Community Smith

So, looks like this cursed location has a new toy to play with... The previous restos (Briza and Pacci) were high on style and low on substance. Shit, who am I kidding, Pacci had the ugliest decor inside. They disappeared quietly into the night without anyone even noticing. There were no missing photos of dishes posted on the side of a milk carton and I didn't get any annoying Amber alerts on my phone throughout the night.
Now, they have overhauled the entire space with a fresh and clean interior that's a mix of NY chic and Hannibal style. There is a ton of subway tile up in this piece which I like a lot. Then there's this cage like contraption in the middle that would make Dr. Lecter proud. Where be the Chianti at? Seriously, who drinks that shit anymore, time to sample some grub...

Crispy Squid, smoked paprika, tahini, green olive. The ubiquitous "calamari" dish found at low end chains to high end destination spots alike... But make no mistake this isn't calamari, it's the cheaper squid. Some places kill it with the use of ass kicking exotic spices and others serve it with your run of the mill jar marinara sauce. This version had more breading than the actual taste and texture of the squid. It was fried nicely but the lack of cephalopods really disappointed... I guess if you closed your eyes and eat a green olive right after you could trick your brain into thinking it was a squidbilly. The two sauces were neither visually appetizing nor tasty...But I kept dipping the lil critters in them every time like muscly arm memory. Goes to show y'all that I ain't equipped to think for myself.

Chicken Wing Confit, black garlic sweet & sour. I am a sucka for wing confit, hell, I'm a sucka for any type of cheekan. The flesh came off the bone with ease, a sure sign of confit done right. The sweet and sour sauce was acceptable, it had a small vinegary finish which I found interesting yet weird at the same time. Keep them drinks coming, things are tasting better.

Wild Mushroom, bone marrow, scallion. Great idea, ok execution. As you can see it's watery, it's not a shroom stew is it? The shrooms were nice and plenty but the watery concoction diluted the bone marrow so much that you can barely taste a hint of it. A couple scraps of bread is not enough for this soup.

Oxtail Toast, gouda, piri piri. This was pretty tasty. Oxtail has gotten so expensive in the markets now since everyone is on the oxtail train... Now, it costs me like triple to make a decent pho broth, so I have stopped making them at home and just goto a pho joint for it now. Thanks fuckers. But this dish had a good amount of shredded tail meat there to even share with a few peeps.

Braised Pork Shoulder, tomato, fennel & basil. Thoughtful idea but this just came out really boring. I mean even the basil leaves were just cut in half and tossed on there like someone throwing a snot rag out of a window. The pork shoulder was fork tender but the watery tomato juice was just weak and uncanny... Wait, it coulda been from a can.

Pan Roasted Monkfish, smoked bacon, turnip, lemon & chive. Don't get tricked by the turnips for taters! You'll be like WTF kinda spud is this?! I love monkfish, it's called the poor man's lobster.. Yeah, maybe back in 1985 when this fish was used for chum. But the prices of this hideous fish has gone up and up. So, why on god's green earth would you cut this beautiful piece of fish into mismatched shapes and sauteed? Look at it, it's just a fugly ass plating only a mother could love. The fish came out over cooked and rubbery. The idea for a great dish is there, just poorly thought out and executed.

Roasted Lamb Shoulder, toasted coriander, strained yogurt, feta. People think lamb is gamey, I think those people need to be hunted down like wild game. Lamb shoulder is good eatin'... The color was bright but this kinda cut usually contain a good amount of cartilage and needs to be roasted for a good bit for the cartilage to melt. There's no way you can cook a piece of any shoulder mid rare-ish and not be chewy from the cartilage and connective tissue... Unless he developed a new technique. I'm not yet sold on this.

Beef Bavette, herb salsa, queso, cilantro. Asking them for a temp on this was like pulling teeth. But they pulled it off and got me some pink in the stink. I love how restos these days are using the fancy word "bavette" like it's a real cut of meat. It's basically unwanted flap meat... I know a few girls who suffers from this. But anyhoo, this wasn't half bad.. Not a difficult feat but appreciated nonetheless.

Porchetta, slow cooked pork belly, sweet pepper relish. I love me some porchetta. What came out I don't... It almost reminded me of something like a Puerto Rican chuleta can can but not as good. If this belly was slow cooked, most of the fat woulda been rendered off. It was crispy and had nice char spots but it was mostly fat. Another idea that coulda been good but sometimes sticking with the classic porchetta is not a bad thing, just add your personal style to it.

Turnip Greens, chicken fat, bird chili, panela. I see bird chili, I'm already drooling to get some sweet heat from something tonight. Too bad this wasn't it. I mean this was not spicy in the least. It's ok, though, I'm always prepared for disappointment kinda like my entire life's path.

Rosemary Elote, roasted corn, pepper aioli, parmesan. Everyone loves a good tasty elote. But we know you ain't gonna be eating this carnival street food with your hands since it's not on the cob. I just don't see the markings of a true elote, the kernels do not have the signs of being sliced off the cob. They are too whole as if were from a can. It wasn't a bad side dish, just not as expected.

Bulger Salad, cucumber, heirloom tomato, lemon & parsley. It's basically a couscous but this salad form was a let down. It looks just so amateurly home cookish.

Braised Carrots, brown butter streusel. Carrots were well prepared and executed, the streusel would be better off replaced by fried shallots or garlic with a standard brown butter sauce. And it needed more seasoning.

Old Fashioned. I was baffled when this came out in a Collins glass with a handful of chipped ice. What were they thinking? They said they could pour it into another glass but I told them forget it, I drink fast enough that it wouldn't even matter. Pine cones go in here, party liquors comes out here.

The interior space is worthy of a destination spot, the menu and execution needs to play catch up. The service was great as expected from a place of this perceived caliber. Most of the mains that came out seemed sloppy and lacked the finishing touches. I know Micah can cook, I know this from his previous places... But he needs to keep an eye on what's coming out. So, in the meantime I'll be keeping an eye on this joint because it totally has the potential to kick ass... Maybe I'll sneak in one day for the burger and see what's up. I hope the curse doesn't put them to bed in a dirt nap.

866 W. Peachtree St.
Atlanta, GA 30308
678-412-2402
http://communitysmithatl.com/