As a big fan of Holeman & Finch, the H&F burger, and Restaurant Eugene, I looked forward to checking out chef Linton Hopkins' newest restaurant, C. Ellet's at The Battery. It opened August 21, 2017. The verdict from my first (and hopefully, not last) dining experience here: great-tasting food, outstanding presentation, and a gorgeous dining environment (one of the most memorable I've seen in recent memory); however, while the staff was nice, service was lackluster. Sub-par service is the main reason I docked this place a star.
Parking at The Battery is free for the first 4 hours (2 hours on game/event days). Navigate to the red deck at 2565 Circle 75 Pkwy, Atlanta, GA 30339. After parking, exit on level P3 and walk out of the deck towards the shops and restaurants. Hang a right around Antico like you're heading towards the baseball stadium. C. Ellet's will be on your right just before the big "Atlanta Braves" sign and the opening landing area.
I love the look of this restaurant from the inside out. To me, it's stunning and one of the best-looking restaurants in town. The designers have managed to ideally blend the old-school, high-class steakhouse vibe with open and contemporary aesthetics. The result is simply beautiful. There are two main dining spaces inside -- the club room, which is open for lunch and dinner, and the dining room, which is open for dinner only. The dining room is where the chef's table is located. There's also patio seating, facing the ballpark, and a private dining room available for special events. Finally, there's a secret bar/lounge which I was told by an employee is reserved for the Atlanta Braves and investors only. It's old-fashioned swanky.
We visited for Sunday lunch. In addition to steakhouse staples like steaks and oysters, C. Ellet's lunch menu also offered a wide variety of other foods. They included appetizers like peanut sticky buns ($6) and wood-roasted oysters ($23), egg plates like Eggs Benedict ($16-19) and a three-egg omelette ($13), breakfast and brunch entrees like buttermilk pancakes ($11) and shrimp and grits ($19), and other foods like the famous H&F cheeseburger ($16), market-priced lobster rolls, roast chicken ($22), and salmon salad ($22). Sides, such as bacon and mac & cheese, ranged from $4 to $12 each and there were desserts too ($9-15 each).
Steaks on the lunch menu ranged from a 7-ounce Angus bavette cut (flank) for $21 to a 12-ounce, grass-fed, Angus strip loin for $40. You can ask to see their full steak menu and I believe you can order any of them at lunchtime. Steak lagniappe (extras) like green peppercorns and bone marrow were available for $4 each. The farm/supplier and origin state for each steak was identified on the menu. Oysters were available for $2.50 to $4.50 each. During our visit, 8 different types were available. As far as drinks, the menu appeared fairly extensive with a good variety of cocktails, beer (draft, canned, bottled), and wine (brut/sparkling, white, red).
Here's what I tried:
Oysters:
* Turtleback ($2.75) - Portersville Bay, Alabama
* Hollywood ($2.75) - Upper Chesapeake Bay, Virginia
* Kumamoto ($4.50) - Humboldt Bay, Canada
* Rock Point ($3.00) - North Dabob Bay, Washington
Sunday lunch menu:
* "The Weekend Warrior Special" ($19.99) - iron skillet coulotte, asparagus with Hollandaise, French fries, a buttermilk yeast roll, salted butter, and iced tea
* Cast iron Dutch baby with strawberries and Chantilly ($13)
The oysters were excellent. They were perfectly shucked, super fresh, and high quality. I didn't prefer one oyster over another. They were all equally delectable. The oysters came with real, freshly-grated horseradish, mignonette, cocktail sauce, lemon, noticeably-buttered crackers, and hot sauce. Mmm...
The Weekend Warrior was terrific. In the moment, I couldn't think of a more complete and satisfying Sunday "breakfast." Coulotte steak is cut from the top sirloin cap and therefore lean and relatively tough. I ordered mine medium rare and it was delicious. I really liked the seasoning. Steak sauce was included, but it wasn't needed because the steak was already flavorful enough. The buttermilk yeast roll and salted butter was amazing. It was perhaps the best dinner roll I've had (H&F bread, I tell you). The asparagus and Hollandaise were solid and the fries, which came with H&F-style housemade ketchup, were money.
The cast iron Dutch baby was unique. C. Ellet's offers a savory version made with beef hash and eggs. The version I tried with strawberries and Chantilly (whipped) cream was a sweet, brunch/dessert version. It was fantastic with plenty of ripe, juicy strawberries and a wonderfully appetizing pancake crust. I highly recommend this one.
Service was slow and needed major improvement. It took over 2.25 hours for lunch and the restaurant wasn't busy. I wasn't told which oysters were which when my oyster platter was served and several items were forgotten in our orders such as my roll, butter, and tea. read more