Marlow’s is a chain that resides in many places, but we just got a brand new one in Dunwoody! Jimmy and I decided to eat there Friday night since it was open late. It was my first time at Marlow’s and Jimmy’s second – although he doesn’t remember much of his first time thanks to more alcohol intake than food! Wow, I totally just made him sound like an alcoholic, but you must understand – two drinks in and Jimmy’s a little out of it.
Anyway, the new location (pictured above) is really well done. The patio is large and a great place to spend watching a game and chowing down during the lovely fall weather. Our waiter, Harold, was super nice and we spent a lot of time talking to him about our current car shopping exploits. He even let us take a look at this brand new car – a car we’ve been considering buying ourselves. He did a great job serving as well – our drinks stayed full and he was more than helpful with our questions about the menu.
Food-wise, Marlow’s Tavern tries to be a bit more upscale than most sports bars. Sort of in the gastropub niche. I always try the fries at every bar because I’m a fry freak and generally believe bars should have awesome potato offerings. The truffled parmesan fries were pretty good, but not the best. When the fry was coated in the truffle oil and parmesan it got two thumbs up – the remainder fries were sort of tasteless.
For my entree, I went with the customer favorite shrimp and grits. I love shrimp and grits in general in various varieties. Marlow’s serves the shrimp, roma tomatoes, and roast tomato beurre blanc over two white cheddar grit cakes with spinach between the cake layers. The sauce has an interestingly mild flavor while the diced tomatoes had a wonderfully fresh taste. I do wish the sauce had had a bit more kick to it. The shrimp were so-so, but the grits really threw me off. And this could just be entirely personal bias. I’ve never had grit cakes before – only soup-like grits. The cakes make the grits taste slightly dry and overcooked. Not a huge fan of that outcome. All-in-all, my food was decent, but way overpriced for the quality and for bar food in general.
Jimmy had the Everything and the “Kitchen Sink” burger and fries. He gobbled up the burger, but left most of the fries sitting. He’s not a huge fry guy though and not overly fond of potatoes if I think about it.
In short, we’ll probably be back for some appetizers and to watch a game. Like I said earlier, the patio is terrific and the service great. As long as you order reasonably priced dishes, a worthy addition to the neighborhood. Welcome Marlow’s!
(All pictures courtesy of Marlow’s Tavern’s FB page)
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