First Round: Taste of Atlanta Barcraft Competition

Thats me and Shanna from Leon's Full Service behind the bar. It appears from this photo that I was looking pretty confident! Now, I just need to make up another batch of Crabapple Shrub...

Imported Double Cream

Imported Double Cream, originally uploaded by jekemp.

Yep,

Living the good life down in Hapeville. Nothing better than some imported brie and American apple brandy.

Organic Egg Producing Chickens being raised improperly.

A grassfed burger cooked at home

A grassfed burger cooked at home, originally uploaded by jekemp.

If you are willing to put in the work, a high quality organic grassfed burger can be made for half the price of dining out at home. An added benefit of this is the ability to personally control all aspects of the ingredients and preparation.

This burger features a half pound hand formed organic grass-fed beef patty with homemade pimento cheese, home-made bacon "jam", and red onions with a touch of Duke's mayonnaise. The burger is shown with a side of hand cut sweet potato fries cooked in peanut oil.

Empire State South

Empire State South Bar, originally uploaded by jekemp.

Chef Hugh Acheson's Empire State South will be opening August 30th for breakfast, lunch, & dinner. The approachable food menu from the Chef De Cuisine, Nick Melvin, is local/regionally sourced and served in a southern and traditional meat and three format. You can choose your protein, then pick your two sides and bread.

Some of my favorite items tried over the past week were the succotash made from locally raised pink lady peas, the heirloom tomato & cucumber salad, and the fried green tomatoes.

The Bar is big, spacious, and bold. One of the standout features is a robust granite top sourced from nearby Elberton Georgia and seating for over twenty. The wine list from partner Steven Grubbs will more than likely prove to be one of the more approachable in the city featuring many selections from the old world and a few from the new.

If you are into well crafted cocktails made from the freshest of juices, I will be manning the bar here a few nights a week and will be bringing along all of my time honored tricks of the trade.

Look forward to authentic Sazerac cocktails, innovative champagne cocktails, and an extensive list of Bourbons for sipping.



Jason E Kemp

Murray's Cheese in Atlanta?!

Murray's Cheese?!, originally uploaded by jekemp.

Ok, so, interesting news, one of the Kroger Grocery stores here in Atlanta has apparently teamed up with NYC's Murray's Cheese to market high end cheeses from around the world.

Having been to the original(before they expanded and moved across the street..), I must report that unfortunately its not the Murray's logo or the cheese selection that makes the place interesting, It was the surly employees that really made the place stand out.

So, even though they have small wheels of Muenster from Alsace, I don't know how this is going to pan out in Atlanta. Overall, I am happy that I can find and try some great cheese here. In the end, I just hope that they will do the right thing and throw out the stuff that does not move and not pull the Whole Foods Market scheme of scraping off the mold, re-wrapping the cheese and changing the sell dates.

Here is a link to their press release:

http://www.murrayscheese.com/kroger_press.asp

Angora Goats Graze on Roan Mountain to Control Invasive Blackberry Bramble

Goats on Roan Mountain, originally uploaded by jekemp.

On our recent trip up into the high country of North Carolina, Katherine and I could not resist the urge to hike to the top of something, that something turned out to be Roan Mountain. The top of Roan Mountain is a grassy bald that affords limitless views of the surrounding mountains and countryside.

As we hiked higher, an amazing discovery! Angora goats grazing on the mountainside. We learned that the goats are there to naturally control an invasive species of Canadian Blackberry. This blackberry bramble if left unchecked would eventually eliminate the rare and beautiful plant diversity on the balds.

Katherine, decided to get close to them and discovered that a few of these goats turned out to be quite friendly. Its amazing what a shared granola bar can do to break the ice.

Further investigation found that these goats need our help to continue their meaningful and valuable work on the mountain. For a low monthly donation, these goats will be able to continue to maintain and beautify the top of Roan Mountain for many summers to come. You may adopt a goat for 1 month, the entire 3 month summer season, or for this year's season.

$20 per month

$50 for 3 months in 2010

$100 for 3 months in 2010 and 3 months in 2011


Here is an example of what a $20.00 donation will get:

1) At least one card, picture and lock of hair from your goat letting you know how much it likes blackberries and spending time on the Grassy Balds

2) The chance to name your goat

3) The satisfaction of knowing you are helping save the unique ecosystem by helping us further develop and refine a model protocol for using goats as a management tool in Grassy Bald restoration.

Here is a link to the project's blog to follow for more information on this interesting project.