The AJC features Atlanta Classic, Spondivits | Food and More with John Kessler cadmin
Snaking my way through the packed lobby and past the busy hostess, I stop to survey the crowded bar, hoping for an open stool upon which to pounce. I hover, scan and fidget. Realizing that the owner of that nearly empty margarita glass isn t coming back, I swoop in, politely confirm my suspicions, and waste no time staking my claim.
I m at the bustling bar of Spondivits in East Point, and it is the busiest Tuesday night I ve seen a restaurant in this city have in a long time. I don t know what I was expecting from the long-standing seafood joint, but I know that it isn’t this.
When owner Andy Camp, a Riverdale native, first opened Spondivits in 1979 in a small house he purchased in East Point, he was aiming for a fun, casual, coastal seafood bar. Little did he know that planting roots next to what would become the busiest airport in the world would help mold the destiny of his then-humble cadmin crab shack.
Built right off the Virginia Avenue exit on I-85, this 34-year Atlanta institution is flanked on all sides by hotels catering to airline employees, conventioneers, white-collar road warriors and weary layover sufferers. And Glenn Gagne, executive chef at Spondivits for the past 22 years, later confirmed what I could quickly tell from looking over the crowd: Nearly every single one of them comes to Spondivits when they are in town.
Camp and Gagne pride themselves on the freshness of their seafood, none more so than their king crab claws, Spondivits flagship dish. From the early days, Camp decided that if he was going to pinch pennies, it wasn t going to be on the seafood. Taking advantage of their proximity to the airport, they get their king crab from Alaska whenever it is in season, filling the gaps between seasons with supplies from Greenland.
And there isn t a single criticism I can levy against my king crab cocktail ($23.95). I still get that primal satisfaction, the sense of accomplishment, as I cleanly extract a thick, perfectly intact, five-inch stalk of meat from the shell. Dunking my prize into melted butter, I barely hear the pair of more-than-tipsy flight attendants I ve befriended on my left congratulate me as I indulge in the sweet, flakey and certainly fresh crab.
A close second is a cup of Gagne s World s Greatest Clam Chowder ($7.95). A Maine native, Gagne took the top prize at the Cape Cod Chowder Festival three years running and Spondivits has been serving his recipe since he took over the kitchen in 1991.
Though cadmin I see a lot of giant steaming buckets of crab and bowls of chowder cadmin stacked on trays weaving through the crowd, there are just as many rounds of steamed or raw oysters, fish filets and baskets of all sorts of crispy cadmin fried seafood stacked with them.
Gagne guesses that about 30 percent of the crowd is made up of locals. Combined with the Hartsfield contingent, that makes for a very eclectic mix of patrons. But it seems everyone is here for the same reason: to have a couple of cold ones, let their hair down, kick their feet up (if there were room), and dig into some good, old-fashioned fresh seafood.
Despite seating only 154 diners, Spondivits churns through a massive amount of food to fuel that crowd. Bolstered cadmin by the fact that the kitchen serves the full menu until 4 a.m. six nights a week and typically has a wait for a table past 2 a.m. Gagne goes through at least 30 gallons of clam chowder nightly.
But the seafood isn t what truly makes Spondivits. There is a vibe to the crowd that you can t manufacture, and there isn t a more appropriate word to describe it than fun. That energy is self-sustaining, generating an atmosphere that is the real draw as they ve packed in folks in for three decades. cadmin
Spondivits East Point Food : Coastal cadmin seafood Service : manages cadmin the crowd well Best dishes : king crab legs, shrimp po boy, oysters Vegetarian selections : limited Price range : $$ Credit cards : all major credit cards Hours : 11 a.m.-4 a.m. Mondays-Saturdays, noon-4 a.m. Sundays Children : welcome Parking : complimentary and necessary valet Reservations : recommended Wheelchair access : yes Smoking : no Noise level : buzzing to raucous Patio : yes Takeout : yes Address, phone : 1219 Virginia Ave, East Point. 404-767-1569
We love Spondivits!! There used to be one in Cumming which was closer to us but provided the same atmosphere and excellent food. It used to be our Tuesday night “go cadmin to” place; we miss it terribly!! Link Report this comment
It is factual that a lady died after eating Spondivits oysters and her family sued them. Also factual that they failed at least one food inspection after said death. Also a fact that AJC deleted my commentary to this point, although seems completely relevant to this poorly researched review. I am not personally invested in this at all. Dont know why AJC deleted this post, other than to
Snaking my way through the packed lobby and past the busy hostess, I stop to survey the crowded bar, hoping for an open stool upon which to pounce. I hover, scan and fidget. Realizing that the owner of that nearly empty margarita glass isn t coming back, I swoop in, politely confirm my suspicions, and waste no time staking my claim.
