Local Cafe Celebrates the Melting Pot of America

Tucked away down a side street in the historic area of Roswell, Oak Street Café gives visitors quite a surprise when they enter this small bistro. With rich red walls, exposed ceiling beams and an unusual but attractive hardwood ceiling, the café gives more of an East Village/New York City vibe than of a suburban eatery in Roswell.

Numerous dishes prepared by former New York chef Joseph McCaffrey have become legendary for the locals who flock in week after week, but the menu continues to change, accommodating McCaffrey’s growing list of cultivated recipes. Although well known for its lunch specialties and Sunday brunch items, Oak Street Café also offers an outstanding and varied dinner menu.

One of Oak Street Café’s most famous entrées, the meatball-themed Polpettone, is a recipe direct from Italy, courtesy of McCaffrey’s grandmother. Featuring rounded, oversized meatballs served with radiatore pasta, the dish can easily satisfy a hearty appetite with its old-world fl avors and strong, tomato-based sauce. The consistency of the meatballs is pleasing, and the sauce adds the right spices to make this dish an Italian favorite to frequent guests.

Another popular item often listed as a specialty is the pan-roasted halibut with jalapeño gritcakes, Vidalia onions and buttered broccoli. Offering a unique twist on a typical Northern fish recipe, the simple, roasted halibut filet is subtly seasoned, reflecting McCaffrey’s mastery in combining fl avors to please the palate.

The delectable chocolate pot de crème has a harder, darker chocolate layer on top, with a smoother, creamier fi lling underneath. The taste is very pleasing and the chocolate flavors are distinct and unique.  It’s a rich dessert, so keep that in mind when you order, and make sure you have an appropriate after-dinner drink to pair with it. I suggest the latte, which, with its thick foam and strong flavor, nicely complemented the sweetness of the chocolate pot de crème that I sampled.

With a satisfying pudding consistency, McCaffrey’s crème brulee is an example of why simple is often best. The dessert pairs nicely with the Oak Street Café’s signature cocktail, the Ambassador. Consisting of amaretto, soda and lime, the orange-colored cocktail offers a little something sweet in an unusual package for your end-of-the-meal craving.

Oak Street Café, located at 45 Oak Street in Roswell, is open 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Tuesday; 9 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5:30-10 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5:30-10 p.m. Saturday; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday. Visit www.oakstcafe.com or call 770-594-1300 for more information. Allison Howard is a local freelance writer.