After cooking in San Francisco and New York City, chefs Anne Quatrano and Clifford Harrison brought the best of what they learned to open a distinctly Atlanta farm-to-table culinary experience. Now open for several decades, MICHELIN One Star and Green Star Bacchanalia is a fine dining staple in the city. Over 1,900 people have worked there, impressing generations of diners at the restaurant and beyond.
Before you dig into the incredible story of friendship and food, check out what our Inspectors had to say here.
Anne Quatrano grew up in an Italian family who loved to cook. Working in restaurants while in school at the University of Vermont, Quatrano decided to go to culinary school in San Francisco. After training there followed by a stint New York City, she settled in Atlanta in the 1990s.
In Atlanta, Quatrano saw a distinct culinary history, but was surprised that many restaurants while opulent, were operated by large companies and not chef-driven. She saw an opportunity to change things—to produce great food in an approachable, friendly manner with a focus rooted in sourcing the best local ingredients. Enter Bacchanalia.
In 1999, she moved her Buckhead restaurant to the Westside of Atlanta, pioneering a new destination for dining and fashion (it’s home to the first Sid Mashburn boutique). “We saw so much potential," says Quatrano. "A risky, but great move. A lot of our clientele from the Buckhead restaurant said, ‘We will never go there.’ But almost all of them did.”
Quatrano and Harrison have been farming for 30 years on their 60 acres in Cartersville, Georgia. Quatrano says, “Outside of California, the South is really set up [for having] locally sourced restaurants for produce.” With a Georgia growing season spanning 12 months, much of Bacchanlia’s produce comes from the farm, including berries, melons, winter squash, eggs, and many varieties of tomatoes. Her walnut, pecan, and chestnut trees were planted 100 years ago, and their nuts are featured at the restaurant today.
Quatrano’s farm allows for menu highlights like a whipped triple creme cheese and a muscadine Transfusion. The former has “buttery, shards of sourdough [breadcrumbs], honeycomb and honey from [their] bees and a little tiny date cake underneath it.” Her homegrown muscadines are the star of Bacchanlia’s Transfusion cocktail, a nod to a drink that’s popular at Georgia’s famous golf courses.
Inspired by the French farm-to-table ethos, Bacchanalia's neighbor is home to the herbs used at the restaurant. “Every night, the chefs can go out and snip what they need. And it's super fresh and beautiful,” explains Quatrano. The dining tables are also made out of wood from the farm. “We used the Japanese technique where we've burnt them so they're all black and lovely, and [we] waxed them. It was a labor of love.”
For food and decor that can’t be found on the farm, Quatrano selects the best purveyors, focusing on local and regional vendors. In addition to foie gras and fruits de mer, menu favorites include a Thai-inspired steak tartare from a 28-day dry aged beef and a jumbo lump crab fritter—a timeless classic that was added to the menu 28-years-ago. The chef proactively shares her sustainable sources to fellow restaurants to increase accessibility in the Atlanta dining ecosystem.
That sense of community is inherent as Bacchanalia’s alumni network strengthens the industry and provides the next generation with the opportunity to build their culinary voice. Since opening, Bacchanalia has employed 1,900 people including Quatrano’s friend Steve Satterfield of Miller Union, her sister Frances who has served as General Manager, and Executive Chef Kriengkrai Nalampoon, who initially acted as a line cook at the restaurant.
As a female chef, Quatrano herself has had a unique journey. Once forced to make salad and expected to fail at the grill, she felt she was offered executive chef positions over men primarily because the restaurants “were looking for women.”
Because of this, Quatrano believes mentorship is important. She is particularly inspired by MICHELIN-recommended Destroyer because its 4 p.m. closing time gives more women the option to balance work and family life. “There aren't enough women in our industry," she says, "but there have been great women in our industry too.”
One of those women was her mentor, Chef Judy Rogers at MICHELIN-recommended Zuni Café, where she trained in the 1980s. Rogers inspired Quatrano to bring farm-to-table fine dining to Atlanta. “When you start experiencing that level of procurement, that food tastes better. It's easier to cook with. It's healthier.”
It's her combined experiences and her vision ahead that continues to excite Quatrano about the evolution of the industry and the next generation of Atlanta chefs. When she first opened Bacchanalia 30 years ago, diners learned about restaurants from critic reviews that took a year to publish. Now, she's thrilled to have the MICHELIN Guide in Atlanta. “The app is awesome," says Quatrano, giddily. "There isn't another app that you can use as efficiently to find out what's going on in a city. I wish it was available in all US cities.” And while that day is coming soon, at least Atlanta benefits from Quatrano and her vast and talented network.
