens. The line was long. I think that the service is a work in progress but the staff was very friendly and helpful. This is my fried chicken sandwich. That side is black pepper gravy, one of several choices of sauce. I was slightly suspicious of serving a sandwich with sauce but it turned out to be very tasty and not very messy. This is a good-sized piece of chicken, considerably larger than what you find in a fast-food version of this sandwich. The crust is of the soft variety. It is extremely well seasoned with a perfect blend of Southern herbs. The meat was juicy and tender. The...

I enjoyed my lunch at Gus's. It's an Austin outpost of a small chain out of Memphis. The location is new but has the feel of an old-fashioned place. There was a line on the day I visited but I managed to score a seat at the counter to sit down right away. My chicken took 30 minutes to arrive, the good news being that it hit the fryer only after I made my order. My server was very apologetic about the delay; the service was both friendly and efficient. This is the two-piece white meat plate. My wing and breast were cooked to different levels of crispness for some reason. The wing's crust was a little soft. The breast, however, was the perfect crunchiness that I expected. Although the crust is dry, they manage to work in some heat into the crust. It's a good kind of heat that doesn't hit you immediately, then grows on you, and tails off to a pleasant, slow burn. It's never so spicy as to make you cry and I think it's a great touch. The chicken m...

Category: Atlanta institution, worth a drive Summary: Wonderful home-cooked Southern food Thelma's Rib Shack (a.k.a. Thelma's Kitchen) is an Atlanta institution, having been here for decades.  Their old location was closer to Georgia Tech; they are now located on Auburn Avenue in the Martin Luther King district. They are extremely easy to get to, just around the corner the I-75 off-ramp.  Urbanspoon for some reason lists Thelma's as closed, but reports of their death have been greatly exaggerated. I've been there once before.  The atmosphere is classic Southern steam table cafeteria; the staff are very friendly and courteous. This time I decided to try the fried chicken (despite the restaurant's name).  As you can see, the food is served with real silverware and china, a sign of they pride they take in their work.  The chicken was perfect: crisp crust and tender, juicy flesh.  The greens were tender and kissed with pork, with very subtle flavors. The swe...

Matthews Cafeteria is another TV star of the Atlanta restaurant set. It was recently on Food Network's "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives." As you might guess, this isn't Buckhead high fashion. Its appeal is its timelessness. Matthews dates to 1955. The restaurant is very well kept up, but the style hasn't changed since then. The cinder block walls and linoleum tile floor take you back to an era when Tucker was a small town on the outskirts of Atlanta. The people aren't Buckhead, either. They might be rich---you can't always tell a person's wealth from their clothes in this sort of place---but they all dress like people who have things to do besides compete on wardrobe. I've been there two or three times. On my latest trip, my plate ended up with fried chicken, rutabaga, and peas. The rutabaga was perhaps the most enjoyable part of the meal just because I enjoyed the texture so much. But don't get me wrong, the fried chicken here is outstan...

Paschal's is one of the older restaurants in Atlanta.  It is known as the kitchen table of the civil rights movement.  I've eaten at their ATL locations quite a few times and found them quite good, given the constraints of airport food preparation.  I recently figured out where their main restaurant is located---it's very near Morehouse and just a couple of miles from Georgia Tech.  I decided that today was the day to try their lunch. Fried chicken is what made the restaurant's reputation.  As a fan of fried chicken, I had no qualms about making that my selection.  It's truly excellent.  The crust is crispy and the meat is tender, not greasy.  But what sets it apart is the seasoning.  Fried chicken seasoning is usually either lost in the grease or overpowering.  Paschal's seasoning is a delicate note that accents the bird. The collard greens were also richly flavored with just the right touch of pork.  They were tender but not o...