Bocado: First Glimpse
By Tom Maicon at October 11, 2009 | 4:39 pm | Print
Let me start by saying Bocado (887 Howell Mill Rd., Atlanta Tel: 404.815.1399) is only open less than a week, but we enjoyed our lunch so much I deemed it worthy of a mention.
The décor is simple, clean, modern industrial, and a little pretentious — and so is the food. Lunch is an offering of a very limited though, well-executed menu of sandwiches. Think Muss & Turner’s with a simplified menu, smaller portions, and less fussy price point. Also like Muss & Turner’s, the kitchen focuses on high quality sustainable ingredients.
The website claims simple plates that pack big flavor, and that pretty much sums up my first visit in a nutshell.
Melanie ordered the roasted poblano and pimento cheese, topped with bacon, thickly sliced fried green tomato, and spicy remoulade. In most pretentious eateries under flavor-conscious chefs, spicy means barely detectable, or subtle, right? Not so fast my friend. Spicy remoulade here, though not blow-your-head-off fiery hot, is certainly assertive enough to grab your attention. This is where I believe Bocado’s fare loses its pretentious side, and becomes a little edgy.
Bahn mi Sandwich I’ve gotten bitchy with chefs in the past for lack of ethnic flair and flavor. Perhaps chef Todd Ginsberg was listening. Ginsberg is most recognized for his work as executive chef at Asher in Roswell. I love his spin on the popular Vietnamese banh mi sandwich, built from high quality Duroc pork and chilies — no blasphemous jalapenos like you’ll find on most versions around town.
This beauty is then topped with all the traditional banh mi toppings: cucumbers, mayo, carrots and daikon. My favorite of Ginsberg sandwiches thus far, though the roasted poblano and pimento cheese is fantastic.
If I was going to knock a sandwich in the early going, it would have to be the meatball hero. The staff, after double-checking with the kitchen, informed us the meatballs were a mixture of pork and beef, no veal. My second issue is with the kitchen’s heavy-handed use of fennel, which masks the magnificence that is truly meatball flavor — making it taste more like sausage than anything else.
Still in the restaurant’s opening week, I think I can manage to forgive one less than exceptional sandwich.
Bocado shows great promise in the early going, and is a fabulous addition to the blossoming Westside.
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