Rosebud Event Brainstorming: Playlist 2010

Even though we are knee-deep in the holiday season, we are making time to brainstorm some ideas for 2010 events at Rosebud. Here are a few of the things we have been discussing:

Mardi Gras Brunch - Get a taste of New Orleans and participate in Fat Tuesday celebration in Atlanta during a Saturday brunch in Feburary.

Billy Joel: Scenes from an Italian Restaurant - Tribute dinner exploring music and Italian food

The White Dinner: A Tribute to the Beatles - A dinner celebrating The White Album using ingredients like white asparagus, scallops, and cauliflower. We should be able to get a great cover band for this one!

A Tale of Two Breweries - Dinner with beer pairings from two local breweries, Sweetwater and Terrapin.

Jerry Week - Each year, our most popular dinner is our Jerry Garcia tribute dinner. This past year, we did it two night in a row! In 2010, we are thinking about holding a weeklong celebration for Ron's favorite musician, with a Jerry Brunch, lots of live music, food, and drink!

This is your opportunity to give us your input! What do you think of these ideas? Do you have any ideas for events in 2010?

Ketchup with a little character...

Now you can personalize ketchup bottles... We just got these in today!

Rock in the New Year, 70s Style!

Dress up in your best 70’s duds to party into 2010 at Rosebud! We will be serving a menu of popular dishes from the 70’s, as well as a limited menu of Rosebud favorites from 5:30 until 11:00 p.m. A DJ will start spinning at 11 p.m. to help us dance into the new year. There will be prizes (including gift certificates and a basket of Rosebud booze) for those who show up with the best 70’s style, so start getting your disco gear ready now!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Brunch

During brunch on Sunday, December 20th, get some extra use out of that sweater that grandma knitted for you! Each guest who wears an ugly Christmas sweater will receive a free split of champagne. The brighter and tackier the Christmas trees, snowmen, and reindeer, the better! Sequins, bells, and bows are encouraged. After 12:30 p.m. only.

Photo Credit: Freedom Moreno/Flickr

Thanksgiving Roundup

Thanksgiving was a busy day at Rosebud! Here is some of the preparation that went into making our holiday successful:

Ron smoked his turkeys on his custom-made smoker, Bertha.

He also smoked some of his hams, which were served with a Mexican Coke glaze and braised cherry chutney.

We served 32 turkeys, 9 hams, over 110 pounds of mashed potatoes, 40 pounds of pimento cheese, 80 pounds of brioche stuffing, and 240 pumpkin tarts. It took great deal of time, effort and food to stuff 320 guests during their Thanksgiving meal. We are extremely grateful to have fed so many people this year, but the relief from knowing that we are finished with Thanksgiving until next year is priceless!

The Last Waltz is Tomorrow!

Join us for some good foor, cold beer, and live covers of The Band's favorite songs! In lieu of turkey and ham, Rosebud will be serving up Kobe hamburgers, Kobe hotdogs, nachos and all of your other concession favorites tomorrow night. At 7 p.m. a local band will be playing in the restaurant, while we recreate The Last Waltz, the last concert that The Band ever played. After spending your holiday cooking and shopping, come relax at Rosebud!

We hope to see you tomorrow evening!

"Eat, Drink & Be Merry" Playlist Contest

As we are all know, Ron, our chef and owner, likes his music loud! His passion for music is apparent with pictures of Jerry Garcia, his favorite, hung throughout the restaurant. Usually Ron is the only person allowed to touch our iPod, but he has agreed to relinquish his control for the first time ever! Starting in December, we will feature a guest playlist the first Sunday brunch of every month. Contestants should submit two 80 minute CDs for Ron to judge by November 28th. The winner will be notified by December 2nd and that person will receive a $50 gift certificate to be used during brunch on Sunday, December 6th, while listening to their playlist. This month's theme is "Eat, Drink & Be Merry" - songs related to food and/or drink! Entries should be dropped off at Rosebud (1397 North Highland Ave. Atlanta, GA 30306).

See if you have what it takes and create a playlist for Rosebud!

