It's taken me nearly three days to recover from my tomato-based hangover brought on by eating (and drinking) all the things at Attack of the Killer Tomato Fest.
This year’s AKTF was MUCH drier and MUCH more enjoyable than 2014′s muddy log jam at The Goat Farm. I love me some Goat Farm, but not for an event of this nature and the crowd it attracts.
Mud+heels/seersucker+drunk people eating tomatoes=the Psycho shower scene.
Thankfully the organizers realized this and brought the festival back home to JCT Kitchen and Westside Provisions District.
This year’s festival brought out new talent and much-longed-for creative tomato bites. It seemed every chef in the running wanted the coveted crown! And with each offering, that fact became more evident. I ate everything from ramen to dumplings to paella to tomato wellington. There were tarts, tamales, tomato sushi, mini muffulettas, even snow cones and tomato caramel. As I walked with my band of merry food disciples, we remarked at how much there was to choose from this year and how difficult it was going to be to cast our votes for best bite. A huge first world problem, for sure. But wait! There’s more!
Just as sweat began trickling (pouring) down our backs, we walked through two heavy curtains and into the newest addition to the Ford Fry machine, Marcel. Two words: Blown.Away.
Off the rails: Marcel’s space...like James Dean meets Frank Sinatra in a man cave of sleek sexiness and effortless cool. The soundtrack could easily swing from Sinatra’s “Luck Be A Lady” to somewhere in between Bow Wow Wow’s “Aphrodisiac” and The Submarine’s “1940″. You can wear your jewels, don that chapeau you’ve been dying to show off, and sip on Montgomeries like fucking Hemingway. All the leather, wood, modern edges, and large windows soaring above dark corners that seemed to beg for an illicit affair; or really, a swanky date night with your significant other. Twas a smart move on Rocket Farm’s part to debut in this way; casually opening its doors to the public to provide relief from the heat, allowing people to experience the space and meet the staff. Oh those bartenders, y’all.
Our perspiry crew sat in a corner booth, relieved to be out of the sun, and discussed our votes while we drank our 117th cocktail. When it came time to leave the comfort of our leather-bound lair, I had decided to place my red ticket in Lusca’s tin can for their ramen. It was just what my body craved on a hot as Hell day in Atlanta. Chilled broth, noodles, tomatoes muddled together--it was different from everything else I had tasted--and it was delicious. Sadly, my vote did not garner a win for the restaurant, but I’m almost certain no one cared because everyone was happy, drunk, and suffering from heat exhaustion.
AKTF is a good time and an excuse for the city’s restaurants to strut their stuff for charity--The Giving Kitchen and Georgia Organics (2014 raised over $120k for these do-gooding orgs.) And for those who felt let down by TomatoStock ‘14, I’m pretty sure this year redeemed all the mud-stained, tomato splattered white frocks that were sent to the cleaners, the broken heels and dreams shattered, and soaked seersucker.
Attack of the Killer Tomato Fest - Atlanta - benefiting The Giving Kitchen and Georgia Organics
For more details on the photos: https://instagram.com/sopermckibben/
