Oral Pleasures
In these absurd and horrifying times, I sometimes feel a little silly writing about food. In a previous life, working as managing editor for a magazine in Chiang Mai, Thailand, I spent most of my ink on human rights abuses, religious hypocrisy and vanishing indigenous cultures. I wrote about food, too, but it was always a separate, secondary interest. When I moved back to the states — just a few days before Trump announced his candidacy for president (nobody’s ever accused me of great timing) — and eventually nabbed the food editor gig at Creative Loafing, I was thrilled at the opportunity yet hesitant to box myself in. And as I watched the darkest parts of our national ethos advance with more and more impunity, my hesitancy remained. Neo-Nazis are marching the streets, for chrissakes. Who cares about the consistency of one’s crème brulée?
What I’ve learned over this past year, however, is that food can be political. Rather than a box, it’s an entry point. After all, everybody eats. Just ask the poor shmuck responsible for serving our tangerine fuckwad-in-chief’s well-done steak with ketchup every day.
With this notion in mind, we at CL have tried to use food as a lens to explore local issues like gentrification, homelessness and refugee rights. The 2017 edition of Oral Pleasures, positioned within this year’s overall theme of Evolution/Revolution, recognizes those within our culinary community who do the same.
Atlanta is a city of revolutionaries. We can and will fight the powers that be. We can and will evolve. Now, let’s eat.
— Hilary Cadigan, CL Food Editor
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Best Soul Food BOA Award Winner
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Best Vegetarian/Vegan BOA Award Winner
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Best Barbecue BOA Award Winner
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Best Burrito BOA Award Winner
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Best Hamburger BOA Award Winner
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Best French Fries BOA Award Winner
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Best Veggie Burger BOA Award Winner
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Best mixologist BOA Award Winner
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Best Farmer’s Market BOA Award Winner
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Best Biscuits BOA Award Winner
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Best Chef BOA Award Winner
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Best Dinner Party Secret Weapon BOA Award Winner
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Best Chef BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Critics Pick
Root to leaf to medal: After five consecutive years of nominations for one of the restaurant industry’s highest honors, Miller Union’s STEVEN SATTERFIELD was finally named Best Chef: Southeast of 2017 by the James Beard Foundation. In a ceremony last spring in Chicago, fellow titleholder Anne Quatrano placed the coveted and well-deserved medal around Satterfield’s neck. And collectively, we in Atlanta cheered because Satterfield has long been a dedicated champion of both our local farmers and our bellies, churning out seasonal, veggie-focused food (not to mention an impeccably curated wine list, which was also nominated this year) at eight-year-old Atlanta gem Miller Union. You earned it, chef. Miller Union, 999 Brady Ave. N.W. 678-733-8550. www.millerunion.com.
photo by: Joeff Davis
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Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Critics Pick
Best Restaurant BOA Award Winner
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Best Restaurant for Late-Night Dining BOA Award Winner
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Best Coffee House/Coffeeshop BOA Award Winner
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Best Steaks BOA Award Winner
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Best Georgia Beer Development BOA Award Winner
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Best Atlanta Beer/Local Brew BOA Award Winner
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Best New Restaurant BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Critics Pick
In burgeoning Chamblee, HOPSTIX brewer and owner Andy Tan has blessed us with a concept both inventive and unprecedented. His Asian fusion brewpub, with its wood-laced, rustic chic interior, boasts a tap list of Georgia craft breweries alongside an array of consistently solid IPAs, wheat beers, porters and pilsners that Tan brews onsite. But it’s the food that separates Hopstix from the rest of Atlanta’s many breweries, thanks to executive chef Dony Raymond. An exposed kitchen showcases professionally garbed cooks filleting five-foot-long cuts of tuna, robata-grilling numerous satay variations, plating fried rice topped with Alaskan king crab and rolling fresh sushi to pair with the brewpub’s impressive array of suds. 3404 Pierce Drive N.E., Chamblee. 678-888-2306. www.hopstixbrewing.com.
photo by: Joeff Davis
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Best Gas Station Snack BOA Award Winner
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Best Local Food Advocate BOA Award Winner
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Best New Restaurant BOA Award Winner
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Best Restaurant Design BOA Award Winner
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Best Restaurant to Bring the Kids BOA Award Winner
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Best Beer Festival BOA Award Winner
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Best Pop Up Food Event BOA Award Winner
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Best Patio Dining BOA Award Winner
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Best Cheap Eats BOA Award Winner
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Best Wait Staff BOA Award Winner
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Best Chinese BOA Award Winner
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Best Cuban BOA Award Winner
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Best Ethiopian BOA Award Winner
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Best French BOA Award Winner
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Best Italian BOA Award Winner
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Best Korean BOA Award Winner
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Best Middle Eastern BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Soul Food BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Vegetarian/Vegan BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Barbecue BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Burrito BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Hamburger BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best French Fries BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Veggie Burger BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best mixologist BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Farmer’s Market BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
Best Biscuits BOA Award Winner
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2017 » Oral Pleasures » Readers Pick
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