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/grantdabassman/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Come get a Burger & a Beer!

Get your Burger & Beer on at Rosebud every Wednesday night for $14…Sink your teeth into a juicy blend of Riverview Farms Organic Ground Chuck and Organic Berkshire Pork…The burger is topped with a smoked bacon-cheddar spread and served on a soft bun from Alon’s bakery along with our housemade bread n’ butter pickles and choice of our fries or onion rings. Each week we will feature an interesting brew that is “somewhat off the beaten path.” This week Jason is unleashing Peak Organic Nut Brown Ale from his beer vault…Come early, last week were out by 8pm!

The New Monday Night Special Starts Today!

Starting tonight, Rosebud will no longer offer the Monday Night Mystery Meal. Due to increased demand and limited bar seating, we are offering a new Monday special available throughout the bar and the dining room! Every Monday, we will pick a new entree and serve it for only $10 between 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.! Tonight's $10 special is our Wild Georgia Shrimp & Grits with andouille sausage, sweet onions, San Marzano tomatoes & local grits. Leave work early and come have dinner at Rosebud! No split plates, please.

See you tonight!

It's time for the Taste of Morningside!

This Sunday, November 8th, we are participating in the Taste of Morningside in Sydney Marcus Park. Come get samples from Rosebud, as well as other neighborhood restaurants and look at what some of Atlanta's local artists have to offer! Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for kids (12 and under), cash or check only. Entrance and food is included in the ticket price. Alcohol is excluded, but will be available.

Look forward to seeing you there!

Last Chance to Enjoy a Monday Night Mystery Meal!

That's right, tonight is the last Monday Night Mystery Meal! We will be serving Buttermilk Fried Gulf Oysters with local Riverview Farms grits, Creole sausage gravy and a soft poached egg, and it is only $5! Come in tonight, and get it while you still can! Bar area only. No split plates, please.

There is good news! While this Monday night offer is ending, we are introducing a new offer starting next week. Due to increasing demand and limited bar seating, we are changing the Monday Night Mystery Meal to an early bird special available in the entire restaurant! From 5:30 p.m. until 7:00 p.m., Rosebud will offer a $10 entree every Monday night! Stay tuned for more information next Monday!

Hope to see you this evening!

Another Great Review!

This week, there is a great review of Rosebud from Creative Loafing's Besha Rodell. We are really pleased with what she had to say about us: "This is the kind of honest American food that too few home cooks still produce, and too few restaurateurs reproduce to fill the void." Check out the rest of the review!

Not only that, Meridith Ford Goldman's Top Five for Friday last week was a list of her Favorite Affordable Wine Lists, and we were on it!

Tonight's $5 Mystery Meal is...

I know you all have been anxiously waiting for tonight's Mystery Meal announcement: Spaghetti and Meatballs! The meatballs are made from all-natural beef from Riverview Farms, and the sauce is made with San Marzano tomatoes. Finish up your workday and head up to Rosebud for some spaghetti and meatballs! If you aren't in the mood for spaghetti, Rosebud is unleashing its new Monday Night Brunch menu this evening, with fresh, seasonal changes. Remember, if you are ordering the Monday Night Mystery Meal you must sit in the bar area. No split plates, please.

See you at the bar!

FALLing for Dinner at Rosebud

Tonight we are rolling out a new fall menu for dinner. As the months go by we often change dishes slightly to incorporate fresh, in-season produce and replace what has gone out-of-season, but three or four times a year we do a big refresh with lots of new dishes that truly exemplify the season.

You can check out the full menu online but I'll mention a few of my new favorites just to tempt you!

Jose Wang's meatballs with Carolina rice & soy-veal jus is an amazing appetizer as is our housemade mozzarella with cranberry-tomato chutney, sea salt & rosemary oil.

Our new chopped iceberg salad is totally unique with crumbled egg, local radish, crushed saltines and caper vinaigrette.

