When restaurants want to offer guests a luxurious experience, there are several fallback options for celebratory ingredients. Shaved truffles can elevate a dish, while Champagne often elevates an entire occasion. Caviar and its elaborate serving traditions also suggest luxury, and more Atlanta-area restaurants are including this delicacy on menus.
Caviar is the roe, or eggs, of sturgeon. Salt cured and packed for preservation, it has a complex flavor that can veer from rich and buttery to subtly briny. The tastes and textures of each type of caviar can be unique to the certain species of sturgeon, where the fish was raised and how the eggs were harvested.
“Caviar comes in all different size pearls, different levels of salinity,” said Freddy Money, culinary director of Buckhead’s upscale Atlas. “They’re little pearls of luxury. Salty, creamy … just delicious.”
Like lobster, oysters and other foods that convey a sense of romance and indulgence to modern diners, caviar was once considered a humble food. But shifts in availability and the preferences of European diners in the late 19th century took hold, and Russian and French presentations cemented what today is a typically extravagant caviar service. Think silver serving trays laden with delicate blini pancakes, tangy crème fraiche, crumbled boiled egg, and caviar served with a mother-of-pearl spoon.
Many metro Atlanta restaurants will roll out caviar for special occasions like New Year’s Eve or Valentine’s Day, but the following spots all give caviar a regular spot on their menus. Most veer classic –– while some like to have a little bit of fun with the traditions. All, however, share an enthusiasm for encouraging guests to experience and, yes, splurge a little. Or a lot.
Credit: Tomas Espinoza
Credit: Tomas Espinoza
Atlas
Atlas chef Freddy Money veers from the norm. “It’s quite fun to introduce caviar to guests,” he says, adding that Atlas’ playful presentation where the caviar can be eaten with tater tots, for instance, “is a rediscovery for some.” Though its selections rotate, Atlas currently serves Kristal-brand hybrid kaluga caviar as well as osetra and baerii caviar – also available in a multi-taste flight. 88 W. Paces Ferry Road NW, Atlanta; 404-600-6471; atlasrestaurant.com.
Bacchanalia
Chef Anne Quatrano’s iconic Westside restaurant has for years been Atlanta’s standard bearer for classic caviar service. The restaurant sources its three varieties of sturgeon roe – classic, royal, and hybrid – from Regiis Ova, the California-based caviar company from acclaimed chef Thomas Keller and Shaoching Bishop. Presented as an optional addition for Bacchanalia’s multi-course tasting menu, the caviar arrives iced with an egg omelet, crème fraiche, potato blini and herbs. 1460 Ellsworth Industrial Blvd. NW, Atlanta; 404-365-0410; starprovisions.com/bacchanalia.
Credit: Courtesy of Green Olive Media
Credit: Courtesy of Green Olive Media
C&S Seafood & Oyster Bar
Both locations of this long-standing seafood spot can roll out a traditional caviar presentation, either as a standalone course or as part of a seafood tower. Classic garnishes serve two caviar options at C&S – diners usually can choose between the roe of California White Sturgeon, or imported Ossetra sturgeon. Caviar even makes its way into other dishes, and has been a featured component of butter sauces on chef’s specials. 6125 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs; 470-427-3826; candsoysterbar.com 3300 Cobb Parkway, Atlanta; 770-272-0999; candsoysterbar.com.
Foundation Social Eatery
The newest entry on Atlanta’s caviar scene is chef Mel Toledo’s French-leaning New American eatery, recently relocated to downtown Alpharetta after a two-year hiatus. Foundation’s is the only traditional caviar service in Atlanta’s northern suburbs, and Toledo is eager to offer guests the option. The service veers traditional, with accompaniments like blini and crème fraiche putting the focus on the caviar itself. (Full disclosure note: the restaurant’s general manager and part owner Nick Hassiotis is the author’s brother.) 55 Roswell St. SE, Alpharetta; 678-691-0028; foundationatl.com.
Kimball House
This Decatur mainstay is well-known for its impeccable oyster service, but caviar has held a featured spot on the menu for years. Served with meticulous herb salads, cornmeal-based johnny cakes and brioche slices, Kimball House’s approach to caviar is one industry insiders often note as a favorite. Three different varieties of caviar are currently on offer, all sourced from Uruguay, the world’s foremost producer of sturgeon caviar. 303 E Howard Ave, Decatur; 404-378-3502; kimball-house.com.
Credit: Kate Blohm
Credit: Kate Blohm
Lazy Betty
Lazy Betty’s multi-course tasting menus shine with chef Ron Hsu’s creativity and precision, and a number of luxe optional additions to the experience, from rich truffles to prized A5 Japanese wagyu ribeye. Caviar service to kick things off is a perpetual option on both the regular and the special event menus, with either 1/2-ounce or 1-ounce portions of caviar accompanied by bite-sized steamed milk buns and scallion pancakes. 1530 DeKalb Ave. NE, Atlanta; 404-975-3692, lazybettyatl.com.
Le Bilboquet
Buckhead’s glittery French restaurant offers its own private-label Ossetra sturgeon caviar in two varieties – the royal and the imperial – that it imports via Germany. While the regular service maintains traditional accoutrements and toasted brioche, the kitchen sometimes rolls out a special canape featuring the fish eggs atop a crisp potato cake for special events. 3027 Bolling Way NE, Atlanta; 404-869-9944, lebilboquetatlanta.com.
Credit: Courtesy of Grey Fox PR
Credit: Courtesy of Grey Fox PR
Marcel
Uncomplicated opulence characterizes Marcel, and that applies to its caviar service. “I start off the experience of just tasting the eggs by themselves to really understand the flavor of the species I’m eating,” says Drew Belline, vice president and culinary director of this Westside steakhouse’s group Rocket Farm Restaurants. Marcel often sells several caviar services a night, and rotates its sourcing regularly. Chef John Adamson nods to the steakhouse’s main claim to fame by including a portion of beef tartare nestled in crushed ice alongside the caviar. 1170 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta; 404-665-4555, marcelatl.com.
Nikolai’s Roof
Part of caviar’s allure comes from its popularity among Russian nobles more than a century ago, and the sway those influencers held over European ideas of elegance. As Atlanta’s sole restaurant drawing on classic Russian and French flavors alike, this fine-dining spot high atop Downtown’s Hilton hotel makes for an appropriate place to sample caviar. Traditional blinis, crème fraiche, eggs, onions and more accompany a seasonally changing selection of imported caviar. 255 Courtland St. NE; 404-221-6362, nikolaisroofatl.com.
Rooftop L.O.A.
The rooftop eatery serves a tender gougere pastry filled with caviar and whipped crème fraiche as an ideal intro for those unfamiliar with caviar, but also rolls out a more elaborate service the menu cheekily lists as a “bling box.” Not just a nighttime affair as at most places, Rooftop L.O.A.’s caviar selection is available on the brunch menu as well, where caviar also stars in a hollandaise sauce accompanying egg dishes. 1115 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta; 470-922-3700, rooftoploa.com.
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