When Ford Fry announces a new project, you know he’s going to go big — even if the name indicates otherwise.
Fry’s latest venture, Little Sparrow, sees the lower level of the two-story space that formerly housed JCT Kitchen and Bar transformed into a classic French brasserie. (A fancy friterie called Bar Blanc is planned for upstairs.)
Grandiosity reigns at Little Sparrow — from bulbous chandeliers, rich wood, dark leather, plush velvet, marble tables and a service staff dressed in white jackets to a menu that delights in fat.
The showy restaurant’s apt name was the nickname of French singer Edith Piaf, known for her intense stage presence. She was the lover of 1940s French boxer Marcel Cerdan, namesake of Fry’s steakhouse located nearby.
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
Dinner begins with one of the best, most generous bread services in Atlanta: a warm, crusty baguette from Linton Hopkins’ baking crew with a saucer of softened Kerrygold butter surrounded by grassy olive oil and a sprinkle of Maldon salt. There is no skimping: It’s one baguette per two diners. Even better, it’s complementary.
Executive Chef Bob Ryan gets credit for the bread service, taking inspiration from old boss Hopkins’ butter paddles at the now defunct Restaurant Eugene and his more recent employer, New York’s Per Se, and its mini butter hives at each table.
However, the rest of the menu is a collaboration between Ryan, Fry and Rocket Farms Restaurants exec Drew Belline.
That menu is divided into two main sections, hors d’oeuvres and entrees, but special treatment also is given to potatoes. You’ll find frites with three sauce options; mashed potatoes that are 60% potatoes and the rest cream, butter and cheese; and “dripping” blistered fingerling potatoes.
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
Hor d’oeuvres and frites are where it’s at. The starters are strong and have broad appeal, including duck liver terrine with strawberry preserves; filet Américain — the minced version of steak tartare — paired with unctuous bone marrow and a parsley salad; and a simple lettuce salad with the occasional piece of torn radicchio dressed in a sherry vinaigrette and with long, wide shavings of aged goat cheese. It was a worthy salad to counter the heavy, rich dishes to come.
The Aleppo shrimp were less impressive, although the ‘nduja-spiked sauce made for terrific baguette dipping. And the piney attributes of the melted, brie-like Harbison cheese wrapped in spruce bark were masked by the sweetness of honey and brown butter.
Less shareable, but oh so good, was an onion soup gratinée that combined a deeply flavorful veal and beef broth, along with tangled strands of caramelized onion underneath a gorgeous cap of bubbly, broiled cheese.
Credit: Paula Pontes
Credit: Paula Pontes
An order of frites could serve as your intermezzo. It’s also the moment to loosen your belt a notch, and a good time to switch from the Pigalle cocktail (a fine spin on a Manhattan) to wine (which might end up as a bottle, because the selection by the glass is disappointingly limited).
Triple-cooked, the frites were divinely crispy and glistened from a dip in beef fat. Two of my dining partners looked down with embarrassment at their oil-stained shirts, then unabashedly reached for more. An order comes with a choice of garlic aioli, bearnaise or raclette for a $10 upcharge. Plunk down the extra bucks for the cheese fries.
The entrees were disappointing. It was not for lack of execution — scallops were perfectly seared and halibut was treated with respect, as was pork belly, chicken, pasta and the best-selling La Vie en Rose (named for an enduring Piaf ballad), featuring steak haché — ground rib-eye shaped into a patty and cooked. It also wasn’t for lack of flair, because Little Sparrow is stocked with sauce boats for tableside pours of lobster sauce with caviar for scallops, or beef consommé over halibut.
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
No, the disappointment came from the majority of the main dishes being oversalted to an off-putting level, be it a 9-ounce burger patty or a fennel-apple salad that should have been a clean counter to the fatty, salty pork belly.
On the other hand, desserts by Rocket Farms pastry chef Chrysta Poulos deserved applause. Basque cheesecake brought the expected tartness and lightness, compared with its New York-style cousin, and creamy olive oil-honey-fennel pollen soft-serve ice cream was exquisite.
These days, the area west of Midtown is buzzing with high-quality restaurants where meals are like a performance. Little Sparrow has the potential to fly high, right alongside them.
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
Credit: Courtesy of Little Sparrow
LITTLE SPARROW
2 of 4 stars (very good)
Food: brasserie
Service: polished, confident, professional
Noise level: average
Recommended dishes: bread service, onion soup gratinée, salade maison, filet Américain, duck liver terrine, frites (especially with raclette), poulet, Maine sea scallops
Vegetarian dishes: bread service, salade maison, Jasper Hill harbison, beets, ricotta gnudi, pommes aligot, chilled artichokes, frites (on request), “dripping” potatoes (on request)
Alcohol: full bar
Price range: $$$-$$$$
Hours: 5-10 p.m. Sundays-Thursdays, 5-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays
Parking: paid lot
MARTA: none
Reservations: recommended
Outdoor dining: covered patio
Takeout: no
Address, phone: 1198 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. 404-355-2252
Website: littlesparrowatl.com
About the AJC’s restaurant review process: AJC dining critics conduct reviews anonymously. They do not make reservations 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. When reviewing new restaurants, AJC dining critics wait at least one month after the restaurant has opened before visiting.
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