Looking for a place to get drinks and a quick bite with friends?  Looking for a restaurant with well prepared, seasonal entrees?  Searching for a nice restaurant with a gluten-free menu?  Check. Check.  Check.  Midtown’s Ecco Restaurant fits all of these categories, and fits them well. Not only does Ecco offer a gluten-free menu, but I found that many of the dishes they serve on this seasonal, European-inspired menu are naturally gluten-free.  At Ecco, depending on your appetite and mood, you either can go the small plate route or choose from one of their delicious main courses and sides.  David and I thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience at Ecco last week.  On top of the delicious food, Atlanta’s weather has finally turned from terrible and rainy to sunny and gorgeous so David and I were excited when we pulled up to Ecco and saw they offer outside seating.  We enjoyed a lovely evening outside full of gluten-free food.

David and I started our meal ordering from Ecco’s large list of meats and cheeses. I’ve never been all that into anti-pasti, but after my dinner at Ecco, I’m officially converted.  We selected two cheeses and one meat, under the guidance of the chef.  We went with the Bresaola, a house-cured organic beef eye round, thinly sliced.  These thin slivers of beef were amazing.  You could taste the rosemary, pepper and spices used for curing the beef.  Because Ecco slices the meat so thinly, I felt like I was eating a lot but did not find myself too full after the course.  To accompany the beef, we ordered an aged gouda from Holland and a semi-firm cow’s milk cheese from Thomasville, Georgia.  The Gouda contained what David and I like to refer to as ‘flavor crystals,’ little crystallized pieces in the cheese that provide a little crunch and added dimension of flavor.  The local Georgia cheese was also yummy, but a little milder.  The gluten-free menu contained two blue cheeses which I avoided, but I recently read that blue cheese is safe for people with celiac disease.  (*See note below for more information on blue cheese and gluten.)  We slowly savored every bite of our ‘Meat & Cheese’ plate.  An added plus for us gluten-free diners is that Ecco’s meat and cheese plates come with no gluten which you must navigate.  You don’t have to worry about crackers, bread, contaminated knives, etc.  Just a platter of meat and cheese.  Beautiful.

After we leisurely enjoyed every last crumble of cheese and sliver of beef, we ordered our entrees.  I chose the braised beef short rib with carrots, radish and mint and of course I couldn’t resist ordering a side of roasted Brussels sprouts with walnuts.  If you like Brussels sprouts, you should leave your home immediately, go straight to Ecco and order their sprouts.  I’ve eaten a lot of Brussels sprouts this winter and these were without question, the best I’ve consumed.  Ecco roasts the sprouts perfectly in their wood fire and the combination of walnuts, parmesan and spices cannot be described in words.  Go.  Go now and try them for yourself.  The flavors of the shortribs provided a delicious center piece to the meal and the radish and mint went surprisingly well with the shortribs.  I ate almost every bite, except the one I generously shared with David.  (I even gave him a Brussels sprout.)

For all of you gluten-eaters out there, David ordered the house made pasta and absolutely loved it.  The good news is that I didn’t envy his meal one bit because I barely looked up from my shortribs and sprouts.

As I mentioned earlier, Ecco provided a gluten-free menu, always such a relief for gluten-free diners.  When choosing a restaurant, I love the option of a GF menu because I don’t have to ask as many questions of my server and I know all of my options.  I spoke in detail with the chef about the wood fire grill they use.  He assured me that only pizzas are cooked directly on the oven and everything else is prepared in a pan.  Ecco’s staff is careful about contamination and even though they have a GF menu, they still take extra precaution when preparing a meal for a gluten-free diner, making sure to use clean tongs and pans.  The chef also assured me that they don’t use any soy sauce in their food preparation.  From my conversation with the chef and my own dining experience, it’s clear to me that Ecco used great care and research in creating this menu.  My only concern on the GF menu is the pomme frites side dish.  I forgot to ask the chef if they use a separate fryer for their frites so I would inquire before ordering the frites.

Not only was our meal delicious, but the service was amazing.  Our waiter gave us well-thought advice on wine (great selection of wines by the glass) and ordering in general.  We did not feel rushed, as we took our time, enjoying every bite and sip.  Owned by the Fifth Group Restaurants, all of their restaurants now offer gluten-free menus including, South City Kitchen, El Taco, and La Travolla.  I haven’t seen their GF menus yet, but I’m sure they have plenty of delicious offerings as well.  I will be sure to check out Fifth Group’s other restaurants in the upcoming months and let you know about how their menus size up. If they’re anything like Ecco’s, it will be worth the trip.

Ecco – 40 7^th Street, NE  – Atlanta, GA 30308

*A note on Blue Cheese From Gluten Free in SD: All Blue Cheese is now considered fine on a gluten-free diet.  Reported in the Gluten Intolerance Group Magazine in 2008: “Based on the most sensitive tests currently available on the market and our understanding of the minute amounts of mold spores used in the making of the cheese, we may conclude that blue cheese is safe for consumption as part of the gluten-free diet.”

Tags: anti-pasti, Atlanta, Brussels sprouts, celiac, Ecco, El Taco, Fifth Group Restaurant, gluten-free, La Travolla, Midtwon, restaurant, seasonal, South City Kitchen, spring

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