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ATL LIFE MAGAZINE Spring 2021 | Issue 3 | Volume 1

-The Dining IssueInterviews with local Owners & Exec. Chefs Discover Loal Eats in Atlanta

ATLLifeMag.com

“Spring Forward” is a term that over the years I’ve come to having a deeper understanding of. The time changes ahead so we lose an hour of sleep at night- but we gain more sunlight during the day. Spring is a time of rejuvenation and renewal. The prettiest flowers bloom in this season, the weather is nicer , especially for outdoor activities. Spring is one of my favorite times of the year. As we move through this pandemic, we are seeing glimmers of light at the end of the tunnel - as it looks to be a little closer within reach. Watching the world change all around us daily, I can’t help but feel a sense of refreshment and renewal. We all are continuing to find our new normal, so don’t forget to give yourself a little grace and some flowers because you’re doing an amazing job at this thing called life. For myself, I know that my new normal will be nothing like what my old normal was... and for that I’m grateful. We continue to work within our communities and markets, speaking to local shop owners, CEO’s, new business owners, executives and partners to get their thoughts and opinions on the state of their businesses and their hopes for the future. Their stories are amazing and the hard work that they put into their crafts is inspiring to say the least. It gives me hope... hope for our now and hope for our future that we all will come out better, stronger, smarter and more resilient

Teia Hill Publisher ATL | Miami | LA Life Magazines

CONTENTS [ What's Inside ] www.ATLLifeMag.com Pg 2 Publisher's Note Pg 4 Executive Chef Brandon ChavannesKimpton Sylvan Hotel-Willow Bar, The Betty, St. Julep Pg 8 Bally Sports Replaces Fox Sports Logo Pg 9 On the West Coast: Catalina Island Re-opens to Leisure Travel Pg 11 The City of East Point Honors Antwan "Big Boi" Patton of Outkast with Global Icon Award For Advertising Inquiries, Content, Subscriptions or Story Submission Publisher@ATLLifeMag.com | 770-940-0606

Pg 16 King + Duke- An Atlanta staple eatery Pg 18 Zoo Atlanta- So much fun! Pg 22 Marcel Atlanta- dubbed Atlanta's "Sexiest" Restaurant

Pg 26 THANK YOU to our sources and partners Pg 30 Debunking Colorectal Cancer By: Dr. Kevin E. Woods, MD. for Cancer Treatment Center of Atlanta

Executive Chef Brandon Chavannes I got a chance to speak with Chef Brandon- the Executive Chef of The Betty, Willow Bar, and St. Julep, at The Kimpton Sylvan Hotel in Atlanta. It was a great conversation that left me literally hungry for more!! Here’s what Chef Brandon and I spoke about:

What are your goals as Executive Chef of The Betty? I have many goals for this restaurant, but I’d say the biggest one is to establish a culture that fosters more chefs and more restaurant professionals. We want this property to be a gateway for anybody who’s passionate about the hospitality industry. We want to create a space that is special and unique, one that provides opportunities for our team to take their passions and run with them, continuing to push their craft forward. How did you become the Executive Chef of The Betty, St. Julep, and Willow Bar? My first real job was working in a sandwich shop in Dunwoody, Ga. It was a high school job and I didn’t take it too seriously, but it was there that I had my first glimpse into how much I enjoyed cooking. I went to Georgia Southern for college and started working in restaurants to pay my bills. I realized that I wanted to keep cooking and eventually moved to New York, working my way into better and better kitchens. I was a private chef for a while and got to travel the world; I went to Spain a few times, and it sealed the deal for me. I was tasting shellfish straight from the Mediterranean Sea, and it was a really inspiring time in my life. I came back to New York and got a job running the kitchen at a restaurant in the Meatpacking District before moving back to Atlanta for family reasons in 2011. That’s when I landed with Fifth Group Restaurants. I worked with them for a few years before transitioning over to Ford Fry’s restaurant group, Rocket Farms, where I opened Marcel as a sous chef. I eventually became Chef de Cuisine at King and Duke and then served as Executive Chef at St. Cecilia before being offered the opportunity to open The Betty, St. Julep, and Willow Bar at the Sylvan in 2021.

Photo Courtesy : Andrew Thomas Lee

Where does your inspiration for the menu and dishes that you prepare come from? When we were first talking about the concept as I was going through the interview process, we discussed what was popular in the 1940s and 1950s -- that style of elegant dining room service. Immediately my thoughts went to creating a modern supper club. It maintains the theatre and nostalgia of “occasion” dining that those establishments had back then, but we’re providing the culinary technique and spirit programs that are more pertinent to today's palate and trends. In developing the menu, we talked over and over about how to make dishes like shrimp cocktail and beef stroganoff surprising and cool again. We decided to take it back to a sort of “golden age” of dining out and make The Betty’s dishes craveable and delicious, while also being exciting and approachable.

Walk me through what the daily menu would look like.. While we’ll definitely have staple dishes at The Betty – favorite items that will always remain on the menu – individual dishes will change pretty frequently. It won’t be a change of the whole menu at once, rather a dish here or there; I want people to be able to come to the restaurant and know that a dish they fell in love with will probably still be there -- but also, they can find a whole new experience waiting for them as well. We have a few different sections: seafood towers and pâté, pastas -- which will change frequently -- and our main course section. We also have a robust lineup of garniture and sides, all of which will be dictated by the seasons. Ultimately I think our guests could come three times a week and see small changes or come twice a year and see very big changes. Photo Courtesy: Andrew Thomas Lee

As the executive chef, is there a certain type of experience that you want the guest to have upon dining at The Betty? From the moment they get out of their car and entrust our valet with their keys, I want our guests to have absolutely no worries or cares in the world. I want them to come in and know that they’re going to be well taken care of at The Betty. We are all about the full experience and strive to go beyond food and beverage to make that experience unique. With everything going on in the world, I’d like our guests to just enjoy this beautiful space and forget about everything else – whether that’s work, what they need to do when you get home, or the email that they forgot to send. I am eager to see our guests take a few hours to relax, be in the moment, and let our team feed their soul and appetite.

Can you elaborate a bit on the team that you are looking to assemble in the kitchen? We are looking for people who want to be successful. Success looks different to everyone, so whether your goal is to be an excellent chef one day or to be able to go home and have free time with your kids, we want everybody to have the opportunity to achieve the kind of success they are looking for. A restaurant is an environment that can teach in a lot of ways, be it tangible skills or life lessons. Our hope is that as our teammates enter this environment, they learn how to challenge themselves to become better – both in and outside of work – and use that to create momentum to achieve whatever goals they might have. I challenge myself to be better every day and I want the same for my staff. We want to ultimately establish a reputation for giving people the choice of how they want to be successful. What’s your favorite dish to prepare?

On The Betty’s menu, my favorite dish to prepare would be the Magret Duck with Cherries. It involves a high level of technique and craft, and the result is really beautiful, delicious, refined, and finessed. My favorite dish to prepare for myself at home is “rundown,” which consists of a salted dry mackerel with coconut milk. It really makes me happy because it’s a dish filled with so many memories and good times.

Is there anything additional that you’d like my readers to know? Restaurants across the country need support more than ever, and the industry as a whole wants nothing more than an opportunity to serve our guests. A simple evening out, a to-go order, or a donation to organizations like The Giving Kitchen – these things all help to keep restaurant people going through this hard time. Our team at The Betty is so excited to be part of the neighborhood and we’re really looking forward to getting to know the members of our community!

MARCELATL.COM

Photos Credit: Andrew Thomas Lee