Ten days ago Decatur Metro first reported the brown paper covering the windows of the former Cakes & Ale space that revealed the name (and Twitter handle) of its new tenant: Pinewood. And last night Brad Kaplan tweeted that Julia LeRoy will be consulting chef.
Here’s some more info: Its full name is Pinewood Tippling Room, so expect as much emphasis on drink as on food. T. Fable Jeon, who has worked as several bars around town and was most recently associated with the Lawrence, will head the gastropub’s bar program. And LeRoy will be devising a list of updated Southern classics, including a riff on fried bologna sandwiches. Still no exact timing on the opening (is there ever, really?), but expect a launch late spring. Take a gander at the full press release below. H/T to Ms. Besha Rodell for the info…
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The Pinewood Offers a New Take on Southern Food and Drink
Decatur, Ga.—Opening this spring, The Pinewood Tippling Room will serve inventive, Southern-inflected victuals and potables in a comfortable, warm atmosphere. Part cocktail bar, part Deep South diner, The Pinewood aims to take the pretension out of the craft bar/gastropub model with a creative, yet relaxed approach to food and drink.
Hungry tipplers can choose from a small-plate menu of Consulting Chef Julia LeRoy’s reinterpreted Southern classics like fried green tomatoes, venison, sweet potatoes, and a re-imagined fried bologna sandwich. The Pinewood’s beverage menu will include principal barkeep T. Fable Jeon’s ambitious cocktails, made with freshly squeezed juices and house-made syrups, tinctures, infusions and sodas.
The Pinewood Tippling Room aims to distinguish itself from more typical craft bars, with its charming décor, and sincere, earnest service. Rooted in a revivalist spirit that draws upon the traditions and manners of the South, “We’ll offer the same creativity and attention to detail that you’d find in an upscale cocktail bar or restaurant, but without the artifice,” Jeon said. “We’re a neighborhood place”.
Located at 254 West Ponce de Leon Avenue in the former Cakes and Ale building, The Pinewood will be open six days a week for lunch and dinner.
ABOUT THE PINEWOOD TIPPLING ROOM
The Pinewood Tippling Room delivers extraordinary cocktails, inventive regional fare, and gracious service in downtown Decatur, Georgia. The Pinewood’s revivalist spirit embraces the warmest traditions of southern hospitality, inspiring a gathering place that’s elegant and refined, yet comfortable and neighborly.
THE PINEWOOD TEAM
New York-born and Southern-raised, Principal Barkeep T. Fable Jeon is an accomplished craft bartender whose resume includes prominent establishments and numerous conceptual events. In September 2011 Fable was named one of Beverage Media Network’s “10 Mixologists to Watch.”
Trained at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, Consulting Chef Julia LeRoy has drawn accolades for her work in the Atlanta area. According to a 2009 Atlanta Magazine article, “She may be the most talented young Atlanta chef whose name you haven’t heard yet.”
Photograph by Lizzy Johnston, courtesy of Julia LeRoy’s Facebook page
