Cotton Calf Kitchen

After an afternoon of wine tasting at Chateau Elan, we popped down the road to a new steak restaurant that opened in Braselton’s quaint downtown. 

Cotton Calf Kitchen, a contemporary classic steakhouse, was beckoning for us to try her out to fill the empty stomachs we acquired after tasting our way through the winery. 

Sweater || White Jeans || Dooney & Bourke Crossbody (vintage) similar here (under $50) and here || Sunglasses (under $20!) || Earrings || Bracelets || Sandals (old) similar here and here 

In true Emily Gilmore fashion, I changed out of my day skirt and chambray from earlier into something more sleek and polished for our steakhouse dinner. I haven’t been to the town of Braselton before, but it seduced me with its small town charm and renovated Main Street, something I couldn’t help but fall in love with. 

The business owners all work together to create a unique experience for their patrons by sourcing locally and selling each others items, like coffee, baked goods, etc. 

A truly unique practice that luckily Atlanta is starting to follow but something that small towns have been doing and perfecting for ages. 
Upon entering Cotton Calf Kitchen, you’re faced with their sports bar meets sophisticated bar area. A group of men in polos and khakis (seemingly just finished with playing a round of golf at Chateau Elan), sat around watching ESPN and drinking beers before returning to their wives at home. 
Couples were huddled in the plush booths that dotted the aisle of the restaurant and early bird eaters (like ourselves) sat themselves in the back enjoying their dinner and each other’s company. 

I love the design of Cotton Calf Kitchen. It’s rural meets industrial and the food is anything but “small-town”. 

We quickly got seated and immediately got to ordering.   

Starting with Colossal Shrimp Cocktail and an heirloom tomato salad. 

I couldn’t believe how huge the shrimp actually were! They weren’t kidding about colossal! This would easily fill you up if you were looking for a light meal. 
The heirloom tomato salad, while beautiful, unfortunately had the texture of unripe tomatoes. The flavors were delicious and reminded me a lot of this one I made over the summer, but it’s not quite tomato season. 

In the height of summertime I can assure you, this dish would be fantastic! 

While the sun set behind us, our mains started to make their way out to the table. 
Petite bone in filet for me. 

And a tomahawk ribeye for the boy. This picture doesn’t do the size of this thing justice. It was massive. Easily 2 feet in length. It came to our table a sizzling chop and was plated and drizzled tableside with butter and juices. As a side, we ordered the grilled jumbo asparagus. Very good, and perfectly cooked. 

The truffle parmesan fries, which to my disappointment, were wedge-style fries and not shoe string like I had hoped. The flavor was excellent, I just don’t care for wedge-style fries. 

The Southwestern Cream Corn was not what I was expecting. Spicy and chile con queso like, it was a superb flavor combo but I don’t think it accompanied the steaks nicely. The next day, reheated on it’s own it was like corn packed chili and was excellent. 

The meal is served family style, so bring a couple of your friends and come with hungry stomachs! There was way too much food on our table to eat it all that night, but we did our best to make a dent. 

With full bellies and happy hearts, we said farewell to our gracious hosts and left the restaurant with a doggy bag filled with bones for one happy pup at home. 

If you’re looking for a fun afternoon, I highly recommend starting your day at Chateau Elan and then hopping over to downtown Braselton (all of 7 minutes away) and eating at The Cotton Calf Kitchen! It was a fun upscale down-home steakhouse experience that you won’t get in the city. 

You can find the Cotton Calf Kitchen at 9924 Davis Street, Braselton GA. Website is here. 

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