Some college students spend their money on alcohol or clothes. Morgan Prime spent hers on caviar.
Prime always has been a foodie, and isn’t afraid to splurge on the finer things, but she likes a good deal and wants “value for what I’m spending,” she said.
After she’d exhausted the caviar offerings at Whole Foods, Prime did what she does best: research.
Her passion for the delicate, salt-cured sturgeon eggs peaked when she found herself outside an unmarked Marietta warehouse. Prime left with several new tins of caviar she’d never tasted before, and “they were absolutely delicious,” she said.
Caviar is a luxury item that often feels intimidating for those who didn’t grow up enjoying it. True sturgeon caviar can range in price from $120 per ounce for classic osetra (Prime’s favorite) to about $60 per ounce for hackleback.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
While some restaurants offer caviar service, it’s difficult to learn about the delicacy. But Prime and her friend Taylor Kelly are on a mission to make caviar more accessible.
About a year ago, Prime began holding Creative Caviar classes through Kelly’s events business, Eventful ATL. The class meets about once a month, and over the course of an hour and a half, Prime walks attendees through the ins and outs of caviar.
July’s class, which began with a short presentation from Prime, drew about 40 people to the back room of the Distillery of Modern Art in Chamblee. Attendees came from around metro Atlanta. Many never had tried caviar before or had tasted it just once, and the group covered a broad range of ages, Kelly said, from young adults to retirement home residents on a field trip.
“I always thought of caviar as … very upper echelon,” Nyjaeh Dawsey said. She came to the class with her mother, Cynthia Dawsey, and her sister, Chivon Joseph, for Joseph’s birthday. Joseph was curious about caviar and wanted to learn about it.
Credit: Olivia Wakim
Credit: Olivia Wakim
The chemistry between Kelly and Prime as co-hosts made the experience feel more like friends hanging out than a class.
“The whole purpose is to make sure that we’re creating an environment that’s not stuffy,” Prime said. “We’re not lecturing you. We want you to ask whatever, whenever.”
Prime covers a wide range of information, including what kind of spoon you should use to eat caviar, types of caviar, how long it stays good in the fridge and how to serve it.
Kelly and Prime are partnered with Caviar Dream, which was founded recently by two women in Chicago. It has a similar mission to Creative Caviar: making the delicacy more accessible and inclusive.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
After Prime’s brief talk came the main event: tasting.
Staffers came around with large tins of caviar and smoked trout roe, scooping hefty bumps into small plastic cups. A worksheet included a list of suggested pairings, with a space for people to mark their own ratings.
There were classic pairings — such as crème fraîche and chives on blinis — as well as more creative options, including Doritos with smoked trout roe (a surprising favorite), Pringles and even a McDonald’s chicken nugget in honor of a TikTok video by Rihanna.
Credit: Olivia Wakim
Credit: Olivia Wakim
The room was buzzing with chatter as class members discussed their favorites or asked for more caviar bumps.
“Being able to experience (caviar), I’m like ‘Oh, I can go home and snack on this in different ways,’” Nyjaeh Dawsey said.
Prime’s passion began as a personal interest, something she spent hours researching. She said her first search on TikTok when she downloaded the app probably was caviar.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
She was hesitant at first when Kelly approached her about leading a caviar class. While current social media buzz makes information about caviar slightly more accessible, she said, “the culture didn’t look like me, that’s for sure.” She didn’t see anyone of color “enjoying caviar or talking about it or even just having it in the background.”
In the videos she watched online, she saw people enjoying caviar just one way — with expensive accessories and a lifestyle that didn’t reflect her own.
However, caviar can be more than a tasty hobby, she said. It can help people move through new circles and provide opportunities in business settings.
“If I’m equipping people with information about good caviar … that opens up a seat at that table, because now you know what you’re talking about — you probably might know more than someone else,” she said.
Prime decided the class wouldn’t be about teaching people to become experts on caviar — she doesn’t claim to be an expert herself. Rather, she said, she wanted attendees to gain a little more knowledge, and the understanding that “it is accessible to you, you do deserve it, you can have it.”
Still, there aren’t many ways to try the delicacy without paying for full caviar service in a restaurant. The primary purpose of Creative Caviar is to build a “safe space” for people to learn about and try as many types as possible.
“So many people who have never had caviar come to our workshops and are immediately laughing; they’re comfortable,” she said. “No one’s intimidated. There are no dumb questions. I answer anything and everything.”
If you go
Creative Caviar from Eventful ATL. 7-8:30 p.m. Sept. 12. $111 per person. Includes a free drink ticket and all caviar and pairings. 2197 Irvindale Way, Chamblee. eventfulatl.com/upcoming-public-events
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