All our new entrees sound amazing but I'm most excited about Georges Bank filet of sole with Riverview Farm grits, golden beets, Georgia apples & caper vinaigrette. Eden Farms Berkshire pork chop with Mexican coke braised sweet potato soul stew sounds perfect for a chilly evening, and the duck risotto with roasted mushrooms, dried apricots and fresh sage is right up my alley.

For all you meat and potato lovers, our chargrilled ribeye with pimento cheese whipped potatoes and red wine braised mushrooms promises to leave you full and happy.

Of course, we also have some new fall desserts including brown butter and sea salt cookies and apple spice cake.

Hope you can make it in to check out our new menu this weekend. Next week we'll also have updated fall lunch and brunch menus.

This Little Piggy

As you can imagine, Chef Ron, the kitchen crew, and a couple friends have been hard at work the last few days prepping for tomorrow's big Eastern Carolina BBQ. There has been injecting, butchering, soaking, seasoning - the prep list seems to never end and Chef Ron is staying through the night tonight to keep the smoker, Bertha, going strong!

Make your reservation ASAP if you haven't already so we know to save some pork for ya!

Farewell to Via Elisa

As many of you have heard, Via Elisa is closing their doors and we, along with many other Atlanta restaurants, are so sad to lose our partner in pasta. For years, Via Elisa has supplied Rosebud (and Food 101 before that) with fresh pasta for our menu. In honor of Elisa and her delicious pasta, we will be hosting a Farewell to Pasta dinner on Sunday, October 25, at 6:30 p.m.

The dinner will offer family style Caesar salads, Via Elisa spaghetti & meatballs, garlic bread and Alon's Tiramisu. This will be a limited seating so reservations are required and can be made by calling 404-347-9747. Dinner is $25 per person (plus tax and gratuity).

Hope you are able to join us in a celebration of spaghetti!

Fall Soups From Ron

With all the cold, rainy weather we've been having lately it seems we can't make enough soup to warm everyone up. Luckily, Chef Ron is hosting a soup cooking demo at Salud Cooking School at the Whole Foods Market in Alpharetta on Tuesday (October 20) at 6:30 p.m. to demonstrate a few soup recipes that emphasize fresh, local ingredients and a taste of the south.

The menu includes our Morningside "chowda", Riverview Farms sausage gumbo, traditional chicken noodle, and a fall sweet potato soup. Class is $40 and includes tastes of all the soups Ron makes! You can reserve your spot in class by visiting www.wholefoodsmarket.com or call 770.442.3354.

Hope to see you there!

Pedals, Produce & Brunch at Rosebud!

Check out this awesome Farmers Market Tour put together by the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition, Slow Food Atlanta and Georgia Organics for this weekend. The tour takes you through the Morningside Market as one of many stops and is the perfect excuse to get some exercise, support our local farmers (the Peachtree Road Farmers Market is hosting a fundraising BBQ that same day for flooded farmers!) and maybe even squeeze in a quick brunch at Rosebud!

Ready to get your pedal on?

Back From The Streets

Last night's Street Foods dinner was a sell-out success. The restaurant was jam-packed with eager street foods fans ready to put Ron and Chappy's street cart knowledge to the test. Three hours and seven courses later, I think everyone will attest the dinner was a smashing success! The best part of the evening was that the proceeds from the dinner are all part of the week-long dine out we are hosting for the Georgia Flooded Farm Relief Fund. We are well on our way to raising $5,000 by Sunday. If you haven't made your reservations yet make sure you plan to come in this weekend to help us reach our goal. 15% of total sales from the week will be donated!

For more delicious images from last night, check out the beautiful photos from local photographer Jonathan Stancel!

Prepping For Street Foods Dinner

The kitchen has been working hard all week prepping for tomorrow night's tribute to Street Foods. During a quick shopping excursion for some not-so-staple ingredients Ron and Chappy stopped for an inspirational lunch somewhere along Buford Highway. Six Bahn Mis, two Cokes and $14 later Ron and Chappy were back in the kitchen perfecting their Ramen Noodle bowl. Tomorrow night promises to be delicious!