I m at the bustling bar of Spondivits in East Point, and it is the busiest Tuesday night I ve seen a restaurant in this city have in a long time. I don t know what I was expecting from the long-standing seafood joint, but I know that it isn’t this.
When owner Andy Camp, a Riverdale native, first opened Spondivits in 1979 in a small house he purchased in East Point, he was aiming for a fun, casual, coastal seafood bar. Little did he know that planting roots next to what would become the busiest airport in the world would help mold the destiny of his then-humble cadmin crab shack.
Built right off the Virginia Avenue exit on I-85, this 34-year Atlanta institution is flanked on all sides by hotels catering to airline employees, conventioneers, white-collar road warriors and weary layover sufferers. And Glenn Gagne, executive chef at Spondivits for the past 22 years, later confirmed what I could quickly tell from looking over the crowd: Nearly every single one of them comes to Spondivits when they are in town.
Camp and Gagne pride themselves on the freshness of their seafood, none more so than their king crab claws, Spondivits flagship dish. From the early days, Camp decided that if he was going to pinch pennies, it wasn t going to be on the seafood. Taking advantage of their proximity to the airport, they get their king crab from Alaska whenever it is in season, filling the gaps between seasons with supplies from Greenland.
And there isn t a single criticism I can levy against my king crab cocktail ($23.95). I still get that primal satisfaction, the sense of accomplishment, as I cleanly extract a thick, perfectly intact, five-inch stalk of meat from the shell. Dunking my prize into melted butter, I barely hear the pair of more-than-tipsy flight attendants I ve befriended on my left congratulate me as I indulge in the sweet, flakey and certainly fresh crab.
A close second is a cup of Gagne s World s Greatest Clam Chowder ($7.95). A Maine native, Gagne took the top prize at the Cape Cod Chowder Festival three years running and Spondivits has been serving his recipe since he took over the kitchen in 1991.
Though cadmin I see a lot of giant steaming buckets of crab and bowls of chowder cadmin stacked on trays weaving through the crowd, there are just as many rounds of steamed or raw oysters, fish filets and baskets of all sorts of crispy cadmin fried seafood stacked with them.
Gagne guesses that about 30 percent of the crowd is made up of locals. Combined with the Hartsfield contingent, that makes for a very eclectic mix of patrons. But it seems everyone is here for the same reason: to have a couple of cold ones, let their hair down, kick their feet up (if there were room), and dig into some good, old-fashioned fresh seafood.
Despite seating only 154 diners, Spondivits churns through a massive amount of food to fuel that crowd. Bolstered cadmin by the fact that the kitchen serves the full menu until 4 a.m. six nights a week and typically has a wait for a table past 2 a.m. Gagne goes through at least 30 gallons of clam chowder nightly.
But the seafood isn t what truly makes Spondivits. There is a vibe to the crowd that you can t manufacture, and there isn t a more appropriate word to describe it than fun. That energy is self-sustaining, generating an atmosphere that is the real draw as they ve packed in folks in for three decades. cadmin
Spondivits East Point Food : Coastal cadmin seafood Service : manages cadmin the crowd well Best dishes : king crab legs, shrimp po boy, oysters Vegetarian selections : limited Price range : $$ Credit cards : all major credit cards Hours : 11 a.m.-4 a.m. Mondays-Saturdays, noon-4 a.m. Sundays Children : welcome Parking : complimentary and necessary valet Reservations : recommended Wheelchair access : yes Smoking : no Noise level : buzzing to raucous Patio : yes Takeout : yes Address, phone : 1219 Virginia Ave, East Point. 404-767-1569
We love Spondivits!! There used to be one in Cumming which was closer to us but provided the same atmosphere and excellent food. It used to be our Tuesday night “go cadmin to” place; we miss it terribly!! Link Report this comment
It is factual that a lady died after eating Spondivits oysters and her family sued them. Also factual that they failed at least one food inspection after said death. Also a fact that AJC deleted my commentary to this point, although seems completely relevant to this poorly researched review. I am not personally invested in this at all. Dont know why AJC deleted this post, other than to
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