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Access Atlanta > Blog > Archives > 2008 > January > 31
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Fans should feel at home in new Fado
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As workers sawed, painted and hammered around him, Fado Irish Pub CEO Kieran McGill greeted us with a handshake and a hard hat Wednesday as he introduced us to his new location.
As regulars will no doubt recall, the 12-year-old Buckhead business had to close last year as the ambitious Streets of Buckhead project pushed the pub out of its old Peachtree Road address in Buckhead Village. The old location is currently a 50-foot hole as developer Ben Carter’s high-end shopping, dining, boutique hotel and nightspot vision slowly rises into reality.
But around the corner, thanks to a structure built in Ireland and installed here by the Irish Pub Company (the builders of the original site), Fado has a new home on Buckhead Avenue, adjacent to the Atlanta Fulton County Library.
“We’re very gratified to reincarnate Fado in a location very near to the original pub,” McGill told Buzz. “Last year, Ben Carter told me, ‘We want you to stay. You’re going to serve as an anchor in this neighborhood.’ “
And judging from what we toured Wednesday, Fado’s faithful should feel amazingly at home in the new space. McGill and crew brought over the old Slattery & Sons store front, the barrel racks, the windows, wooden cabinets and even the Guinness signage from the original Fado to incorporate into the new 2 1/2-level pub. The main differences: the new Fado is a bit roomier and there’s a bit more head room, thanks to elevated ceilings.
But perhaps the best added feature at the new location?
A rooftop patio for 75 patrons, complete with a polished granite bar, decorative planter boxes and one killer view of the massive Buckhead retail renovation currently under way.
McGill says the pub’s menu faves like corned beef and cabbage, fish and chips and famous boxtys are staying put as are those popular early AM televised soccer and rugby matches that are heavily attended by British ex pats and their American friends.
Alas, the inconvenient hour of the game telecasts here (the matches are played in the PM across the pond) is something McGill says won’t change either,
Quipped McGill: “The vagaries of time travel forces us to show them at that hour here.”
If city permits are issued in a timely fashion, the new Fado should be open in time for St. Patrick’s Day on March 17.
A note of caution to the sometimes glacially-paced permits folks at Atlanta City Hall: We personally wouldn’t do anything to tick off Guinness-guzzling, devout Irish “football” and rugby fans …
TUCKER DROPS BY
Decatur native and “Rush Hour” star Chris Tucker made a surprise appearance Tuesday night at Morehouse College to help promote an upcoming PBS special “African American Lives 2,” a sequel to the surprisingly successful original (both co-funded by Coca-Cola).
In each special, mostly prominent blacks find out through DNA what percentage of themselves is African. Tucker, who is buds with show creator and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., took part in the first one, along with the likes of Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg. Gates, who also dug up family history stories for each person, offered a sneak preview of the special before an audience of 500-plus with Kiss 104.1 syndicated talk-show host Tom Joyner. Others who took part in the second special included Chris Rock, Morgan Freeman, Tina Turner and Don Cheadle. The special airs in two parts on Georgia Public Broadcasting Feb. 6 and 13.
ON MY IPOD & TIVO
Amanda Diva, rapper, poet, TV and radio personality: “On the iPod, there’s Lupe Fiasco’s ‘The Cool.’ I love jazz, and I saw a great Wynton Marsalis program that made me want to download this album he and his father did of all of the ‘Peanuts’ songs, ‘Joe Cool’s Blues’. Freeway, [Beanie Sigel] and [DJ] Drama’s ‘Gangsta Grillz.’ And [her own EP] ‘Life Experience.’ … You know what’s funny? Before you make your own music you can’t imagine listening to your own music — until you have it. Then it’s like, ‘This is exactly what I wanted to hear today.’ You need to be able to listen to your music like it’s not even yours, you know?
“I went on a Nina Simone kick recently too. But I think the very last song I downloaded was Earth, Wind and Fire’s ‘In the Stone.’
“And what do I TiVo? ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’ ‘The Office.’ ‘30 Rock.’ ‘Project Runway.’ And ‘Best Week Ever,’ of course [which she contributes to]. “
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Carol Channing is 87. Actress Jessica Walter (“Arrested Development”) is 67. Singer Harry Wayne Casey of KC and the Sunshine Band is 57. Singer Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols is 52. Actor Anthony LaPaglia (“Without a Trace”) is 49. Actress Minnie Driver is 38. Actress Portia de Rossi (“Arrested Development,” “Ally McBeal”) is 35. Actress Kerry Washington (“Ray”) is 31. Singer Justin Timberlake is 27.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I don’t ever want to serve another drink. That’s why this was so important to me.”
Inaugural “American Idol” winner and retired cocktail waitress Kelly Clarkson on Q100’s “Bert Show” Wednesday, discussing why she’s worked with a business adviser to ensure her lifelong financial security. Clarkson added that she chides cheapskate friends who don’t tip servers adequately.
Contributing: Rodney Ho, Sonia Murray and news services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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