By Lauren Townsend for The Aha! Connection
Every year, we go out to dinner with the same groups of friends on New Year’s Eve eve. Sometimes there are new people, sometimes it’s just the 8 of us. It is one of my favorite traditions because these people truly make me so happy and I know my face will hurt from laughing. This year, after much back and forth, we decided to keep our original plan and meet at The Whiskey Project in Roswell.
One can go to The Whiskey Project for cocktails, culinary or both. Co-owner, Marcus Bifaro inspires premium mixology with fresh squeezed juices and modern twists on traditional favorites. I could probably drink my way through the cocktail menu, but I can attest to the deliciousness of the Mezcalculation ( 1792 Bourbon, Vida Mezcal, Lime Agave) and the Uncle Buck ( Buffalo Trace, St. George Spiced Pear, Lime, Molasses and Ginger). Friends on the Lunch with Lauren Facebook page also mentioned a love of the Joan Rivers (Dixie Vodka, Aperol, St. Germain, Grapefruit, Lemon and Prosecco) and the Louisville Smash ( Weller Special Reserve, Blackberry, Lemon, Mint) in addition to a wall of over 1000 bottles of aged whiskey.
For the table, we ordered the Tartine (whipped goat cheese, charred pearl onions, prosciutto, fresno chili, radish, and pomegranate balsamic reduction), Gnocchi ( bacon, sage goat cheese cream, spiced sweet potato), Roasted Pork Tacos and Braised Octopus. All four were delicious and well made. Portions were small, but perfect to share in anticipation of eating more.
For dinner, I ordered the scallops with caramelized onions and goat cheese grits, sweet potatoes, broccolini and roasted garlic and turmeric gastrique. The scallops were cooked perfectly and the meal was very satisfying. I also tried my friend’s pork osso bucco, also with the goat cheese grits, broccolini, baby carrots and red pepper gravy. I truly believe there is something to enjoy at The Whiskey Project for everyone, including vegetarians. The dining room was busy the evening we went so service was more spread out than some may be used to but was not bad. If you go on a busy night, anticipate having time to savor cocktails in between courses, not rushing out to catch a show. After lots of laughs and whiskey we grabbed a drink in downtown Roswell and closed out our evening.
As many of you can sympathize, organizing an evening for 8 people is almost impossible by scheduling alone. Then factor in location preferences, food and beverage preferences, and activity preferences, and you may even want to throw in the towel all together. Luckily, my friend, Lauren had the good sense to make this reservation and circle us all back around to it, to which I am grateful because I’m now a huge fan. In that process, I put together a list of possible date nights that got shot down, but feel it shouldn’t go to waste:
The Painted Pin and Biltong Bar or Johnny’s Hideaway, if I’m super drunk.
Agatha’s A Taste of Mystery – murder mystery dinner
Battle n Brew in Sandy Springs
Dinner at George’s then 10 high for karaoke
Stoddards midtown range with machine gun or standard rental and door dash wth you want to eat
Ticonderoga club and Sister Louisa’s Ping Pong Emporium
The White Bull’s famous polenta party
