A restaurant with Southern-inspired food and cocktails is set to open in the next few weeks in Dunwoody.
Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley will debut in early December in the former Cinco space at Perimeter Mall. The restaurant comes from Texan Kevin Kelley, a lawyer by trade who wanted to tap into a lifelong love of food for his second career.
Kelley lived in Europe for several years, and was inspired to open his own concept after feeling homesick for Southern food and hospitality.
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
“I love food, drinks and a good time,” he said. “When I think about the best moments I’ve had with my loved ones, they’re shared over a meal or drinks. I wanted an opportunity to give people the same thing.”
He opened the first Kitchen + Kocktails in Dallas in 2020, followed by locations in Chicago, Washington D.C. and Charlotte, North Carolina.
The menu, which is heavily influenced by dishes Kelley grew up eating in Arkansas, features entrees including shrimp and grits with lobster tail; fried chicken with flavor options such as classic, hot honey, Nashville hot and Asian cognac; fried catfish; oxtails; fried shrimp; vegan bowls; blackened salmon; and surf and turf with a fried or grilled lobster tail and Caribbean jerk lamb chops.
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
Side dishes include collard greens, baked mac and cheese, black-eyed peas and candied yams. Guests can expect appetizers like dream eggs (deviled eggs topped with blackened shrimp); seafood gumbo; Cajun crab cakes, fried pickles; and salmon bites.
Brunch highlights include omelets and chicken and waffles with waffle optios such as cornbread, Fruity Pebbles and apple pie.
The drink menu includes the peach d’usse frozen cocktail, strawberry jalapeno margarita and toasted marshmallow espresso martini.
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
The nearly 6,500-square-foot Dunwoody location will seat about 125 guests in the main dining room, with a private dining area known as Asset Lounge seating 40. Upstairs and downstairs patios will seat a total of 27 guests.
Kelley said while food and drinks are the primary focus of Kitchen + Kocktails, the vibe and small details will be just as important.” The restaurant will have an eclectic vibe, with a soundtrack featuring artists from Ludacris and Jay-Z to Anita Baker and Justin Bieber. Design elements include an Instagrammable water wall with the Kitchen + Kocktails logo, a blue jade and onyx marble bar, a wall festooned with red roses, black wood floors and mirrors covering the walls and ceiling of the hallway leading to the bathroom.
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
Credit: Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley
“We want you to come for the food and drinks, but we want you to feel like this is your restaurant home,” he said. “We want you to enjoy every element of the space and feel comfortable.”
The Atlanta location of Kitchen + Kocktails will be its first in a mall. Kelley said he looked at several areas of metro Atlanta, but jumped at the chance to open in Dunwoody.
“I thought it was a vibrant place, and the shops are an attraction,” he said. “We’ll offer mall shoppers something other than what they’re used to.”
Kitchen + Kocktails will join several other restaurants at Perimeter Mall including 26 Thai Kitchen & Bar, Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar, Maggiano’s Little Italy, Seasons 52 and the Capital Grill.
4400 Ashford Dunwoody Road NE, Dunwoody. kitchenkocktailsusa.com
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