Cotton & Rye

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see how quickly Savannah’s food scene is changing. There’s been enough ink burned on that subject in the last year or so to fill all the kegs at Southbound Brewery. Seriously, no one seems to be able to recall a time in this city’s culinary history when more new places to eat have come on-line. MLK near Broughton got a beautiful facelift with The Grey. Bay Street near Abercorn has a nice addition with Treylor Park and their beer garden in the lane. Just two of the many new spots on-line or about to be. Truth be told, the part of town I am most excited about and seeing its development and growth? Downtown’s Victorian District. South of Park Avenue. Shall we call it SoPa just to be cool and trendy? Yeah, maybe not. Besides, Sopa is Spanish for “soup”. I don’t see it catching on. One new spot, however, that I believe will absolutely catch on is being built out as we speak on Habersham and 33rd Streets.

I walked into the now gutted main room of the building looking for the cheesecakes. Yes, the building you’ve likely driven by dozens, if not hundreds of times, that was formerly home to FORM Gourmet To Go and their cheesecakes, as well as EOS once upon a time, is getting an overhaul. By the time they are done, Cotton & Rye may join The Florence as the Southern end of downtown’s crown jewels. Yes, I know that is quite a statement, but it’s not hard to see the vision Zach Shultz has for the place. For starters, there is a significant amount of investment going on here. This isn’t taking over a fryer and a fridge and starting a restaurant. Zach is overseeing construction of an entirely new space. Kitchen built out from the ground up, indoor and outdoor seating and what promises to be a beautiful craft cocktail bar. The concept overall? They are calling it “Modern American” and you will see all of their influences on the menu. Beginning with Brunch, which he is planning to have day one and is extremely passionate about. “You will see a lobster roll from New England, to a Cuban sandwich on the brunch menu that hails from Key West or Tampa, depending on who you ask,” Zach tells me. “America is a melting pot of people and foods, and our style reflects that. We are using modern techniques for some things (you won’t see any fruit “caviar” pearls or anything like that though), as well as embracing the traditional arts like sausage and pâté making, breads from scratch, grinding our own meat for the burgers, which is both traditional and modern, depending on how you look at it”, he adds.

When I ask what types of places and people have influenced what he and his partners are planning to do, he rattles off a list of spots all over the country that have made an impression on him. Much like anyone else, if you spend all of your life in restaurants, then open your own place, you are going to pick and choose the things you liked and disliked over your career. No different here, but based on the spots he shared like Miami’s Yardbird or New York City’s The Gander, you just know this spot is going to be great. If the food is as good as they expect it to be, then Cotton & Rye could become iconic in Savannah. Much like the The Grey and The Florence. Yes, I realize those two spots haven’t even enjoyed a first anniversary yet, but they are in it for the long haul, changing the culinary landscape along Georgia’s coast.

I’ve seen the latest version of their menu. Loved it. When you get all geeky like I can sometimes looking at a menu, you appreciate the ones that are well crafted. Not all of them are. All I got a peek at was the dinner menu, but it was absolutely inviting and fun. A little bit mainstream, but a little bit outside the lines. “We are shooting for clean flavors, and you won’t see anything on the plate just because it looks cool”, Zach says. “Everything will have a purpose, and we think the food you get will deliver beyond what you read on the menu.” There is clearly a lot of thought going into how they are going to approach food here. Zach cites a primary influence as Beard Award Winning Chef Allen Susser, one of the original chefs to bring fine dining to South Florida in the 80’s and 90’s and we all know how that turned out.

New restaurants open all the time. Sadly, some close relatively quickly as well. Typically the ones that don’t make the cut do so because they lack vision, planning, and frankly good chops in the kitchen. Weeks before Collins Quarter opened its doors on Bull Street, I had a local wine distributor approach me and say “Collins is going to be great. I can see it already.” He was absolutely right. (If you haven’t already, you need to try their burger by the way.) Cotton & Rye has all the makings of Savannah’s next foodie rock star. Frankly the more the merrier. Let’s see what happens. They expect to open around June. And of course, I will keep you posted.

See you on TV.

Jesse