Sunday, May 31, 2009
Food, In this Issue..., Reviews, Atlanta

A savory tale

Livingston Restaurant celebrates both history and cuisine

By H.M. Cauley

The Georgian Terrace Hotel has a rich history that goes beyond its birth in 1911. Years before construction on the brick edifice began, the land was home to Livingston Mims, a Civil War veteran who served as Atlanta’s mayor.

You don’t need a history lesson to enjoy dining in Livingston, the hotel’s new restaurant. But it does help explain where the name comes from. The creative minds behind the operation gave a nod to the former mayor for their main dining room, and dubbed the adjacent casual spot Café Mims.

Another historical fact that many local diners may recall: The hotel has struggled to offer a memorable dining experience. There have been several attempts to make the beautiful dining room and stone terrace across from the Fox Theatre a destination, but it’s never quite found a following.

This time, Executive Chef Gary Mennie comes with a following of loyal fans who mourned when he shuttered Taurus in Buckhead. If you weren’t a Mennie groupie when he was in Buckhead, or during the years he cooked at Canoe, it’s time you discovered this local celeb chef at his new Midtown digs.

Mennie, who showed off his passion for meat at Taurus, turns to a broader menu at Livingston. And it’s all good, from breakfast through late-night snacks. Start off early with eggs and filet, topped with Bearnaise sauce, waffles with rhubarb jam or hand-cut corned beef hash. Lunch brings on an array of salads—shrimp, chicken, crab and steak-topped. The burgers are crowned with house-made pickles. The soups vary by season and currently feature tasty bowls of creamy spring pea or artichoke. Those who can't decide may go for Livingston’s version of the three-martini lunch: Select three items from 12 dishes, ranging from salad to a small entree, for $15.

The dinner menu presents several dishes diners won’t want to miss. For starters, oyster lovers will savor the lineup of their favorite shellfish topped with Benton’s smoked bacon, spinach and anise. Not only are they palate-pleasing, but they’re beautifully presented atop a bed of sea salt and whole pepper corns. Another good beginning is the short-rib ravioli: four light pasta rounds filled with tender beef and swimming in a cream sauce with a hint of horseradish.

Of the various salad options, the top pick is the chopped melange of carrots, jicama, green beans, corn and peas atop a bed of greens and shaved Parmesan and drizzled with walnut oil vinaigrette. The veggies are so fresh and crunchy that they clean the palate like a sorbet course you can chew.

The outstanding meat options are the veal porterhouse, pork tenderloin and the New York strip. Wild bass, halibut, scallops and trout round out the seafood offerings. Each dish comes with an intriguing side: red-onion marmalade, cauliflower gratin, crispy gnocchi, hash brown potatoes and a Vidalia onion tart. But you may want to consider the entree of soft potato gnocchi as a shared side: It’s a blend of bite-sized potato balls, cauliflower, peas and carrots in a creamy sauce topped with a goat cheese crust that everyone will want a taste of.

Desserts are just big enough to indulge the taste buds without the need to loosen your belt. There’s a flourless chocolate cake, lemon tart, a cinnamon beignet and a coconut financier, an elegant name for a pineapple upside down cake.

Another memorable ingredient to Livingston dining is the ambience. The two-tiered dining room is gently lit by a central chandelier and delicate wall sconces. One end of the room is flanked by a bar and a communal table. The far end of the space opens to the corner of Peachtree and Ponce de Leon and is anchored by another bar. Marble and brass accents shine inside; outside, there’s a patio overlooking Ponce and the spacious terrace that stretches along Peachtree in the front.

On evenings when the Fox is busy, the casual Café Mims will stay open late with coffees, snacks, salads, sandwiches and desserts, so there’s even more reason to linger in the beautiful surroundings. SP