Bertha is Born

Today we finally got a look at the custom-made cast iron smoker that Ron will be christening on Saturday, October 21, during our first Eastern Carolina BBQ event. Be sure to come out and see what Bertha can do. $35 gets you a plate of 'que, plenty of sides and plenty of local brew from Sweetwater and Terrapin!

Dine Out: Bring In The Sunshine!

As most of you probably know, all this week we are hosting a dine out to raise funds for the Georgia Flooded Farms Relief Fund. Eat at Rosebud for brunch, lunch or dinner anytime between Monday, October 5 and Sunday, October 11, and 15% of the proceeds will be donated to the newly established fund.

Monday was our first day of the dine out and we've already raised $500 for the fund! Our goal is donate $5,000 to our flooded farmers and we need your help. Whether it is taking a client a lunch, grabbing a drink after work or date night Friday night, choose Rosebud and have your meal go towards a good cause!

See you at Rosebud!

Monday Night Goes Mexican

Tonight, we are pulling something out of the Mexican vault for our Monday Night Mystery Meal... Chef Ron started planning this dish last week and we've all been anxiously awaiting a taste test of tonight's Chilaquiles.

For those that have no idea what Chilaquiles are (like me) - Chilaquiles are a traditional dish often served for breakfast or lunch and thought to be a great hangover cure. Ron described the dish as an abstract Mexican lasagna and Wikipedia told me that is is basically tortillas that are stewed in a traditional sauce and often topped off with eggs or chicken. In our case, we'll be serving Chilaquiles topped with an over-easy egg and garnished with avocado and goat's milk feta cheese.

Come one, come all; just come early because the bar fills up quickly. Tonight, Chilaquiles are $5 in the bar area only for Monday Night's Mystery Meal. Please, no split plates.

Rosebud Gets Reviewed

Last night, our review from Meridith Ford at the AJC was posted online. We were thrilled to learn that we earned three stars from Meridith along with a glowing write-up about our re- branded concept.

The review starts out by saying, "Chef Ron Eyester’s solid cooking at his newly christened Rosebud – once known as Food 101 Morningside – is exactly like he is – totally approachable, down-to-earth, completely likable." What high praise! Check out the review online and be sure to pick up a copy of the paper when it comes out on Friday!

A Bowl of Goodness

What do you get when you combine Riverview Farms grits, smoked bacon, cherry tomatoes, a soft-poached egg and Tillamook cheddar cheese? You get Rosebud's Breakfast Bowl and tonight, if you eat at the bar, it is only $5!

Yep, it is Monday Night's Mystery Meal and from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the bar area you can enjoy our signature Breakfast Bowl for just $5. Remember to let your server know you are here for the Mystery Meal, and please no splitting plates.

See you tonight at the bar.

It's Monday... Again

I hope you haven't made plans for dinner yet because for tonight's Monday Night Mystery Meal we are dishing up seared Georgia trout with Riverview Farms grits and tomato-caper chow chow for $5 if you dine at the bar. This is an entree that is only served during Monday Night Brunch so this is a great chance to give it a try!

Remember, this is only served on Monday night (5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.) in the bar area; no split plates please.

Happy Monday!

Y'Ellen's Fave Five Bars

When she's not pouring a mean drink or dancing to Ron's rockin' playlists, our always-fun bartender Ellen loves hitting up her favorite watering holes. If you're planning on hitting up a few bars definitely give Ellen's picks a try:

Krog Bar-One of my favorite wine lists in the city. I especially love this place in the fall. Great place to chill on the patio with friends, a bottle of wine, and small plates of meats, and cheeses.

The Book House Pub-Great beer list with several flight options which allow you to have a little bit of everything. And I have to say the back patio is one of my favorite little hidden gems in the city. Then once you have had too many high gravity beers you can stumble next door to The Local for cheap bear, foose ball, tater tots and photobooth pictures. Its a good night. I promise.

Whiskey Blue-With spectacular views of the city, two roof top patios, this is the perfect setting for ladies night out. Grab your girls, throw on your cutest party dresses and get ready to dance the night away.

