Heirloom offers fresh, local bites

By: Rachel Kelso

Nestled behind Prince Avenue in Athens, Georgia, is Heirloom Café and Fresh Market. Their mission: Creating community, celebrating local farmers, and telling a story through food.

I’ve only ever tasted Heirloom’s popular brunch menu, which is available Saturdays and Sundays from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The crowds of people who have waited all week for their opportunity to chow down on the restaurant’s savory breakfast biscuits and refreshing raspberry lemonade mimosas aren’t unusual, and despite the weather I’d take an indoor or patio seat just to claim one of their highly-coveted spots.

This time, I decided to expand my horizons at my favorite Athens eatery. My friend, Mandi, and I walked in on a Wednesday at noon, expecting the loud and busy brunch crowd that we’re used to. But, to our advantage, Heirloom was empty and quiet, creating a more peaceful dining experience for us.

It’s design and ambiance mimic grandmother’s kitchen, decorated with Southern charm and local artists’ paintings. Large, open windows border the building and provide an abundance of natural light. You can’t help but grin when you step foot inside Heirloom.

Mandi and I treated ourselves to mimosas while we carefully examined the lunch menu. For Mandi, a raspberry lemonade mimosa. I opted for a traditional OJ flavor. Both were refreshing with a perfect balance of juice and bubbles, and a sweet reward for Mandi after she cast her first ballot for the midterm election that morning. Other tempting drink options included their fresh squeezed juices (orange, grapefruit and honey lemonade, to be exact), local New Creations sodas and array of beers, wines and mocktails.

After nearly 10 minutes of deliberation, we still couldn’t decide on which entrées we wanted, so we opted for the pimento cheese plate to start. With the cheese came preserved green tomatoes, celery, candied pecans and saltines. The tomatoes looked slimy and unappetizing, and although Mandi and I were head over heels in love with the rest of our appetizer, we opted out of tasting them.

By our second round of mimosas, we were finally ready to order. Our patient server was quick to answer our many questions of our top-three options. Mandi ultimately chose Susie’s Meatloaf Sandwich, noted on the menu as a family recipe. It comes complete with grilled bacon-wrapped meatloaf, arugula, tomato jam, fried onion strings and a Luna sesame bun, but she opted out of the fried onions in an effort to cut back her fried food intake. She added a side salad to her plate as well.

Despite how excited I was about the selection of entrées, I couldn’t take my eyes off of the Fall Salad, listed under “firsts” on the menu. I couldn’t resist how delicious the medley of mixed greens, roasted butternut squash, candied pecans, thin apple slices, feta cheese and a sweet mustard vinaigrette looked. To make it even better, I added grilled chicken to the mix for just four dollars more.

I found myself savoring every bite of my entrée. Fresh and flavorful, this seasonal salad needs to be made a permanent menu item. For a $13 salad, grilled chicken charge included, I did expect larger chunks of butternut squash rather than the microscopic cubes I was presented. This ingredient was the one I was most excited for, but most disappointed to see on my plate. My expectations were shot, but it was hard to complain as I scraped up every last bit of salad on my plate.

Mandi’s meatloaf stood tall and thick, but didn’t take up even a full quarter of her plate. The meat itself was small, the size of a fist, but upon my first bite it was packed with flavor. Despite its surprisingly small size, it packed a punch, so much so that Mandi insisted on taking it to-go for dinner that night.

Promptly after finishing our meals (or most of them, in Mandi’s case), our server dropped off a dessert menu. Too tempting to turn down, Mandi and I succumbed to the pressure and ordered the torta gianduia, described as a “flourless chocolate hazelnut cake” topped with “whipped cream, espresso cognac chocolate sauce” and “cinnamon hazelnuts.” I expected a sweeter cake, but I was content with its richness and bitterness. Despite its place on the “Sweets” menu, I felt healthy eating it. When eating the dessert makes you feel good about what you’re putting into your body, you know you’ve come to the right place.

Heirloom offers seating arrangements for intimate meals or larger parties, neither of which can go wrong. Its welcoming farm-to-table charm makes it the ideal spot for a tasty, sustainable and healthy meal with friends, family or by yourself. With a friendly staff, food for everyone and a bright and open environment, Heirloom is more than just a restaurant. It’s home.