The Optimist’s chowder features smoked fish

The Optimist

914 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta; 404477-6260; theoptimistrestaurant. com.

My husband and I love everything on the menu at Ford Fry’s The Optimist but especially the smoked fish chowder. Any chance you can get the recipe? Thanks. — Phyllis Flowers, Canton

The Optimist’s chowder recipe was indeed created by Ford Fry. He tells us, “Before we opened The Optimist, we took a few of our chefs on a food tour to try all different types of chowder. From our research, we knew we wanted to create ours with a thinner consistency but packed with flavor and ingredients – lots of vegetables, potatoes and smoked fish. Using smoked fish is a better representation of the South and our regional cuisine, as opposed to using clams, which are more regional to the Northeast. We use the ‘fun’ parts of flaky, white fish like the tail-ends and cheeks.”

That whitefish is smoked in-house. The restaurant suggests you can use any smoked fish or even smoked clams, if you prefer a more Northeastern version. The chowder is served in 6-ounce portions and accompanied with house-made oyster crackers. Is there a recipe from a metro Atlanta restaurant you’d like to make at home? Tell us and we’ll try to get it. We’ll also test it and adapt it for the home kitchen. Because of volume, we can’t answer all inquiries. Send your request, your address and phone number to fromthemenu@gmail.com and put “From the menu of ” and the name of restaurant in the subject line.