Porter Beer Bar reopens in Atlanta’s Little Five Points neighborhood

Credit: Courtesy of Angela Hansberger

Credit: Courtesy of Angela Hansberger

They bought the bar from Molly Gunn and Nick Rutherford, who opened Porter’s in 2008. The two met at Seeger’s in Buckhead, where Rutherford was chef, and Gunn worked front of house. Over the years, the Porter has earned two James Beard Foundation award nominations for its bar program and has been named to several national Best Bar lists.

Hodgkinson and Maloof have spent the last two years modernizing the Porter building and reinventing the menu, although longtime customers will very well recognize the reopened bar.

“One of the hardest things to learn, but also one of the most rewarding things to learn, is to listen to your guests,” said Hodgkinson, who spent time training in the kitchen with Rutherford and Gunn. “When Manny approached me about working with the Porter, he asked me if I wanted to keep it as Porter or do my own thing. I told him I’d have to be crazy to think putting anything else in this building would do well. I would be greeted with pitchforks and torches. It’s such an important place for so many people.

The menu will continue to offer several long-time favorites, including salt and vinegar popcorn, goat cheese fritters and fish and chips, but Hodgkinson still has plenty of opportunities to put his own spin on the menu.

Credit: Courtesy of Angela Hansberger

Credit: Courtesy of Angela Hansberger

Guests will discover new dishes including Crispy Wild Mushroom Chicken with French Onion Dip; grilled Toulouse sausage, butter-roasted cabbage, dried cherries and mustard; mussels and beer with chili peppers, lager, butter, garlic and toast; and a baby gem and kale salad with goddess vinaigrette, crunchy bread and grana padano cheese. There are also homages to dishes Hodgkinson loved to eat at Porter when he was a customer, including a homemade Velveeta mac and cheese.

The menu will also include several vegetarian dishes with many different preparations, a nod from Hodgkinson to the wide selection of quality Georgia-grown produce.

Hodgkinson said he took inspiration from restaurants he visited during his travels, from Balthazar in New York to Joe Beef in Montreal and True Laurel in San Francisco, when developing Porter’s menu.

“I love eclectic, fun, funky, very classically inspired food, and to me that’s a lot of what Porter is. As wildly creative as the specials were, the core menu lived up to this classic, nostalgic beer bar.

Already known for its beer selection, the bar has added 18 more taps, for a total of 60, including taps for cask beers. The majority of taps will be dedicated to beers made in Georgia, although global and domestic breweries will also be represented.

Credit: Brian Crumb

Credit: Brian Crumb

Ten direct tap lines have been added to another area of ​​the restaurant that will activate when the bar offers more expensive or rarer beers or hosts one-off collaborations with brewers.

The Porter will continue its extensive vintage beer program and host special events in a beer cellar located inside the taproom.

Credit: Courtesy of Angela Hansberger

Credit: Courtesy of Angela Hansberger

The building also underwent a renovation, including modifications to the rear to improve staff efficiency. Small changes customers might notice include a bar rail added to the front bar with a slight ledge, new tables and booths, and more paintings of animals drinking beer to complement art done by a former employee of Porter which previously hung in the restaurant.

The bar’s old tables and booths were transformed into a barrel-shaped ceiling suspended above the front bar.

Credit: Brian Crumb

Credit: Brian Crumb

The staff is also familiar to longtime Porter customers. Nearly all of the employees worked for the bar before it closed, with some taking jobs at other Maloof bars while the Porter was being renovated.

“Every decision we made wasn’t like, ‘Let’s change this just because,’” Hodgkinson said. “It was, how does this make sense for customers and our staff. This is what motivated any changes made.

Hours will be 5 p.m. to midnight Wednesday through Sunday, with plans to add a weekend brunch soon.

Hodgkinson said he hoped he and Maloof had found the right balance between maintaining the old spirit of the Porter, while introducing some of their own touches.

“The idea is to usher in the next evolution of Porter,” Hodgkindson said. “A lot of people have a restaurant circuit that they go for it, and I think the Porter has always been one of those for so many people. It’s a place where people can share a beer, a conversation or a first date. Manny bought it because he didn’t want to see it disappear. We’ve lost a lot of good restaurants in this city, and if Porter’s disappeared it would be very sad.

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