Omnivore Atlanta

Lovers of gourmet food and alcohol rejoice! That quaint store where you could buy luxurious-sounding grub — but not wine — may soon be able to legally stock booze.

Yesterday, the Atlanta City Council passed legislation that would allow such gourmet food shops as the Cabbagetown Market and the Mercantile on DeKalb Avenue to stock beer, wine and malt beverages. The legislation, which essentially now gives those and similar stores a legal classification in the city’s code, was penned by Councilmember Natalyn Archibong and passed 8-2. Such stores won’t be allowed to sell lotto tickets or “other games of chance,” gasoline or tobacco. They also can’t operate drive-thru windows or cash checks. But bring on the booze!

If she chooses, Mayor Shirley Franklin has eight days to veto the bill.

To peruse Archibong’s bill, laden with good ole fashioned legalese and multiple uses of “whereas,” click here. Keep in mind that an amendment — supposedly a minor tweak — was added to the legislation. I’m waiting on Archibong’s staff to return a call and clarify what in entails.

UPDATE: Here’s the “specialty food store” legislation as passed in Monday’s council meeting. I received some emails from folks who said they had problems opening the file I posted yesterday. If this one fails to open, shoot me an email and I’ll send it to you directly.

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I received this informative e-mail from Lisa Hanson, co-owner with Maria Locke, of Cabbagetown Market and Little’s Grill. I blogged about the super-cool gourmet shop last week.

“Thanks for the shout-out in the CL blog. We definitely a spike in Hungarian salami sandwiches this week (for those intrepid souls who managed to navigate Carroll Street)!

“As an fyi: I go to pick up produce and eggs on Thursday mornings and again on Saturdays, so that is when when we have the biggest selection of fruits and vegetables. I post what we have on the Cabbagetown and Reynoldstown message boards and will start doing the same on our web page (www.cabbagetownmarket.com). We also have a stand at the East Atlanta Farmer’s Market on Thursdays, 4-8 p.m., selling mainly our tapenades, pestos, hummus, etc. It is shaping up into quite a nice, lively market.

“We also take orders for specialty items including organic chickens, pork and lamb as well as burrata and bufala mozzarella. We’re hoping we can get to the point where we can carry those items on a full-time basis, perhaps when we get our beer and wine license.”

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When I was a kid, the small neighborhood market was a fixture. In my hometown of Bryn Athyn, Pa., there was Soneson’s, where you could get a sandwich and buy produce and candy (then go upstairs to a bar where I played darts and drank soda, while my father drank beer with my aunts and uncles). During our summers at Cherry Grove Beach, S.C., there was Boulineau’s, where I used to deposit my pool of fake vomit on the checkout counter. Mrs. Boulineau would pretend she was horrified, no matter how often I did it.

The closest thing I’ve seen to such places now is the relatively new Cabbagetown Market and Little’s Grill (198 Carroll St., 404-221-9186). I say “relatively new” because the place was operated for 80 years by the same family. Now, it’s under new ownership and has turned into a kind of gourmet convenience market. It’s great that you can pop in here for organic produce or a single lightbulb (as someone did during my visit today), but the best feature is the grill. Today I had a sandwich of Hungarian salami on a baguette with radishes. There are other sandwiches, including burgers and Patak hot dogs, along with prosciutto.

The owners have created a wonderfully welcoming ambiance. I’ll be writing about it in a few weeks in the paper, but you should check it out now. Warning: Hours are kind of irregular, so call ahead. Warning 2: The parking on Carroll Street is pretty much a nightmare, as I mentioned in an earlier post about Carroll Street Cafe. You may have to walk a block, but don’t worry. You will find a space.

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