ATLANTA

Joël

Phil Skinner/AJC 2006 (ENLARGE)
Marlow's Tavern's twice-cooked fries are tossed with truffle oil and topped with Parmigiano Reggiano and parsley.
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Who would have thought a couple of Frenchmen could have made a Southern dish taste so good? Chef Joel Antunes may have left Atlanta to reopen the Plaza Hotel's Oak Room in New York, but one of the jewels he leaves behind in the kitchen, in the capable hands of chef Cyrille Holata, is the truffled grits, a recipe the two chefs created together. The grits are cooked in boiling milk, cream and butter and stirred often until done. Once cooked, the grits are salted, peppered and drizzled with a truffle and grape seed oil produced by Jerome Galis, a French truffle-buyer and hunter of black diamond truffles.

The 411: Prices and menu vary, but grits are featured regularly. 3290 Northside Parkway N.E., Atlanta. 404-233-3500.

ALPHARETTA

Marlow's Tavern

Russet Burbank potatoes are peeled, cleaned and hand-cut daily, then precooked. When an order is placed, the half-cooked fries are fried a second time, seasoned with house spices and tossed with French white truffle oil and topped with fresh grated Parmigiano Reggiano and chopped parsley. "It's a perfect combination," says executive chef and owner John Metz. "And the blanching process cooks the center evenly, so it's light and fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside without being greasy." Look for a new Marlow's opening on LaVista Road in June.

The 411: $4.99. 3719 Old Alabama Road, Alpharetta, 770-475-1800; and other locations.

INMAN PARK

Fritti

The sublime funghi fritti appetizer is consistently crispy, says chef de cuisine Tyler Westbrook, because rice flour batter stands up to frying better than flour. Shiitake, crimini and portobello mushrooms are rolled in batter made from white rice flour, water, fresh chopped rosemary and fine sea salt. They're fried in canola oil and then drizzled with olive oil infused with Alba, Italy's famous white truffles.

The 411: $8. 309 North Highland Ave., Atlanta. 404-880-9559.

— Lynn Peisner