Noni's-I consider this place the "Cheers" for fellow restaurant industry people. Its one of those places where you can feel fight at home. Oh yeah, and if you stick around late enough, your probably in for a killer dance party.

Righteous Room- Because everyone has their local dive that will always hold a special place in their heart. And well, Righteous Room is mine.

Monday Night's Mystery Meal

What could it be? What will you get for only $5 tonight at the bar? How about a turkey burger complete with grilled pineapple, goat cheese and sambal mayo? Even better; it comes with a choice of fries or onion rings (my pick is definitely our delish onion rings!).

See you tonight - remember, this is in the bar area only so be sure to let Jeff know you are here for Monday Night's Mystery Meal!

Introducing The Angry Chef

Well as things as Rosebud continue to stabilize and we keep approaching a state of normality (if there is such a thing in a restaurant), the staff and I have had an opportunity this week to take a step back and see "where we've been thus far," and see "where we need to go". Actually, knowing "where to go" isn't nearly as challenging, as knowing "how to get there." Well there is no doubt that this week our journey took us down the social media highway. After much coaxing I set up a Facebook page, which I am quickly getting addicted to, and after some careful discussion, Meryl and I decided that it was time to get me tweeting. Well like everything else that we do, we wanted to approach this task with a certain level of creativity and humor. However, we also wanted to deliver a product of substance, thus keeping continuity with the very foundation of Rosebud. Well folks, we present to you, @theangrychef. I think at this point in my restaurant career, while I am still very much enamored by the food (which is obvious, considering my figure), I am also extremely intrigued by the people who patronize our restaurant. There is no doubt that a restaurant can certainly serve as a stage for the study of humanity. And boy, do those studies get interesting and downight funny (especially after a few glasses of wine)...And after all, if we cannot laugh at ourselves and at eachother, what do we have left in this world. While my exploration with Twitter will present funny ancedotes and interesting scenarios, it will by no means convey a sense of malice or resentment...To be honest, it will probably not even be angry (The Angry Chef, just sounds a little better than The Funny Chef). It will simply bring to life the very "punchlines" that make Rosebud tick. I look forward to chatting with you @theangrychef.

The Social Media Super Highway

Today Meryl and I had the pleasure of chatting with James Andrews of BeEverywhere. To say that James is a social media guru would be a grave under-statement. For just more than an hour James inspired us with his thought provoking commentary regarding social media and public relations. He even ran a live feed of the meeting for a few minutes on an application that he referred to as USTREAM. Apparently this is some type of social media app that has yet to be released to the general public. It is certainly amazing how the entire scope of public relations has shifted from one absolute, printed source to a community of thinkers eager to share and grow ideas. If you actually took just a moment to reflect on all the avenues of social media that exist and prosper, you would be astonished, if not completely overwhelmed. From a restaurant/food standpoint, social media has definitely moved from a "side dish" to "center of the plate" item. Obviously, as a restaurant owner this concept can seem downright scary...Just what I need, another variable that can and does have a huge impact on my business, in which I have no control. Meryl and I have certainly debated this particular issue time and time again...Leaving the meeting, I see my alternative as quite simple...I do the best to control the variables inside the four walls of this restaurant, while I continue to expand the parameters of a traditional chef/owner by feeding people with more than just good, sustainable foods...feed them with creative and sometimes humorous thoughts. Perhaps this can be just as comforting as a plate of fried chicken and mashed potatoes.

By The Way - You can now find me on Facebook (yes, I caved) and you can follow me on Twitter as "theangrychef"

Great Neighbors; Great Deals

Today, we are excited to kick-off a new partnership with our neighbor, clothing boutique Meringue. All this month show us your receipt from Meringue and receive $10 off of a $25 lunch purchase at Rosebud, or show Meringue your receipt from us and save 20% off your entire purchase. What a perfect excuse for a shopping and lunch date with friends!

Join us tonight at 5:30 p.m. to help kick-off our partnership with complimentary cocktails and a sneak peek at some new fall fashions.

