Acclaimed Atlanta Chef Suzanne Vizethann has bought Marriner’s Restaurant in Camden, which she plans to reopen in April as Buttermilk Kitchen at Marriner’s. Photo by Suzanne Vizethann
Longstanding Camden breakfast and lunch spot Marriner’s Restaurant has been sold to a notable Atlanta chef and restaurateur who plans to bring a little “Southern flair” to the menu when she relaunches the restaurant this spring.
Suzanne Vizethann, chef-owner of Buttermilk Kitchen in Atlanta’s tony Buckhead neighborhood, bought the 82-year-old restaurant from Dan and Becki Gabriele on Dec. 19. The Gabrieles had owned Marriner’s for 41 years. Vizethann said she hopes to reopen the venue as Buttermilk Kitchen at Marriner’s in April.
Vizethann and her restaurant have been featured on TV shows including the “Today” show, “The Chew” and “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” Vizethann was also a past champion on the cooking competition show “Chopped.” The nonprofit group Charleston Wine + Food has described Vizethann as a “breakfast innovator and brunch queen.”
Vizethann said she and her husband, Ryan Barfield, relocated to Rockport in the fall. “Initially, we weren’t going to expand the brand up here,” she said. “But we kind of found the space, and I have a manager who wants to move up here and run it. So here we are, opening No. 2.
“We are taking over a spot that has been in downtown Camden for 82 years, so it’s really part of the fabric of the community,” Vizethann continued. “My restaurant in Atlanta is a staple in the community as well. We want to continue that up here and kind of mix the old with the new.”
When interior renovation begins on the 1,400-square-foot space this winter, Vizethann said she’ll be adding a breakfast counter to the restaurant. She plans to add an espresso bar, and will serve alcohol, mostly as brunch beverages like mimosas and Bloody Marys.
Vizethann expects to keep Marriner’s top-selling dishes on the menu, while adding some Southern-influenced food from her Atlanta breakfast-and-lunch restaurant.
“As far as our concepts go, they’re pretty similar,” she said of Marriner’s and Buttermilk Kitchen. “We’re both doing breakfast and lunch, but we have a little bit more of Southern flair, so expect some grits, biscuits, and gravy and fried chicken.”
CITRUS CLOSES IN CITY CENTER
Downtown cocktail bar and dance club Citrus recently closed after about 18 months in operation.
“We are sad to announce that this will be Citrus’ last weekend open,” a Dec. 28 post on the Citrus Instagram page announced. No further information on the reason behind the closing was available on the club’s social media page, and the owners could not be reached for comment on Tuesday.
Co-owner Mark Ohlson had previously run MJ’s Wine Bar out of the same location, 1 City Center in Portland, before closing it in March 2021. Ohlson and his team launched Citrus in July 2021.
CELEBRATE ROMA CAFE’S 100th ANNIVERSARY
The storied Roma Cafe on Congress Street in Portland is marking its 100th anniversary this year with two special dinner events.
Set for this Friday and Saturday from 5-9 p.m., the five-course dinners cost $100 per person, with a $40 optional wine pairing featuring four wines. “There aren’t that many restaurants around here with that long history,” said Roma chef and co-owner Sid Rumma. “It’s a really big celebration for us.”
Co-owner Michael Fraser – also a partner in Bramhall, CBG, Nosh, Nosh Taco and Paper Tiger – said Roma was established in 1924 by founder Dominic Marino on Congress Street. In 1935, Roma moved to its current location at 767 Congress St. in the Rines Mansion.
The restaurant has closed for short periods over the decades. In 1985, the Marino family sold Roma to new owners; in 2017 Fraser and his partners relaunched Roma Cafe after Fraser had resurrected the Bramhall bar in the building’s basement in 2014.
Fraser and Rumma said they studied Roma’s early 20th-century menus to create the menu for the upcoming dinners, which will offer some vintage Roma dishes like haddock almandine, along with some of Rumma’s current offerings like tagliatelle Bolognese.
Front-of-house staff will wear black vests and black ties for the special dinners, kitchen staff will don chef toques and the tables will be covered in white tablecloths to create an old-school aesthetic for the anniversary dinners, Fraser said. A jazz duo will play live music both nights, and guests go home with a box of house-baked cookies and other treats.
Fraser said he and Rumma hope to hold similar celebration dinners throughout the year, but haven’t yet finalized dates. “We think we need to pay a little homage (to the anniversary),” Fraser said. “I feel like it’s kind of a big deal.”
Make reservations for the special dinners through the Roma website or Open Table.
RESERVE NOW FOR THE WELL AT JORDAN’S FARM
Cape Elizabeth’s in-demand farm-to-table restaurant, The Well at Jordan’s Farm, is now taking reservations for the 2024 season.
The Well operates from June to September, offering tasting menus; fixed-price, family-style dinners; and a la carte offerings, with seating at the Chef’s Porch Table and in private gazebos. Make reservations online through Tock.
Located on the 120-acre Jordan’s Farm, The Well launched in 2010. In 2019, the restaurant earned a 4-star review from Portland Press Herald critic Andrew Ross.
Another popular destination restaurant, Erin French’s Lost Kitchen in Freedom, accepts postcard requests for coming-season reservations usually starting in April.
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