Midtown restaurant a brilliant example of new fine dining trend

Service: casual and friendly

Best dishes: seared yellowfin, strawberry gazpacho, grilled romaine, Costa Rican truffles

Vegetarian selections: salads, pasta

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Price range: $$$

Credit cards: all major credit cards

Hours: 5:30-10 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays, 5:30-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays

Children: not the best place for kids

Parking: a small shared lot and street parking; carpool if you can

Reservations: yes, suggested

Wheelchair access: yes

Smoking: no

Noise level: moderate

Patio: no

Takeout: no

Address, phone: 349 14th St., Atlanta. 404-695-4547.

Website: www.betterhalfatl.com

BETTER HALF

349 14th St., Atlanta

3 of 5 stars

We may need to redefine our notion of fine dining, or at least relax it a smidge. In Atlanta, the concept continues to evolve as a new wave of restaurants serving fine-dining-quality fare adopts a more laid-back approach. The meticulously choreographed dance of this highest level of dining has given way to one with a more relaxed groove and an air of authenticity.

This trend toward contemporary casual fine dining gained momentum during the economic downturn as chefs and restaurant owners crafted experiences that attracted broader audiences. The Dining Room at the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead, a pinnacle of fine dining in Atlanta, closed in 2009, and now these low-polish newcomers are opening in its wake.

Better Half, the supper-club-turned-restaurant funded by a Kickstarter community funding campaign, is one such newbie. Conventions championed by the Ritz don’t apply here. Instead, you’ll find the kitchen on full display right in the dining room, the absence of a liquor license (but it’s coming), and a place where the best seats are at the bar. Yet while Better Half doesn’t adhere to formal dining traditions or ostentation, the kitchen performs with the exceptional skill and efficiency of one that does. With such artistry and precision, the food coming out of this kitchen could only be considered fine.

It was that same economic downturn that brought Better Half’s chef/owner Zach Meloy back to his hometown of Atlanta. When tourism dried up back in 2008, the customer base for his Costa Rican restaurant followed suit. Defeated, he and his wife, Cristina, relocated and according to Meloy, “wanted Atlanta to be (their) better half.” While taking on odd jobs, the couple also started the popular supper club Push Start Kitchen, which served as their personal restaurant therapy.

Supper clubbers soon recognized Meloy’s knack for building intricately delicate flavors by blending classic and modern techniques. It was his loyal following that pledged support and raised money for a brick-and-mortar restaurant to the tune of nearly $72,000.

To pay homage to their supper club, the Meloys designed the restaurant around a kitchen built into the bar, thereby preserving the interactivity of the experience. They also outfitted the space with a casually minimalist sensibility, which isn’t without its own charm. It simply serves as a neutral backdrop for showcasing the ever-changing, portrait-worthy pieces coming off the line.

Vibrant colors and contrasts mark Meloy’s artistic plating style, which likely stems from his background studying fine art before culinary school. None illustrated this more than the recent pork belly dish ($10) with small cylindrical sopes placed catty-corner and filled with plugs of brilliant orange carrot puree. Squares of the perfect belly stood on their sides, leaning against the fried masa. The masterpiece was framed by two tiny roasted carrots and overlapping polka dots of deep green cilantro “pudding” and the carrot puree.

If you sit at the bar, you’ll have prime seats to observe Meloy’s perfectionist tendencies as he instructs a new cook on composing plates like the griddled veal belly ($27). Quartered asparagus stalks stand upright amid piped domes of whipped goat cheese with preserved lemon and dots of mint puree, making this the lightest (and brightest) belly dish you’ve had.

You’ll see him hunched over the silk handkerchief pasta ($29), a wide noodle with the perfect slip and chew folded into a spoonful of delicately rich porcini cream. He’ll have his tweezers poised to balance the mass of overly sweet, cold tomato marmalade that insists on sliding down into the warm pool of silky cream. All the while, he’ll be chatting up customers and belting out song requests like the snippet of a Nelson tune (not my request) to which we were treated.

There’s something of a mismatch between the visual and flavor vibrancy of Meloy’s food, the flavors often more subtle than the illustration they compose. Here, that’s a good thing. Tune into the nuanced flavors in dishes like the strawberry gazpacho ($9), a surprisingly savory soup with a touch of heat and only a gentle suggestion of the strawberry’s sweetness. Notice the smoky notes infused into the grilled baby romaine ($9) and charred onion, a green-and-white canvas layered with squiggles of rich green goddess dressing and irregular shavings of local Jack cheese.

The seared yellowfin tuna ($28) is yet another example of the skillful development of balanced flavors. The well-seasoned fish came paired with cow-pea-and-bacon stew with diagonal squares of sweet onion flan melting into the swirl like pats of butter. What a shame the menu changes so regularly you might not get to try this one.

Part of Meloy’s skill comes from his ability to blend modern and traditional techniques. It’s so seamless that you may not notice the touches of molecular gastronomy — the sous vide cooked pork or the additives to achieve textures. The only place where it felt more evident and slightly awkward was in the dessert course.

I adore the chipotle added to the square chocolate flan ($8), but the consistency required to manipulate it into its hollow shape left it too firm. Likewise, some sweet bites begin to feel overwrought with too many components, many unnecessary like the dense rhubarb clafoutis ($8) with a clear lavender gel.

But honestly, who needs dessert when the restaurant’s parting gift is a tin of cajetas de coco, Costa Rican milk truffles? I’d buy these homey caramel-coconut treasures by the case.

As we relax into a more casual expectation of fine dining, we’ll find gems like Better Half waiting to be discovered. I hope the Meloys have found Atlanta to be their better half. They certainly are ours.