Cabbage Town

For those who are new to the Atlanta area, downtown Cabbagetown is located on a little side street right off of Boulevard SE where traffic can hit it's peak -- all day long.
It's a tiny street tucked behind a high scale mexican restaurant and has a small town feel in the big city There are outdoor tables all year round all the way up the street, and a cute corner store that almost shut down a few years back. Thankfully though, it is still up and running and selling favorites from King of Pops and amazing sandwiches.

This post isn't just about Cabbagetown as a whole, but rather one of my favorite restaurants in the tiny area. Carroll Street Cafe. This Cafe has a different gallary every month or so of local artists work displayed around the dining room. There are two large dining areas, one containing an adult bar and one containing a coffee bar. Both dining rooms are fronted with floor to ceiling windows and doors that open during the comfortable months in Atlanta. There is a beuatiful mural of a canal in Venice with the daily specials and weekly goings on in the cafe.




Carroll Street specializes in tapas and brunch. They offer a tapa special almost every night and I've had the priveledge of sampling many of them. The only one that offended me in the slightest was the Portabello Caprese. While I'm a huge fan of all things tomato, mushroom and cheese driven, the dish was swimming in balsamic vinagrette and it overpowered the dish. I don't think that this one dish will be the downfall of this lovely cafe, but it should definitely be reimagined.

Their brunch menu is far more appealing to me. There are many options of eggs benedict, a breakfast chili that could cure even the worst hangover, and an almond covered brie that melts in your mouth the second you take a bite. Mind you, I've only named three things off of their extensive list. Their bunch menu also consists of alcoholic beverages and coffee from the two bars. If you are like myself, and love that Starbucks has bastardised coffee all the way to the core, then the Cabbagechino is for you. It's a frothly lovely medley that tastes like heaven in a cup that is swimming in brown sugar. If you think that coffee is best at its most pure, then the Red Eye is probably for you. It's about as coffee as coffee can get.

Their adult beverages leave a bit to be desired unless you're sticking to wine or beer. Their bloody mary's are far from the best in Atlanta but they are still acceptable, and the mimosas are more orange juice than champagne - as a 20 something looking for a good brunch buzz, that's highly unacceptable.

Thought this quaint cafe doesn't meet every expectation that I have of a brunch spot in Atlanta, it's atmosphere and energy are more than enough to make up for any small indiscresion. I will continue to keep going here if not for the Cabbagechino, then for the chili.