Five & Ten

Five & Ten Restaurant Review:

Born and reared in Ottawa, Canada, Hugh Acheson has established his credentials as a Southern chef since opening the original Five & Ten in 2000. The building it now calls home is a former residence adapted appropriately to restaurant use, with a simple interior, well-spaced tables and generous windows admitting lots of natural light. Acheson appreciates the Southern larder but employs it his way; for example, take his low country boil, a dish originating on the Georgia and South Carolina coast, aka the low country. A light tomato broth enrobes the otherwise standard ingredients, namely Georgia shrimp, cob corn, spicy sausage and fingerling potatoes. Seasonally, you'll find watermelon salad with pickled watermelon rind and cheese; sorghum, a crushed-grass syrup, in a vinaigrette or perhaps bathing pork ribs; and a Muscadine hull tart with a Scuppernong sorbet. And, of course, peaches, from roasted to infusing a cocktail. Tuesday nights are devoted to ramen. The wine list roams the globe and most selections represent value. Unfortunately, despite devotion to local products, the restaurant avoids local wines but does offer a good array of Georgia craft beers, including Athens’ own Terrapin and Creature Comforts.