It is the 4th of July weekend, family in town and I decided to herd everyone to downtown Decatur and Farmstead 303. After all I could get some blogging done and hopefully my dining companions could get their bellies filled with some farm to table goodness. Doing my homework prior, I knew that Farmstead 303 was owned by Terri Rogers, the owner of Feast which is directly across the street. In fact I spotted Terri on this somewhat mellow Saturday milling around and making sure things were running smoothly. The staff was very accommodating to our large party, 9 of us in all. We picked a table near the train tracks so my son could be in view of any train that might come by.
Our waitress, decked out in a modified milk maid outfit (apron, head scarf) encouraged us several times to order an appetizer and though we didn't, I had to admit the fried okra and chicken liver bruschetta sounded intriguing. Instead I was perhaps the most adventurous of all, ordering the fried flounder and collards. The rest of the table went for hamburgers while one daring soul did order the chicken salad sandwich. Now as others have said and I will say again here, the service is slow even in off peak times which is when we went. This may be related to the youth and inexperience of the waitstaff or just the kitchen trying to find its groove. Whatever the case when the food arrived, I wasted no time diving in.
The fish was fresh and crispy in a cornmeal batter but too lightly seasoned for my taste. The tartar sauce served alongside was tasty with just enough sweetness. But my favorite part of the meal was the collards sourced from a North Carolina farm according to the menu board. They were very tender and seasoned pretty well, though they might want to consider adding some sort of smoked meat to the pot liqueur to really make them pop. My dining companions’ sides consisted mostly of hand cut fries, oddly dipped into some sort of batter and fried. Really they would of been more palatable if they had just been simply prepared (loose the batter) and seasoned with a little kosher salt and pepper. The kids of which we had 4 at the table, ended up leaving them mostly untouched. Another side someone had ordered was the coleslaw which looked decidedly blah and colorless. It must of tasted the same because again, it went mostly untouched. Though I didn't taste it I figured it must of been dressed in some sort of vinaigrette. Uh, this is the south and we like our slaw colorful and dripping with mayo. Finally someone had the squash casserole which I did get a chance to taste. The vegetables were wonderfully fresh and had a nice firm bite but I thought the casserole was a little dry and once again under seasoned.
It's my understanding Farmstead 303 has only been open a few months, so perhaps they are just now finding their stride. I wouldn't totally count them out just yet, especially since Feast has seemed to enjoy some modicum of success but they will definitely have to improve their offerings and technique to be a stand out in the growing farm to table movement.
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