A marker in front of 302 Auburn Ave. in Atlanta explains that this block of the historic Sweet Auburn neighborhood once was called Soul Food Row and was home to such restaurants as Elise Walkers, Muckle’s Grill, Hawk’s Dinette and Ma Sutton’s. Auburn Avenue Rib Shack had a 30-year run at the 302 address before shutting down in 1994, followed by Thelma’s Kitchen and Rib Shack, which closed in 2014.
Four years later, the building was purchased by local restaurateur Asa Fain. A yearslong restoration doubled the size to 4,000 square feet and added a covered patio, while also preserving reminders of the past: exposed original walls and an old grill pit near the entrance, now surrounded by foliage.
After sitting dormant for a decade, the corner space on Soul Food Row has been reborn as Auburn Angel.
As I sat in the small upper dining area, with a view of a storied neighborhood that has seen better days, I overheard Fain talking with a passerby who inquired about the restaurant’s menu. No, Auburn Angel doesn’t make soul food, he told the elderly man, but it is “food made with soul.”
The soul behind the food is veteran chef and restaurant consultant Robbie Pacheco, whose resume includes Cardamom Hill, Restaurant 365, Wildleaf, Country Club of the South and White Oak Kitchen & Cocktails, as well as Fain’s Apache Cafe on Marietta Street.
I’ve never described restaurant dishes as “peaceful” or “quiet” before, but that’s exactly what Pacheco offers.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
The beet root tart was a rose-petal arrangement of thinly sliced beets tucked into a pastry shell, with garnishes of goat cheese mousse, nasturtium leaves and flowers, crimson clover and beet root dust. The entire composition was as serene as a garden-inspired still life — and we got to eat it. Divine.
The little gem salad had a foundation of tightly packed, sweet, crunchy lettuce upon which rested pickled kumquats, watermelon radish, star fruit, diced beets and curly ribbons of chilled cucumber cut so thin as to be translucent. Delicate umbrellas of chervil capped the mélange. Each bite offered new tastes and textures.
Credit: Ligaya Figueras
Credit: Ligaya Figueras
Animal proteins also received tender preparation and plating. The steak tartare was exceptional. Pacheco started with a lean cut of tenderloin. For binding, he used foie gras aioli and pickled mustard seeds, instead of egg yolk and capers, lest he mask the flavor of the raw, chilled meat. The mold arrived with yucca chips standing on end, purple-yellow nasturtium flowers tucked here and there, and a tiny teaspoon of caviar.
Oxtail eaters might find their new favorite in Auburn Angel’s uber-unctuous version, which was steeped to the bone with flavor and served over cheese grits with carrots and hakurei turnips.
Lamb — more affordable than beef — appears frequently on the menu. Lamb neck was shredded and fashioned into an open-faced sandwich piled with an airy tangle of thread-thin fried leeks. My one gripe was the excessive sweetness of confit garlic honey swiped on the thick slice of house-made country bread.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
The surprise star of a lamb loin entree — served with potato puree and a rich, glossy demi-glace — was a lamb belly croquette whose heavenly spice notes came from a multi-day curing.
There also was a deliciously messy double-stack lamb burger. You must eat it quickly, or the bottom slice of grilled bread will disintegrate under the heft and wetness of juicy patties, stewed red cabbage and melted havarti cheese.
The standout meat dish was the porcelet collar, a marbled shoulder cut of milk-fed pork that was next-level tender. Two slices were spooned with pickled mustard seeds and sat next to brush strokes of herbaceous cilantro-watercress puree and sweet, earthy pureed parsnip and a scattering of dehydrated carrot powder.
For dessert, the strawberry napoleon with a scoop of tarragon ice cream was heavenly.
Despite excellent food, improvement in other areas could help Auburn Angel create an outstanding overall dining experience.
It has a full bar, but the beverage and wine menus are limited, and wines found at supermarkets don’t match the caliber of the food. Cocktails were satisfactory, not impressive.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Also, the patio could use some spiffing up, and the minimalist decor inside felt stark at times, perhaps because there weren’t many diners yet in the main area’s green leather booths or the church pews serving as banquettes upstairs.
Fain named the restaurant Auburn Angel for the sense of hope it relayed — hope for reclaiming a neighborhood’s past and hope for a brighter future and protection from harm. Send ’em an angel.
AUBURN ANGEL
2 out of 4 stars (very good)
Food: new American small plates
Service: attentive, relaxed
Noise level: quiet
Recommended dishes: lamb neck, candied jackfruit salad, beet root tart, steak tartare, porcelet collar, oxtails, golden tilefish, lamb loin, strawberry napoleon
Vegetarian dishes: beet root tart, candied jackfruit salad; little gem salad and blistered shishito peppers can be prepared vegetarian
Alcohol: full bar, but limited wine selection and specialty cocktail list
Price range: $65-$80 per person, excluding drinks, tax and gratuity
Hours: 5-10 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays, 5-9 p.m. Sundays
Accessibility: Short flight of stairs required to access upper dining room
Parking: Free along side streets
Nearest MARTA station: half-mile from King Memorial, eight-tenths of a mile from Peachtree Center
Reservations: accepted, but not necessary
Outdoor dining: covered patio
Takeout: not recommended
Address, phone: 302 Auburn Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-955-7123
Website: auburnangel.com
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s dining critics conduct reviews anonymously. Reservations are not made in their name, nor do they provide restaurants with advance notice about their visits. Our critics always make multiple visits, sample the full range of the menu and pay for all of their meals. AJC dining critics wait at least one month after a new restaurant has opened before visiting.
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