Credit: Alexa Lampasona
Credit: Alexa Lampasona
There's been a lot of buzz happening with Todd Ginsberg's latest restaurant, Yalla. And while the Middle East street food served at Krog Street Market is incredibly tasty, it's their house sodas that have captivated us. Kathryn Fitzgerald is the woman behind these non-alcoholic, forward-thinking beverages that are equal parts bubbly, herbaceous and healthy. We talked with Fitzgerald about her move to becoming Yalla's soda goddess.
Who were the biggest influences that have helped you develop Yalla’s soda program?
Todd Ginsberg, Jarrett Steiber and the General Muir’s sous chef, Jonah Merrill, shared the culinary art behind soda making. I never knew how to tie food and beverage together, how flavor profiles worked together and chef introduced me to several local farmers to source from. It was a huge growing experience.
You were mixing up sodas for Yalla long before it opened in Krog Street Market though, right?
Yes, last spring I went to the restaurant with an approach to get the word out about Yalla by selling the sodas at farmers markets. They let me do it, and it worked out great. I love the people and atmosphere at farmers markets, so I was in my element and it helped to gain attention for Yalla.
All of the sodas are non-alcoholic. Is there a reason for that?
I’ve always had an interest in Atlanta’s cocktail culture, but I wanted to be different and focus on serving something for everyday life. The food at Yalla complements these sodas. We want people to understand that you can have a falafel pita and a tarragon lime soda and see how the two bring out the different flavors.
Also in the Middle East, they don’t have soda dispensers, instead they have fresh pressed juices and purees, so we went with a similar market vibe.
Since you’ll be sourcing most of your ingredients from local farms, what are you using this time of year?
Winter is always a difficult time of year to work with farmers. I’m using a lot of roots and teas right now, such as arugula, elderberry, turnip stems, beets, tarragon and sage. I’m really looking forward to spring though, because there is so much I want to produce, I just have to wait until we’re in season.
You are also a painter, which has been a great outlet for your creativity. What kind of work do you paint?
I do post-apocalyptic portraits of warriors and scenes of what the world would be like if it ended today. Painting was something that I really relied on before, but now that I have Yalla, art has become something that I can enjoy for pleasure. I’m at a really good place with my artistic outlet, being able to paint in my spare time and concoct soda creations during my job.
What do you see for your future plans?
One day I’d love to have a small shop where I sell produce in the front and serve small plates and beverages in the back. My job now is a great stepping stone to that and the support from the team has been so helpful. I’ve always been a struggling artist, and this has totally fulfilled all of that.
Credit: Alexa Lampasona
Credit: Alexa Lampasona
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