Restaurant Review : JCT Kitchen in the Westside District of Atlanta, Georgia

So, I've decided to start a new feature on my blog...

RESTAURANT REVIEWS.

Yep, you probably all knew deep down that I'd eventually get there. 

As self proclaimed "foodies", we eat out quite a bit (when I'm not cooking myself).

And I am always snapping pictures, so why not share them with y'all?!?

Ya know, just in case you ever come to Atlanta or Savannah or anywhere I decide to feature.

Today, we're starting with my personal + absolute favorite, JCT Kitchen. 

This restaurant is our Saturday lunch go-to... and more importantly, my Mountain Man + I have officially booked our wedding date, which will be hosted at JCT! Yep, that's how deep our love runs. We are so excited to work with the restaurant team and have already gone as far to request a custom menu featuring our favorite dishes as entree options. So far, they have been fabulous and I can't wait to see how it comes together over the next year! Anyhoo... back to their food. They are a "farm-to-table-esque" restaurant with a modern southern menu. I know I know, their menu is everything that I strive to be as a food blogger, and they give me so much inspiration!! Here are some pictures of their decor...

They are very country-chic... I love it. 

Chopped wood for their wood-fired grill.

What I also love about JCT Kitchen is that they have seasonal menus. This is super important to me because it guarantees that what you are ordering is the freshest possible and is in-season. However, there are a few favorite standard dishes that remain on the menu all year long and those include the following: their famous lobster roll, "angry" mussels, their sell-out-super-quickly fried chicken, and a few others. But first, I'm going to begin with drinks and starters...

This is their cocktail, "Americana in Paris", which features raspberry ratafia,
cocchi rosa, blackberries, & lemon... very delicious. I also recommend the "Cross Road Blues",
it's amazing and features honeysuckle vodka, peaches, lemon, and lillet blanc. 

Here are the JCT Fried Chicken Skins with House Hot Sauce and Apple-Bacon Hushpuppies
with Maple-Bourbon Gastrique. The chicken skins are to-die-for.  

Fried Chicken Skins... I recreated this dish on my blog in June... make them now!

Here are those crazy apple hushpuppies... they were perfectly glazed without being soggy.

"Pimento Cheese Fry Bread"... this is so utterly decadent. Imagine brioche bread, cut into slices,
dipped into a batter, deep fried, sprinkled with Fleur de Sel, and served with a big pile of pimento
cheese and pickled veggies. 

Summer Appetizer Special: Fried Green Tomatoes with house-made ricotta cheese, candied bacon,
fresh basil, some dill, and lemon. Unequivocally divine, I wish these were on the menu all year. 

Their deviled eggs are also absolutely delicious, but I didn't get to snap a picture of those. But they are much-talked about because of their creamy filling and topping of shaved country ham. Some other great choices are their tomato soup with deep fried grafton cheddar, truffle parmesan fries, & angry mussels.

Angry Mussels Part One

Angry Mussels Part Two

Always, always, always get the "Angry Mussels" y'all. They have huge chunks of house bacon, sliced serranos, onion, garlic, and the best dippin' bread ever. And make a man out of yourself and go the "moules frites" direction with a order of their Parmesan-Truffle Fries. 'Cuz ya just hav'ta. Now let's move onto the entrees...

JCT's Famous Fried Chicken with Mac n' Cheese & Green Beans

Fried Chicken Sandwich on Brioche Roll with house made pickles,
creamy coleslaw, and jalapeno mayo.

A shot of the Truffle-Parmesan Fries with my Fried Chicken Sandwich

Fried Oyster Po'boy wit hot sauce-bacon mayo, chopped lettuce, and spicy pickles

The All-Too-Famous Lobster Roll (only served on Friday's & Saturday's) with griddled
soft roll, sweet & sour apple slaw, and parmesan-truffle fries.

Fried Chicken + Brussels Sprouts

And lastly we have dessert... we have tried everything. My favorites have to be the chocolate cream pie with salted caramel and toasted meringue and the rum sopped coconut cake. But recently we tried a few new additions...

Fried Blueberry Hand Pies with Malted Vanilla Milkshake

You gotta dip the hand pies into the milkshake, y'all. 

And last, but not least, their birthday cake milkshake. Yum Yum Yum. 

Overall, JCT Kitchen is great for lunch + dinner (we prefer their whimsical lunch menu just a tad bit more), but if you're into the night scene, they have a wonderful roof-top bar with bar bites and signature cocktails. Oh hey, and don't forget the live music either :) I just can't give them enough high praises and look forward to our amazing wedding dinner at their restaurant!! I hope y'all can make it out there soon.

Our Rating Scale:

**** (4 out of 4 stars)

$$     (dishes range from $5 to $20 depending on the ingredients)

Would I go back again: Hell Yes... every week

Service: 5 (rated on a scale of 1-5)

I hope y'all enjoyed the very first installment of Restaurant Reviews :)

XOXO, Juliana