The Midtown Promenade development is getting a new restaurant from Chef Pat Pascarella.
Called Alici, which translates to anchovies in Italian, the concept will be an oyster and seafood bar. Pascarella is also the co-founder of The Porchetta Group, a hospitality company that is behind popular Italian restaurants The White Bull and Grana, as well as the forthcoming Bastone.
Alici will open at 931 Monroe Drive in summer 2022. The space was formerly home to FROGS Cantina and Ah-Ma’s Taiwanese Kitchen, both of which closed in December 2020.
“I’ve always wanted a restaurant on the Beltline and I think a lot of the other areas of the Beltline are overcrowded with restaurants, so we wanted to be somewhere kind of secluded,” Pascarella said in an email. “With the new redevelopment of the Midtown Promenade complex, we realized we’d be a great fit for the location.”
Guests can expect a menu that’s as creative and entertaining as the restaurant’s official lease signing announcement on Instagram . Alici will serve pastas, risottos, socca (an Italian pancake made from chickpea flour that’s served with an assortment of toppings) and, of course, a variety of oysters and other seasonal seafood dishes. The restaurant will also include a bar offering sparkling, light red, and white wines sourced from Italy’s coastal areas, as well as craft cocktails.
Design-wise, Alici will feature an open oyster bar, a kitchen with a visible wood-fired oven, large front windows and two patios. Between the patios, bar, and dining room, it will seat 110 guests and be open for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch.
