I’ve always been told I have a positive attitude, which some may say makes me an optimist. But when you’re talking about The Optimist in Atlanta, it only means one thing - a hot new seafood concept on the Westside.
We may be land-locked, but The Optimist by famed Atlanta chef and restauranteur Ford Fry (JCT Kitchen and No. 246) will make you think you’re sitting beach side. I’m just going to say it - I love everything about this restaurant.
Details: The Optimist & Oyster Bar at The Optimist - 914 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta, GA
First, I love the easy parking. That may seem odd, but I’ve gotten a bit tired lately of valets in tiny, packed lots, or worse, hard to find street parking. Nice sized lot off Howell Mill (big sign so you don’t miss it) and lots of parking off 8th Street.
Oyster Bar at The Optimist is the casual bar that I can see myself spending many a post-work early evening at sipping a cold beer or glass of white wine (highly recommend the Beach Ball) and indulging in some briny oysters or peel and eat shrimp.
Step into The Optimist proper and you will be amazed at the attention to detail, the great service, the fun little touches that don’t hit you over the head with a nautical theme and better still - the amazing food.
They start you with delicious house made rolls topped with maldon salt. Some of the dishes cry out for these rolls to sop up the savory broths, including the garlicky tiny clams & pork belly with hand-torn croutons dish - so save some for that or just order more. The fried clam roll with kimchi vinegar and house pickles was also a winner on a Holeman & Finch bun. They also feature of course, oysters on the half shell. East and West Coast oysters made you feel like you were seaside with various accompaniments including crackers, hot sauce, cocktail sauce and real horseradish.
While the restaurant features skirt steak, wood roasted half amish chicken, roasted heritage pork and lamb belly, the focus is definitely on seafood. We enjoyed the alaskan halibut, wood grilled hen of the wood with red wine fish bordelaise and the skate wing “schnitzel” with brown butter, charred lemon, and capers. So delicious!
The sides are also amazing - I wanted to try them all! Ended up with the potato gnocchi with lobster butter and corn and the sliced local heirloom tomatoes with louie dressing.I’ll be back to try the buttered spring onion potato puree and corn milk hushpuppies.
One of the cooler things I stumbled upon on the way to the restroom were two racks of old school hotel style keys. Puzzled, I thought maybe I needed one to open the restroom door, but the doors had no key locks. Chef Ford Fry happens by as I’m looking very confused about these bright orange keys and explains that they printed 1,000 of these keys and they are for the patrons to take. Score! I promptly scooped up #177. What I’m hoping is that eventually when all 1,000 keys are taken that those keyholders will be able to bring them back to ‘unlock’ a special plate on the menu. Appetizer, entree, dessert, doesn’t matter. Something secret…..think about it Ford!
I cannot forget dessert. I was leaning towards the fried pound cake with ice cream, fudge and fried peanuts, but went with the ice box cake of the day - lemon. Cool and refreshing! My boyfriend (a chef!) was a bit more adventurous and got the buttermilk doughnuts with sweet corn ice cream and hot pepper jam.
I mentioned earlier in this post that I loved everything about this restaurant and it’s true. An amazing experience from start to finish and a huge addition to the already great Westside food and bar scene.
Look on the bright side and go visit The Optimist.
