Grana: Your new go-to spot for pizza and meatballs

Grana is an Italian restaurant in Midtown Atlanta known for pizza and meatballs © Anna Lanfreschi

Handmade pizza, from-scratch pasta, meatball flights, and make-your-own cannoli. These are just a few of the authentic Italian dishes you can expect from Grana.

Grana doesn’t just serve any Italian food: The Morningside restaurant specializes in true Neapolitan cuisine. If you’ve ever been to Naples, Italy, or met anyone from Naples, you will have undoubtedly heard that Neapolitan food is the best kind of Italian food. Afterall, Naples is the birthplace of pizza… and every Neapolitan dish, from antipasti to desert, tastes soulful, soothing, and oh-so-satisfying.

 And there’s no better person in Atlanta to bring the robust flavors of southern Italy to our city than Chef Pat Pascarella, who helms Grana’s kitchen (as well as White Bull in Decatur). Pascarella grew up tasting and cooking with the Italian matriarchs of his family, and you’ll see nods to his family recipes throughout Grana’s menu.

 Grana is known for its meatballs, and you’ll see both mom’s and grandma’s polpettes on the menu. Best not to choose through, and simply try one of each with the meatball tasting, which is a flight of all six meatballs on the menu and makes for a hearty start to your meal.

Crispy Brussels sprouts (R) and the meatball flight (L) at Grana © Anna Lanfreschi

Before you move onto the pizzas and the pastas, get your veggies in. There are several options on the antipasti menu section, and the crispy Brussels sprouts with truffle honey and ricotta are divine.

Now, for the delicious carbs… you really can’t go wrong with any of the pizzas or pastas at Grana! The truffle pizza is a memorable option because it comes with three types of cheese, including burrata (mozzarella’s fancier cousin), and is topped with black truffle sauce.

The truffle pizza at Grana © Anna Lanfreschi

Regardless of your main entrée selection, definitely, absolutely, categorically save room for dessert. There’s really only one item on the menu – cannoli – but your options are limitless because you get to fully customize your sweet treat. You can choose the type of ricotta it’s filled with (yes, there is more than one choice!), the various toppings to add to each side, and whether to top it with chocolate. Hands down, these are the best cannoli I’ve had in Atlanta!

Make-your-own cannoli (R); Grana’s rooftop patio (L) © Anna Lanfreschi

Grana is open for happy hour and dinner nightly, and also serves brunch on the weekends. When the weather is nice, do check out their expansive rooftop patio, especially during happy hour. Reservations are not required, but highly recommended.

Anna Lanfreschi is a digital content creator and strategist based in Atlanta. She posts about food and travel on her blog, AnnaFeasts, and on Instagram @AnnaFeasts. 

FASHIONADO

The Fox Theatre pushes back Marquee Club opening

by Encore Atlanta

The completed rooftop will look much like this and overlook the Fox Theatre marquee. Photo: Fox Theatre

Almost exactly a year ago, the Fox Theatre announced plans for a 10,000-ft. expansion featuring a rooftop terrace and generous event space. Word then was that the space — named the Marquee Club — would open this fall.

Photo: Michael Portman

This week, that grand opening was pushed back to early 2018. The reason: Surprises encountered when design and construction crews began digging into an 88-year-old building.

“We anticipated challenges once we began construction,” Fox president and CEO Allan C. Vella said in a news release. Fox officials hope to be able to set a firm 2018 opening date soon.

The theater will reach out to anyone who has purchased a Marquee membership (annual, corporate or individual) and offer exclusive previews in the months before it opens, the statement said. Memberships are still available at 404.881.2127. Prices, which were set for 2017 and may change, are:

• Corporate annual: $12,000.
• Noncorporate annual: $3,000.
• Broadway in Atlanta subscriber annual: $500 for six shows. The rate may go up or down depending on the number of shows booked.

The Marquee also plans to offer limited per-event access based on availability.

The main level of the Marquis Club (clockwise, from left); another view of the outdoor terrace; and the mezzanine level of the club. Photos: Fox Theatre

The members-only club will include a 4,000-sq. ft. rooftop terrace under the night sky and overlooking Peachtree Street, plus some 6,000 square feet of indoor event space. All of this, the most significant expansion in the theater’s history, will continue the venue’s Moroccan-style decor.

The rooftop terrace will feature a combination of indoor, solarium and outdoor spaces for climate-controlled, cooled or fully outdoor spaces. Each will have its own bar. Members will be able to use the lounge/terrace before and after events and during intermission. Other perks include:

• The ability to buy tickets before the general public.
• A dedicated ticketing concierge.
• Self-parking in a dedicated lot.
• Private entry 90 minutes before show time.
• Complimentary nonalcoholic beverages and hors d’oeuvres.
• Access to five bars.
• Private restrooms.
• The ability to pre-order drinks, desserts and coffee for intermission.

Lord Aeck Sargent, an award-winning Atlanta architectural firm that specializes in conserving and preserving historic venues, is leading the renovation. Its previous projects include Language Hall at Oxford College of Emory University in Oxford, the Gwinnett Environmental & Heritage Center in Buford, the mixed-use Berkshire Terminus in Buckhead and Parkmobile Corporate Headquarters in Midtown.

The 4,665-seat Fox, which hosts some 250 performances a year, is home to the Broadway in Atlanta series of touring theater productions, Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker and the Coca-Cola Summer Film Festival. It’s a regular stop for dance companies, children’s shows, comedians — Louis CK, Mike Epps, George Lopez — and such musicians as Ringo Starr, John Prine and Widespread Panic. These events attract more than 500,000 patrons a each year.

The Fox also is a popular site for wedding receptions, trade shows, corporate meetings and association functions.

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