Monday Night Mystery Meal

Well, thanks to our amazing Yelp friends, last week's initial Mystery Meal was a fun success! This week, if you dine at the bar between 5:30 and 10 p.m. tonight be sure to mention the Mystery Meal and enjoy our brioche French toast with mascarpone and orange-rosemary honey for $5.

Jeff Gives Us Five

How could we share our fave five restaurants in the city without sharing the top picks of one of our enigmatic bartenders?? When Jeff isn't busy dancing on bars or tasting wines for our creative wine list here is where he likes to eat out...

Repast - I love this concept. You can see both chefs' influence in the food and the space. Its unique and they have a great wine list.

Eats - Hey, nothin' beats cheap PBR and turkey meatloaf.

Holeman & Finch - Some of the best cocktails in Atlanta, they really have it down to a science.

Brickstore - Great beer selection and they have all the proper glasses for each one.

Taqueria de Sol - If you know me, you probably know that I LOVE tacos!

Monday Mystery Night Meal

So we know Mondays are tough; the weekend is over; you realize just how much work you didn't get done on the previous Friday; and there isn't enough coffee in the world to perk you up. Here at Rosebud we want to make Mondays a little bit brighter for you. We already do Monday Night Brunch because popular opinion confirms that pancakes for dinner can usually right any wrong. But now, starting TONIGHT, we are offering a Monday Mystery Meal.

Each and every Monday night, from 5:30 p.m. to 1o:00 p.m., if you dine in our bar area only, we will be offering one of our favorite dishes from the menu for a mere $5. That is right; $5.

Be sure to check our blog or our Facebook page each Monday to find out what the Mystery Meal is going to be. This week our Mystery Meal is The Big Nasty - our infamous breakfast sandwich with fried chicken, scrambled egg, cheddar cheese and bacon on a soft bun with a choice of side- for only $5.

So join us for dinner tonight at the bar and be sure to let your bartender know in advance that you want the Monday Mystery Meal. $5 and whole meal later, we are sure Mondays will start looking up!

Check us out next week to find out what the new Mystery Meal will be!

Lizzie's Fave Five

Ok, our fave five week is continuing with a list from Lizzie today. As a hard-working mom sometimes dining out options can be limited but Lizzie has a list of favorites that is great when she is out with Sid or just out with the girls.

Holy Taco - They have the best tacos and they are great with kids. Sid loves it there!

Chin Chin Chinese - the best garlic chicken ever! Perfect for dinner to-go when the thought of cooking makes me cringe.

P'cheen - Great neighborhood restaurant and bar. I love the DJ's and music.

Sotto Sotto - This is my go-to spot when I need I fun night out. I love sitting at the bar and chatting with the staff.

Anis - an oldie but a goodie with some of the best mussels in town.

Our Fave Five: Jason

Our Fave Five lists continues with a list from our manager Jason. Since he lives on the westside of town most of his favorites are pretty close to his house...

Muss & Turners - The Insult to Philly is my all-time favorite sandwich. Add some fries and their thyme aioli and I'm in heaven.

Nuevo Laredo - What's not to love about Mexican food? Their chicken mole tacos are my favorites.

Canoe - Gorgeous atmosphere and probably my favorite wine list in the city.

Surin - Whenever I can catch a break between shifts Surin is my go-to lunch spot. Thai Tuesdays anyone?

Brick Store Pub - In my opinion, they have the best burger in Atlanta; hands down.

Stay tuned for Lizzie's fave five tomorrow!

Our Fave Five

One of the top questions people in the restaurant industry get is, "What are your favorite restaurants?" Because we get this question so often and because it is so hard to answer we thought it would be fun to list some of our top five restaurants...

