News You Can Eat

Sweet Lowdown is now open at 942 Peachtree St. across from the Metropolis building serving up “Old South cuisine with a twist.” Executive Chef Carmen Cappelo (formerly of MIX in Brookhaven) heads the kitchen. The interior is a mix of modern and historic farmhouse. www.thesweetlowdown.com.

My Girlfriend’s Kitchen, 1700 Northside Dr. in Berkeley Heights, is a new concept in ready-to-cook meals. Customers come to the site and, after two hours in the kitchen with chefs, leave with 12 healthy dinners ready to cook – without the time-consuming recipe-planning, grocery shopping, chopping, slicing, dicing and clean up. The dinners, in aluminum pans or zip-lock bags, are easily tossed into the oven or sautÈ pan. The cost is $229, or already-prepared meals can be picked up for $259. For more information, or to book a party, call (404) 350-8045 or www.mgfk.com.  

Indie Coffee & Books is now open at 340 W. Ponce de Leon Ave., Suite 100, in Decatur. The shop features organic coffees, teas and pastries, as well as a thoughtful selection of fiction and non-fiction titles you won’t find in major bookstores. The shop is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; Fridays, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays, 8 a. m. to 11 p.m.; and Sundays, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (404) 378-7110 or www.indiecoffeeandbooks.com.

David Kitfield Jr. is the new owner of Agnes & Muriel’s on Monroe Drive in Midtown. He purchased the restaurant from Glen Powell, who started the Southern eatery in 1995. Kitfield, whose mother is coincidentally named Agnes, is a native of Atlanta and used to own Goldberg’s Bagel Company & Deli in Dunwoody. Kitfield said the menu – with its Coca-Cola baby back ribs, fried chicken and fried green tomatoes – would remain the same with a few new additions. www.mominthekitchen.com.

Pearl, an expansion of the mostly take-out Baltimore Crab and Seafood, is now open at 253 Peters St. in Castleberry Hill. The 1,000-square-foot space was designed by Michael Hibachy and seats 50 in the dining room and 25 on the patio. The menu includes lobster, oysters and steak.

Chef Drew Van Levan (formerly with Spice and Iris) is now heading up the kitchen at SAGA (which stands for South African Georgia) at 1100 Crescent Ave. in Midtown. The restaurant, which will serve South African food with an American South twist, is expected to open next month.

Dressed, the new gourmet salad and soup restaurant, is now open at 950 West Peachtree St. in the Plaza Midtown building. Diners can build their own salads from scratch, selecting from one of more than 20 in-house-created dressings. Souper Jenny is providing the soups, and the selection will change daily. www.dressedsalads.com.

QUICK BITES: Sundown Cafe, the Cheshire Bridge taqueria, will be getting a new look for the new year. The sister to Taquerias on the West Side and in Decatur will close to be gutted and retrofitted to look like the rest of the family. Watch this space for when to head back in for fish tacos.... Former Nava chef Tom Harvey is now top toque at ONE.midtown kitchen, replacing the departed Richard Blaise.... Esquire magazine named Ecco and Repast restaurants in Midtown in its list of Best New Restaurants 2006.... Sushi Rock Cafe in Buckhead and The Blue Room jazz bar in Peachtree Battle Shopping Center have closed.... Soleil, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary in Buckhead, has a new “early bird” menu from 5 to 6:30 p.m. including soups, salads, panninis and pastas.... Eno in Midtown has hired Jose Rego (formerly with Soto Soto) as its new executive chef.... Woodfire Grill on Cheshire Bridge Road is now open for lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. with wood-fired pizzas, burgers, pasta and seasonable vegetables.... Savor Specialty Foods on Roswell Road in Buckhead is now open for lunch starting at 11:30 a.m. with a selection of salads, soups and more.... Stoney River Legendary Steaks has opened a new location at Cumberland Mall.... Bonehead’s seafood restaurant has opened a new location in the Shoppes of Powers Ferry, 2022 Powers Ferry Rd.... Au Pied de Cochan in Buckhead has a new chef, Jerome Grilhot.... The former Sampan space on Howell Mill Road on the West Side will reopen as JCT Kitchen and Bar in the spring.... Return to Eden organic market on Cheshire Bridge Road has implemented a five percent senior discount on Tuesdays and a produce sale every Sunday morning from 9 a.m. to noon.... Bob Amick and Scott Serpas’ new restaurant on Highland Avenue in Inman Park (across from Soto Soto) will be called Parrish, featuring a Cajun-inspired menu.... The Red Shoe, a new soul food-inspired restaurant dishing up turnip greens and friend chicken, is now open at 2891 E. Ponce de Leon in Decatur.... Citing increasing compeititon from Whole Foods and Fresh Market, EatZi’s closed its two stores Buckhead and Dunwoody stores last month. EatZi’s, which first opened in Buckhead in 1998, was known for its gourmet foods and was the place for a picnic basket for concerts at Chastain Park.