The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
4 of our favorite reviews
Here’s a second serving of dishes our critics love to eat.
It’s summer, and between vacationing and shuttling kids to camp, perhaps you missed a few of our recent restaurant reviews. Here are some places that the AJC’s dining critics gave high praise to in the past few months. Our regularly scheduled restaurant reviews will return in next Friday’s Go Guide.
CAFE SONGHAI
The menu at Cafe Songhai does a nice job of offering a detailed spread of the foods of West Africa, particularly dishes from Nigeria and Ghana, but also with some influence from Ivory Coast. This is the work of chef Matthew Ouoso.
Order the jollof rice. Do you want your jollof with parboiled or jasmine rice? In Ghana, jollof is made with a thinner, more sturdy jasmine grain. Nigerian jollof rice is prepared with wider grains. I’d say, since you’re ordering from a Ghanaian chef, jasmine is the way to go.
Jollof is served here as part of an entree with stewed meat, your choice of beef, goat, chicken or fish, but I’d say you’re better off ordering a side dish and exploring more of the menu’s options.
There’s an extensive spread of West African stews served here that range from ayamase — a dark, green pepper stew popular in Nigeria — to aponkye nkrakra, a lighter, ginger-spiked concoction more popular in Ghana.
The entree I’ll come back for, though, is Ouoso’s grilled tilapia. The fish is grilled and served whole. He smears that with a peppery tomato sauce and piles it with wilted strips of tomato, raw slivers of onions and a handful of spring lettuces. On the side, you’ll receive a ramekin of a dark hot sauce made from Scotch bonnet and habanero peppers cooked into a mash. Your lips will tingle long after you leave.
3380 Holcomb Bridge Road, Peachtree Corners. 470-359-2969, facebook.com/CafeSonghaiATL. — REVIEWER: WYATT WILLIAMS
MAGNOLIA ROOM CAFETERIA
Magnolia Room Cafeteria is a cafeteria of old, just like I remember.
The shredded carrot salad studded with raisins is a throwback. So is Fruit Congealed Salad, a bright red, bright tasting strawberry version crowned with whipped cream.
Among sides, point to slowcooked turnip greens, stewed cabbage, tender black-eyed peas, and coleslaw of the vinegary sort.
Entrees are where Magnolia Room finds its groove. Roasted chicken had a golden skin that crackled just as you’d wish when knifing into it.
Baked tilapia and trout almondine were both nicely breaded, the flesh flaky and the trout generously coated in nuts. But the tartar sauce that accompanied both dishes tasted more of mayo, as it lacked any kick of acid.
House-made cracklin bread was moist and singing with pork notes.
While desserts were off-key during my visits, overall this is better-than-average cafeteria food served by a highly considerate staff in a cheerful place.
4450 Hugh Howell Road, Tucker. 770-864-1845, magnoliaroomtucker.com. — REVIEWER: LIGAYA FIGUERAS
MEDITERRANEA
Mediterranea is a new Grant Park restaurant that evokes a kind of aspirational mood.
The restaurant is fully gluten-free, and one of the more impressive accomplishments of Mediterranea’s menu is that it doesn’t seem to even consider wheat a possibility. If the server had not mentioned it, I might not even have noticed that it wasn’t there.
The options, instead, are abundant with vegetables. Start with something from the shared plates, spreads and crudites or pickled antipasti. It is this portion of the meal that I could have dragged out all night, sipping a glass of Barbera del Monferrato.
The entrees at Mediterranea are not quite as flawless, though they do give plenty of pleasure. A plate of branzino and orzo features fillets of fish pan-fried to a notable golden-brown crisp. A plate of involtini, interpreted as thin slices of squash and zucchini wrapped around halloumi, is a fine showcase of that dense, satisfying cheese.
Even if you’re trying to indulge on Sunday brunch, the menu here steers you back to wholesome pleasures.
332 Ormond St., Atlanta. 404748-4219, mediterraneaatl.com. — REVIEWER: WYATT WILLIAMS
SLIDERS BURGER JOINT
Make room for the burger that deserves a spot on the “best of ” list. It’s a place you probably haven’t heard of.
Sliders Burger Joint, open since February, sits in an unassuming spot on Jonesboro Road in Forest Park. It is a joint in every way: unwiped tables, napkin dispensers in need of refilling, scant wall decorations, the blue cinder block structure itself and tin roof overhead.
There are options for ground beef or turkey patties. They are hand-packed and made to order. The menu is pretty much the same whether you go the slider or burger route. Order sliders and you’ll get three of them.
The patty on the Original Big Joint Burger is raggedy like you might make at home. Order yours with the works.
You must order the Sloppy ChiliChez and the Fried Egg. I got them both as sliders. They can be had as burgers. Both are messy as all get-out and delicious.
This place also surprises with its “exotic” offerings, like the Grilled Pineapple Swiss burger. They char fruit better than some high-end places in town.
French fries are of the scratch sort. Hand cut, still sporting some skins, they are wonderfully fried, not too oily and perfectly salted. Or there’s the sweet potato version. Cut into thin ribbons with crimped edges, these don’t suffer from mush syndrome as so many renditions do.
4495 Jonesboro Road, Forest Park. 470-355-8920, slidersburgerjoint.com. — REVIEWER: LIGAYA FIGUERAS