From Ron:
My list of restaurants is certainly not very ambitious; but very soulful and mostly kid friendly:

1. Martins (they are mostly in the burbs…They have the best biscuits ever, all homemade and their chicken biscuit was somewhat of an inspiration for the “Big Nasty” – plus this is the place that I started taking my son to when Mommy needed a break and Daddy had the day off from work.
2. The Varsity – Nothing beats a chili cheese dog and an orange drink…Plus the dogs are thin enough for my son to handle.
3. Rusans – I like going to the one on Piedmont after work – The sushi is pretty good, but the place is always rockin’ with drunken amateurs doing sake bombs and the sushi chefs are always smiling, yapping and will usually greet you with a small snack.
4. Georges (North Highland Avenue) – Great, Great burgers…I love sneaking over there between lunch and dinner…Plus they sell a small selection of candy at the cash register – I can always pick up a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup!
5. Caramba – My next door neighbor…They truly exemplify the personality of Morningside, they have embraced me since day one…They have great cheese dip and be sure to ask Momma & Mia for a “didley” when you go in!
6. Kevin Rathbun Steak – I love getting there late, eating with Erv at the bar…Snacking on oysters, a ribeye and their Vermont butter mashed potatoes.

Stay tuned for Meryl, Jeff, Jason and Lizzie's top five restaurants and be sure to share yours with us as well!

A Day In The Life

Do you ever fantasize about being a chef? I always imagined it like this - you come in, put on your apron, take stock of the amazing ingredients you have in the cooler and get to work coming up with brilliant dishes reflecting the honest flavors of each ingredient. You spend all day hovering over the stove stirring, tasting and seasoning. By the time dinner service rolls around you've whipped an amazing array of specials and guests and food critics alike swoon...

Well, not to crush anyone's dreams of chefdom but it is most definitely NOT like that. I mean, they do cook but they also have to deal with the daily strife that we all deal with in our jobs. Too many emails; employee drama and people who don't do what they say they are going to do. Case in point; our chef spent his morning firing off one frustrated email after another as certain vendors have been arriving late or without our full orders. So, what is it like to be a chef?

Hey XXX,

I really hate getting on you; but these ridiculous late deliveries are either going to stop or I will be taking my business elsewhere…And as you are well aware, I currently do enough business with a multitude of other vendors who carry all of the same products as XXX. I certainly appreciate the relationship that the two of us have developed; but the level of service that XXX is currently providing is unacceptable. Moreover, the balance of our business relationship is completely one sided. In an effort to get my Thursday delivery earlier, I compromised and sacrificed the luxury of another delivery day to make the situation more appealing and beneficial for XXX…I now put more money on one truck and yet I still get my deliveries whenever the truck feels like getting here, usually mid to late afternoon. Another fantastic part of my relationship with XXX is that instead of focusing on remedying my prolonged delivery problems, XXX opts to continually “bust my balls” on receiving payment…I am so tired of hearing that my account is being “red flagged” because I am few days past my current terms…I would urge you to send word to your XXX executives in their ivory towers that we are currently in a recession and that the past year’s turbulent financial times have not been kind to small business owners. XXX is honestly the only vendor who receives a check from me every week!! Many of my other vendors, some of them small business owners themselves, have afforded me latitude when I’ve needed it. Not XXX, instead, I am often made to feel like a criminal because my account is two or three days overdue. And I can certainly see XXX’s concern…The entire company would probably shut down if they weren’t able to collect my $800. How about this; instead of trying to arrange meetings for me to chat with people and food brokers whose product I would never even consider using or getting me down to a food show to see the latest jalapeno poppers and freeze-dried pre-cooked chemically laced sausages; try having some of the idiots who actually run XXX learn about the economies of scale pertaining to their customers and address the menacing problems that plague these customers each week. Moreover, perhaps XXX should consider shifting its balance of power from their “Nazi Like” credit department and focus more attention on their transportation department, which is seemingly run like a third world country.

Obviously you are going to forward this on to your bosses, who are probably eagerly awaiting the weekend and their Saturday T-times. Please do not have your bosses physically drop on me with their business cards (over the years I collected enough to wall paper a house) and complementary XXX portfolio with matching calculator and fountain pen. Instead see to it that my order next Thursday arrives no later than 10:30AM…I don’t care if a convoy of XXX managers have to bring the delivery themselves in their cars. If my delivery arrives @ 10:31, it will be shipped back along with a check reflecting the balance of my account.

How can you be expected to make amazing specials night after night if your ingredients don't even arrive at the restaurant until 3 or 4 p.m.???

