Not Your Grandma’s Southern Cookin’
Since I’ve had many meals sitting around my grandmother’s kitchen table, I would venture to say I have experienced a large portion of Southern cuisine. My grandmother, who I affectionately refer to as “Marimom,” loves any opportunity to cook for her family, friends and fellow church members. It’s the way she best expresses her love. Eating at “The Place” in downtown Athens is different, yet refreshingly similar to the meals I had growing up perched on a stool at Marimom’s house. I am reminded of the same staples I’ve long enjoyed, yet I’m pleased with the way the flavors are elevated beyond typical Southern comfort food.
From the outside of the restaurant, The Place might look like a quaint hole-in-the-wall to a non-Athens resident. Upon stepping inside, it opens up to what feels like a classy step back in time. A stained glass light fixture adorns the ceiling, and hanging window panes and old photos of Athens serve as the main decor set against the distressed brick walls. And while The Place still offers elegant Southern charm, it wasn’t uncommon to enjoy a University of Georgia football game on a Saturday night on a projector screen before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The menu appears to encompass a wide range of Southern flavor, from the Louisiana touches of Creole in their shrimp and grits to a North Carolina shrimp burger, and a classic chicken sandwich with pimento cheese. My personal favorite is their chicken and waffles. I have never been one to enjoy spicy food, but I find the tabasco candied bacon strips that come with the chicken and waffles a nice surprise for a typically bland meal, and the blueberry reduction to be a necessary sweetness to balance out the heat of the bacon.
I was pleasantly surprised by what they described on their menu as their “smoky gouda grits,” as my family always made them growing up, and even had Marimom ship boxes overseas while my parents and I lived abroad in Sweden for a couple of years. The Place’s grits were creamy, but not soupy, and the smoky flavor didn’t sound exactly appealing to me at first with my prior experience eating grits, but it wasn’t overpowering in the slightest.
The bar menu certainly carries out those traditional Southern flavors with cocktails such as Peach Mule and Peanuts & Coke. Their house gin and tonic features lavender-infused gin and many of their drinks, including those on their beer list contain a host of fruity flavors. They don’t shy away from truly capturing the essence of the South throughout every aspect of the restaurant.
The Place’s tagline of “refined Southern fare” unquestionably rings true, but the word “refined” shouldn’t scare your wallet. Most of their meals run around an average of $15, with the priciest item being the Hanger Steak at $21. The Place probably isn’t the “place” to bring your kids with the sophisticated mix of flavors and the lack of a kids menu. It is, however, the perfect place to go on a date, enjoy a meal out with friends or bring your parents when they’re in town. You’ll feel as though your taste is upscale, but you might also be reminded of your grandma’s home cookin’.
