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Friday, October 25, 2013

Food Friday Chattanooga Edition: Public House

Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
Last weekend Steve and I went on a trip to Chattanooga to see Neutral Milk Hotel. We made a vacation of it by visiting Rock City, staying in an awesome Bed & Breakfast (Stone Fort Inn) and going out to eat. I did a bunch of Yelp searching for a dinner spot that was both close to our hotel and the venue, reasonably priced, and had a good selection of yummies. Public House met all my criteria, and the fact that we were able to get a reservation at the time we wanted didn't hurt either.
Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
Located in the cool rehabbed buildings of Warehouse Row, Public House looks inviting. The decor involves a lot of light wood and white curtains. The place was much bigger on the inside than I expected and it's connected to the bar next door, The Social, which provides a greater bar atmosphere with a snack-heavy bar menu.
Cocktails at Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
We ordered our drinks off the Social's cocktail menu. I had the Alex Eile which is vodka, grapefruit, elderflower and some champagne. This drink was very girly and pink. I liked its sweet and refreshing effervescence and I'm always a sucker for the little glasses. Steve ordered the gigantic which had whiskey, ginger beer, smoked cider and apple butter. Yes, you heard it right, they put a giant dollop of apple butter on top of the drink. When you mixed it all up it tasted like apple pie. This was not my cup of tea, but Steve really enjoyed the cinnamon flavor.
Pickle plate at Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
For an appetizer we started out with the pickle plate. It came with pickled green beans, pickled onions and chow chow. We both agreed that we did not enjoy the green beans. I thought they were too crunchy and not pickled enough, and Steve found them too sour. Our favorite was the pickled onions; they were tangy and sweet, and went nicely with the toasted crackers.
shrimp and grits at Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
For dinner I chose the shrimp and grits because people said it was good in online reviews, and a friendly person had recommended it to me. I wasn't impressed with this dish and felt that it just fell flat. There were tons of red bell peppers, which I'm not used to seeing in shrimp and grits (I'm also not the biggest fan of red peppers overall- except in moderation). The whole dish tasted like roasted red peppers and not much else. This made me miss the wonderful shrimp and grits I had at Silo.
Bacon burger at Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
Steve ordred what I assumed he would order when picking Public House, the pimento cheese and bacon burger. Steve really enjoyed this hearty sandwich and I agree that he picked wiser. The cheese itself had a nice flavor and was very creamy. The burger was served on a hearty poppyseed bun that held up under all the toppings. My favorite part was the side of shoestring fries. They were tiny and crisp and the fresh chives they put on top made them all the more addicting.
Public House restaurant in Chattanooga Tennessee
Overall I would say that Public House was just kind of average. I wasn't really impressed by anything here; it was all pretty standard. The place is lovely, the staff was friendly, and the menu does offer a wide variety of southern food favorites for those that like the classics. I guess if I go back I'll try something other than the shrimp and grits.
Public House on Urbanspoon

6 comments:

  1. Looks like a very lovely place and a nice relaxing dinner.

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  2. neil and I went there for my birthday a couple of years back and really enjoyed the fried chicken and drinks, but you're right - after going to restaurants that have a similar vibe but are better at it (husk!), it's hard to be that impressed with public house. but I'm a sucker for small glasses too :)

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    Replies
    1. Oh man-If I knew the fried chicken was good I would have jumped on that as well!

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  3. Well, at least the food is plated beautifully! It made me super hungry! Next time you go to Chattanooga, I fully endorse The Blue Plate near downtown. It is really yummy especially for lunch...and really inexpensive. They have really good fried chicken and other southern specialties. Their menu may seem kind of ordinary but everything I've ever had there (sides included) were well crafted. I am honestly salivating just thinking about it! I also would hit up FoodWorks for brunch. They have had $1 mimosas everytime I've been.

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    Replies
    1. I was wondering what the hubbub was over FoodWorks! We drove past it on Sunday morning and it was PACKED and there were lines of people waiting out the door. This makes to total sense now.

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