***This is an actual email sent to one of our vendors. Obviously, we took out any names as we aren't looking to start a war with anyone; we just want our order when it is promised to us!

Jerry Has Left The Building

Well, we survived two nights of our Jerry Garcia Tribute Dinner. And, what a tribute it was - two nights of five courses paired with Grateful Dead songs, two nights of fantastic live music and two nights of Ron singing with the band... For those who had to miss, here is a snapshot of what went down. Definitely plan to be here next year as Ron has vowed to not only sing but also PLAY GUITAR with the band!

I Say Tomato; You Say Tomato

Last night, we hosted an incredible tomato cooking demo at The Cook's Warehouse in Midtown. Chef Ron showed the class six incredible recipes for using up all those gorgeous tomatoes you are getting in your CSA boxes right now. The dishes he made included:

Sliced Heirloom Tomatoes
Fried Capers, Spiced Pineapple, Vanilla-Balsamic Reduction & Midnight Moon Cheese

Fennel Crusted Tuna
Ginger Marinated Cherry Tomatoes & Sungold Tomato Emulsion

Tomato and Sweet Corn Risotto

Tomato Stock, Local Georgia Sweet Corn & Vidalia Onion

Ron’s “Damn Good” Bruschetta (because Ron has to fit a cuss word in every menu he does...)
Truffle Scented Oven-Dried Tomatoes, Oregano & Goat’s Milk Feta

Macaroni & Gravy
Pasta & Heirloom Tomato Sauce & Mozzarella

Georgia Shrimp & Tomatoes
Charred Summer Peppers, Fresh Basil & Tomato Vinegar

One of the highlights of the class was the surprise dessert Ron whipped up completely spontaneously - tomato cobbler. He showed the class how to use leftover chopped tomatoes as the base for a surprisingly sweet cobbler. The tomatoes were seasoned with Maple syrup and a bit of salt and then covered with a topping of flour, butter, sugar and rolled oats. As it baked the tomatoes cooked down until almost caramelized and the result was a sweet and tart dessert that surprised everyone!

Don't despair if you missed last night's class; Ron will be back at The Cook's Warehouse on Tuesday, September 15 for a class on cooking with Lobster. Be sure to reserve your spot today.

Morningside Market Gets A Sign, Finally

You might remember that as part of our opening celebration we hosted an opening party that doubled as a fundraiser for The Morningside Market. We are thrilled to announce that the money raised during our opening party paid for a new, permanent sign for the Morningside Farmers Market!

After more than 10 years in existence, it is about time our favorite market gets some signage! Thanks to everyone who came out and supported the Market.

Yelp Takes Over Rosebud

From the picture above it looks like we (the staff) had just as much fun at last night's Yelp Elite party as the Yelpers themselves! It was a great event - normally we are closed on Sunday evenings but last night we opened the door to Atlanta's Yelp Elite community for a special party showcasing our new menu. We offered samples of many of our menu items (sliders, eggplant chips, onion rings, shrimp & grits...) as well as some amazing cocktails (local Canary melon cocktails, anyone?) to about 150 guests last night.

The best part of the evening was the atmosphere - everyone was in a party spirit and it quickly reverberated through the staff as well. Atlanta Photography came out and took some hilarious photos (including the awesome staff shot shown above). We can't thank the Yelp crowd enough for the fun times and we hope everyone plans repeat visits soon!

See what Yelp is saying about Rosebud here.

Food Porn At Its Best

We just had gorgeous new food photos taken of some of our most popular new dishes and I thought you all might like a sneak peek. We'll get most of these up on our website soon!

Kobe burger with grilled onions, Somerdale cheddar & Rosebud steak sauce

Ahi tuna with sweet chili sweet potato puree & tomato-caper chow chow

Alaskan halibut with Lady Pink-Eyed pea succotash & Sungold tomato vinaigrette

Rosebud club sandwich: house roasted turkey, Berkshire ham and BLT

drunken cherry bread pudding with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce

lemon-rosemary poundcake with local blueberries and fresh whipped cream