Last night David and I ate dinner at Urban Pl8, a restaurant in Atlanta’s Westside that opened a few months ago.  Chef and owner, Betsy Pitts, worked at Bacchanalia and Floataway Café before opening her own restaurant.  Urban Pl8 is all about cooking with fresh, local, seasonal food at a reasonable price.  Betsy’s cooking and restaurant lives up to both of these commitments.  The two of us ate a delicious, very nice meal, for what it would have cost one of us to eat at some other Atlanta restaurants that produce the same quality food.

While the menu is not huge, the descriptions looked delicious and there were many gluten-free options.  In fact, everything tat David and I ordered was naturally gluten-free so I got to try both of our meals.  Before we ordered, Betsy came out of the kitchen to talk to us and I felt very confident in her knowledge of gluten-free cooking and where gluten can be hidden.  Because she cooks with fresh produce and good food, there weren’t many places gluten could be found on the menu, aside from the pasta.

For an appetizer, I ordered the beet salad with goat cheese, white truffle oil and raspberry vinaigrette.  David chose the butternut squash soup.  Both were yummy, very flavorful and seasonally appropriate for a chilly fall night.  For our main courses, I ate the barbecue pork tenderloin with sweet potatoes and cole slaw.  The BBQ sauce was totally gluten-free and all of the flavors on the plate worked well together.  The sauce was spicy but the slaw cooled it down.  David ordered the seared scallops with lentils and grilled corn salad.  Also delicious and the scallops were perfectly cooked.  We shared (which is always a rare treat in the gluten-free world!) and while our meals were completely different, they both tasted so good.

Drinks at Urban Pl8 are very reasonably priced and David particularly enjoyed his $5 margarita, also gluten-free.  There’s a bar so you can go for just a drink and a bowl of soup if you want.  The menu has entrée salads and burgers if you’re looking for a lighter meal too.  We were well taken care of at Urban Pl8 and the service was friendly and great.  Urban Pl8 is what a neighborhood place should be; not fancy, welcoming and a wide range of options.

Urban Pl8 is located on Huff Road, off of Howell Mill.  The location is a bit off the beaten path, but not far away at all.  (It was about 5 minutes from our apartment.)  The quality of food and low price made for a great dining experience and I love seeing other young women entrepreneurs, working hard to create a successful business.   I encourage everyone (gluten-free and non gluten-free diners) to check out Urban Pl8.  Let me know what you order.  I’ll definitely going back and I’m eager to see how the menu changes seasonally.