Omnivore Atlanta

First sign of the times: Cheap food. I can’t think of a better bargain in Midtown than a meal at Eats on Ponce de Leon Avenue. Here’s half a chicken roasted with jerk seasonings, an ear of fresh corn, a bowl of lima beans and some collards — for just under $10. And it all tastes good

Second sign of the times: This warning is affixed to the door of Eats.

Third sign of the times: Ansley Mall is doomed to eventual redevelopment but the Piccadilly Cafeteria there is closing this week or next, I’m told. I wonder where the area’s church groups will go for dinner now. The parade of hats and suits in colors unknown to nature has long been a favorite Sunday spectacle there.

(Photos by Cliff Bostock)

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Eating. It’s all in a day’s work. My partner Wayne and I call days when we don’t have to eat somewhere new for a review “freedom from food days.” Saturday was such a day. Indeed, my diet that day ranged from healthy fare to junk food.

For lunch, I stopped at Dynamic Dish for a sandwich — remarkable, as always — but I found myself caught up in owner David Sweeney’s festive displays, like the persimmons in the photo above, the red Bartlett pears, and the herbs and produce on the counter behind the register.

Granted, the persimmons are sharing space with a poinsettia and some green candles, but the place is otherwise mercifully free of the usual Christmas kitsch. It’s unusual to find a chef/owner who projects such personal style. Most these days are trying to out-Johnson Studio one another, which usually means a frenetic interior. Dynamic Dish is as restful to the eye as its food is comforting.

By the way, Dynamic Dish is vending beautiful fruit baskets for Christmas gift-giving. They’re made with fruit that actually tastes good.

For dinner Saturday night, we headed to Eats on Ponce de Leon. Both of us ordered the jerk chicken, a delicious bargain. The vegetables here are always good, too. I ordered corn on the cob, lima beans and collards. Wayne ordered broccoli, my least favorite vegetable on earth. Broccoli seems to be everywhere these days. It’s just about impossible to order a special at Grant Central without it arriving with a pile of the stuff dominating the plate.

At dinner, I told Wayne that someone had pulled me aside at the gym earlier Saturday to tell me, “You seem to have led a very strange life.” I told Wayne I couldn’t protest because, for example, here I was at Eats with my partner, who had brought along the Bible to read while he ate jerk chicken and swilled a PBR.

This is not an unusual occurrence. I believe he is engaged in an ongoing debate with fundamentalists on some wacky site on the Internets. “I believe Jesus was gay,” he said. “I am combing the Bible for evidence.”

After dinner, I couldn’t help stopping at Zesto, up the road, to order a toffee-coffee arctic swirl — soft-serve ice cream blended with something like Heath bars and coffee syrup. Very addictive.

Although Ponce de Leon has been undergoing steady gentrification, Zesto is almost always filled with characters — urban ones and people visiting from the sticks. Many were ordering ice cream cones dipped in chocolate and rolled in nuts. Then they’d invert the cone in a cup to eat with a spoon. What’s that all about? I’d never seen it before, but Wayne, who continued to read the Bible and resist Satan’s menu of ice cream novelties, said it’s commonplace.

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Eating cheap and well is not difficult in our city. Here are some recent spots I’ve hit. Some pictures are better than others, but you’ll get a reasonable impression.

First up is Via Elisa (1750 Howell Mill Road, 404-605-0668), which sells the best pasta in our city. You can buy it directly from Elisa Gambino’s shop or at Whole Foods — or you can go to restaurants like Shaun’s to taste it. Although you can’t eat her pasta on the premises, Elisa (shown here) is now selling panini at lunchtime, but call ahead to make sure she hasn’t run out.

There is also a counter of excellent cheeses in the shop, along with Elisa’s sauces and various gourmet items. Do not leave without some ravioli.

I have never been to Nuevo Laredo Cantina (1495 Chattahoochee Ave., 404-352-9009) when I didn’t have to wait for a table. The wildly popular spot, decorated with enough kitsch to stock the inventory of a Tijuana souvenir shop, serves fantastic Mexican/border cuisine.

I lunched there recently with my friend Gregg, who ordered lobster tacos, while I feasted on the chicken mole, the city’s best. Here’s a picture of the bar. The place was so crowded I couldn’t get a good shot inside the main dining room. Even Our Lady of Guadalupe would not answer my prayers for a decent camera angle.

A favorite dirt-cheap restaurant is Eats (600 Ponce de Leon Ave.,404-888-9149). There are two features here — pasta and chicken. (The pasta bar is shown here.)

My favorite, though, is the jerk chicken with collards and corn on the cob. The lima beans aren’t bad, either. If the jerk seasonings are too much for your delicate mouth, you can order the chicken with lemon-pepper seasonings.

Finally, there’s Zocalo (465 Boulevard, 404-635-9930). Although there are full-service restaurants of the same name in Midtown and Decatur, the Grant Park location is a taqueria. In this (backlit) picture, you see the al pastor rotisserie and you should definitely order at least a taco made with the succulent pork flavored with pineapple and various spices.

I usually order “la gringa,” al pastor meat between two flour tortillas, almost like a quesadilla. My favorite taco is the one made with strips of chile relleno.

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