ST. CECILIA
3455 Peachtree Road, Atlanta. 404-554-9995, stceciliaatl.com. $$$-$$$$
Just as one might recognize the toe-tapping bounce in a music track produced by Pharrell Williams, there is a trademark upbeat rhythm to a Ford Fry production.
His latest restaurant, St. Cecilia, is a monumental glitter box with nearly 30-foot ceilings on the ground floor of Buckhead’s Pinnacle Building. The concept is “coastal European,” which gives the restaurateur an opportunity to reprise the pastas, seafood and brawny abundance that has worked so well in his other hot spots, such as the Optimist and No. 246.
Chef Brian Horn’s octopus may vie for best cephalopod in the Southeast, so crunchy are its tentacles and tender-chewy its meat. A small, scrumptiously buttery bowl of spaghetti with crab, chili and garlicky crumbs is slurpworthy, and it disappears before putting you in a food coma.
But a whole, expertly grilled loup de mer with marcona almonds and citrus won best of show at our table. In a fish restaurant, even one as grand as this, simplicity always wins.
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