<a href="http://www.accessatlanta.com/dining/restaurants/47134/DetailedList.jspd?activity=47134">Wisteria</a>

Atlanta has searched hard for its dining soul. Our burgeoning city has grown into one of the greatest metropolitan areas of the South, but until recently it was hard to recommend a restaurant here with any real Southern pith or charm.

There was a time when it was particularly difficult to find a decent plate of fried chicken or collards anywhere other than the city's hallowed meat 'n' threes and a handful of popular places like Horseradish Grill and later the nationally renowned Watershed, both tied to chef Scott Peacock. Congealed fruit salads and pimento cheese plates had long since lost their allure on the city's brunch menus, and our newfound notion of coupling pork chops with pinot noir was still a long way off. As fusion fell to fury, attempts to pair red-eye gravy with wasabi seemed, gee, insincere.

A ripple of change began when a strong farm-to-table movement began sprouting up like pole beans across the country, and it boosted a fledgling movement in Atlanta, taking Atlantans back to their long lost agrarian pasts. It seemed at last that the city had found its dining roots. A new South was born, bringing with it restaurants like Rathbun's, JCT Kitchen, Athens' Five & Ten and the recently rechristened Home. Southern food became savvy.

Wisteria, in Inman Park, was part of a first wave of this movement to bring Southern food out of the frying pan and into the fire of culinary fashion. It opened in 2001 in what had been the sacred space of Babette's, an old grocery turned into a restaurant — a recycled rarity in Atlanta. Chef-owner Jason Hill stripped the space of its frilly French clutter and used its brick walls and plate-glass windows to a minimalist advantage, creating a modern but rustic look.

But more importantly, he fused solid training in the kitchen with the heart of Southern cuisine, and in doing so created one of Inman Park's most beloved dining spots. Finally, there was a place to try indigenous ingredients like black eyed peas in the clever guise of a slightly chunky hummus served with sweet potato chips, while sipping a decent glass of wine.

Hill's "antipasto" plate boasts pimento cheese and celery with slices of country ham and pickled okra. And the iron skillet chicken, served over peppery collards speckled with bacon, has become a city signature as much for the luscious sweetness of the roasted corn pudding that accompanies it as for generous helping of old-fashioned fried chicken.

Hill is one of those rare chefs who excels at entrees, though by 2008 standards his portions could stand to lose a little weight— they are more than enough for one. Other than a few appetizers (like that hummus), his strengths lie in molasses-rubbed pork tenderloin over fluffy sweet potato soufflé, with a sassy relish of Vidalia onion, apple and walnuts. Or specials that veer a little to the West, like chile-rubbed flank steak with adobo-laced mashed potatoes.

He falters with anything delicate: a seasonal tart of black mission figs dotted with Point Reyes blue cheese over salad greens gets lost in translation, a messy mix of too much of a good thing — the balance of figs and cheese tangled in mixed greens. And for such a stellar start, Wisteria often leans too hard on the reliable. Hill rarely ventures into unchartered territory anymore, and even the specials can have the stale feel of a menu mainstay.

Desserts have never measured up to the rest of the menu – a threesome of crème brûlée, blueberry cobbler and pecan pie all lack the charms they should convey; the pecan pie is often too salty and the cobbler is never as sweet and gooey as a fruit cobbler should be. The brûlée is, well, brûlée — and it would be no great loss if it took a sabbatical from local menus for a while.

Servers bustle about the dining room with lots of purpose, and even on weekdays (in this economy) the comfortable room is almost always full. Hill's neighborhood has become a loyal fan club.

Wisteria deserves its popularity as much for its staying power as it does Hill's candid cooking. Folks come here for a plate of the familiar, and leave knowing they've gotten a dose of Southern flair.

Food: Southern
Service: Hustle-bustle style, sometimes on very good behavior, sometimes not
Address, telephone: 471 North Highland Ave., 404-525-3363
Price range: $$ - $$$
Credit cards: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, Diners Club
Hours of operation: Open for dinner Sunday through Thursday from 5:30 to 10:00 pm
and Friday and Saturday from 5:30 to 11:00 pm.
Vegetarian Dishes: Black-eyed pea hummus with sweet potato fries, seasonal vegetable plate
Best dishes: Iron skillet fried chicken with roasted corn pudding, molasses-rubbed pork tenderloin with sweet potato souffle, black-eyed pea hummus with sweet potato chips
Children: For early evening hours
Parking: Complimentary valet or on-street
Reservations: Yes
Wheelchair access: Yes
Smoking: No smoking
Noise level: Medium
Patio: No
Takeout: Yes
Website: www.wisteria-atlanta.com

KEY TO RATINGS
Outstanding: Sets the standard for fine dining in the region.
Excellent: One of the best in the Atlanta area.
Very good: Merits a drive if you're looking for this kind of dining.
Good: A worthy addition to its neighborhood, but food may be hit or miss.
Fair: The food is more miss than hit.
Restaurants that do not meet these criteria may be rated Poor.

Pricing code: $$$$$ means more than $75; $$$$ means $75 and less; $$$ means $50 and less; $$ means $25 and less; $ means $15 and less. (The price code represents a meal for one that includes appetizer, entree and dessert without including tax, tip and cocktails.)