Holeman and Finch (2277 Peachtree Road Suite B Atlanta, GA 30309)
My first impression wasn’t good. The place is REALLY hard to find and then when you do find it, its overcrowded and the wait staff is really too busy to help you if you don’t already know what’s going on. I got there at 9:45 and there were already 40 people ahead of me to get a burger…THE burger. There are only 24 burgers made and served every night. Apparently you must get there an hour ahead to get on the list. So…I didn’t get a burger…or a seat. I ended up squeezing into a spot in the bar area. And I mean squeezing, the place was shoulder to shoulder, I felt like I was in a nightclub. So first I ordered a Martini, which the bartender suggested the vodka, apparently they only serve “micro-brews” so they didn’t have Cirac or Goose, but they did have that god awful blue ice potato vodka crap, which is funny since you can buy it in any grocery store (not exactly a micro-brew)…but whatever…The martini was actually pretty good, a little on the small side, but pretty strong (its hard to make a weak martini though) and I ordered the sweetbreads and the bone marrow (first for both) it took about 25 minutes to get my order, but I actually got served before many of the burger people. I got the sweetbreads first, which I had to say were pretty good. Being a sweetbreads novice it’s hard to compare it to anything. I liked the flavor but I have a feeling that there are better sweetbreads out there. They were a bit chewier than I would have liked, although I had expected SOME chewiness. The marrow was next. OMG, the marrow. The food I will dream about for the rest of my life. .When they first sat it in front of me, my first thought was “wow that’s a lot of bread” seems way too much for the amount of marrow. But I hadn’t expected how rich the marrow would be, it actually ended up being just enough to sop up the oily goodness that is bone marrow. It a food that’s very hard to describe without giving someone the wrong impression. It’s kinda like the fatty, greasy, soft bits of a steak, but without the steak….with a salty, crusty topping sprinkled on top. You know that feeling you get when you are eating cotton candy, or something else that’s just pure sugar, and you think, “god this is good, I may go into a coma though” that’s what this is like, but with salt and grease instead of sugar. Thankfully I had prepared for my dinner by only eating veggies all day (oatmeal for breakfast and tomato soup and broccoli for lunch) otherwise I think I might have keeled over right there. There were many other oddities that I wanted to try from the menu but you can only safely take in so may calories in one day. So I ended the night with the bacon, caramel popcorn. It was like the salty sweet cherry on my proverbial Sunday. The perfect ending to such a meal. Fresh popcorn coated with caramel, with little crunchy bits of bacon throughout, like the peanuts in cracker jacks, but better….As I walked pass the Beamers and Bentleys being valet outside, to the bus stop across the street, I realized it wasn’t so bad that I didn’t get a burger, I’m actually kinda glad I didn’t. I would’ve missed out on the experience I had. And I decide I will most defiantly be back, for a burger, but also to try the veal hearts and to satisfy my curiosity and find out what a crunchy gentleman is, and if it tastes good…