Recent Reviews and Restaurant News

Since we talked about Dry January yesterday, today – bar news.

Up in Mills 50 comes word that St. Matthew’s Tavern has been sold to Team Market Group, the prolific bar-isters that also own Mather’s Social Gathering, The Robinson Room, The Wellborn and others. TMG is also known for classy interiors and high quality (its Plantees meatless burger brand just down the block notwithstanding), so it will be interesting to see what it does with St. Matthew’s, which had taken a dive even deeper than your basic dive bar.

Four Flamingos: A Richard Blais Florida Kitchen has been voted Best New Restaurant of 2022 in our Foodster Awards for Independent Restaurants.

The Monroe, the Creative Village newcomer from Good Salt Restaurant Group, was second and The Pinery in Ivanhoe Village was third.

Only two votes separated first place from third.

It was fun trying to spot the people on New Year’s Eve who were planning to participate in Dry January – they were the ones ordering doubles all night.

Dry January, of course, is the annual endeavor by people who feel a need to cut down on alcohol consumption by not drinking for the entire month. I’ve said it before: Dry February would be a much better idea because there are three fewer days, but that’s just me.

Drinking less is actually a pretty good idea and it has become something of a year round trend, evidenced by the growing number of zero-proof alternatives offered by brewers, winemakers and even your favorite local bars and restaurants.

The Wilson, the restaurant and bar at the new Meliá hotel in Celebration, is featuring a list of mocktails – also called lie-bations – being served there and at other IGC Hospitality properties. Its contribution to the list is the Taki It Slow, Kokomo, pictured at top, which uses zero-proof rum, banana, passion fruit and lemon.