Parish: Foods & Goods Opens in Inman Park

As the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaches this month, a successful homage to New Orleans has taken root at Parish: Foods & Goods, Concentrics Restaurants’ new eatery in Inman Park.

In a pipe-fitting building from the 1890s, Concentrics owner Bob Amick has created a new/old setting filled with flavors of Cajun-French influences. "Everything starts with your space and letting the building inspire you," Amick said. "It was about restraint. It had been neglected for a lot of years had been empty for decades."

Why New Orleans? Amick and his wife Rowina (both graduates of Oglethorpe University) had always "loved the cuisine and casualness of the Louisiana town." Their son attended Tulane University, their one-time partner Scott Serpes (TWO.urban licks) was from New Orleans. "This is not kitschy New Orleans," Amick said. "Not red beans and rice. It’s very chef driven."

As the original windows were restored, partitions removed (the original bricks were re-used in the arches in the dining rooms), the roof line preserved, exact replicas of the rosettes on the windows were created and the original tin ceiling (in the front dining room) was restored, the Amicks began buying "things with a New Orleans plan in place. We had things in storage all over town," he said. "There is a commonality to the pieces, a patina that makes it all look like it had been here forever."

Among those pieces giving a Big Easy feel to the interior are a French farm table in front room, brilliant red French water urns on the back wall, leather club chairs, pigeon cage tables in the waiting area, chandeliers made from wine barrels with painted shades and gilded balls and a red Murano blown glass chandelier over the stairway leading to the downstairs market and sandwich area.

While the tin ceiling tiles in the front room are original to the building, faux artist Ann Williams painted new tiles for the back dining room. Silk curtains at the front windows only were from the Curtain Exchange on Howell Mill Road.

The 45-foot long bar – made from rough grade walnut and a zinc top – connects the two upstairs dining rooms and is topped with a row of stunning plastic red lamps. The centerpiece of the restaurant is a nude statue of French origin from 1908. A 250-year old mirror purchased at Scott’s Antiques Market and framed by Myott is above the bar.

Downstairs, tables where wi-fi customers take coffee and lunch while working on computers are old European; there’s an old French coffee table in the market room and more leather chairs for comfortable reading amidst the market of small items – tableware, stationery and gifts – all hand picked by Rowina Amick.

Along with recycling old materials and furnishings, another green component to the restaurant is that all offerings are posted on chalkboards; there are no paper menus.

And from Katrina herself are three vertical concrete street signs that washed up during the fierce storm that are now used at the valet stations.

Parish Foods & Goods, 240 N. Highland Ave. (404) 681-4434 or www.parishatl.com.

Parish founder Bob Amick at the bar.

Cured meats are available in the market.

The downstairs market has food, drinks and gifts for sale.

Some of the "goods" for sale at Parish: Foods and Goods.