Damsel is a glut of experiences with its food, drinks, live performances, and service. Think of it as dinner theater kicked up a notch. That’s how Dave Green, the owner behind The Select in Sandy Springs, describes his new cabaret, restaurant, and nightclub now open at The Works.
Damsel became the latest addition to the Chattahoochee Avenue retail and restaurant complex bordering Underwood Hills and Blandtown on Atlanta’s Westside. With its let-us-entertain-you approach to dinner theater, Green says Damsel will immerse people in music, sound, light, and dancing while they dine. Food and service, too, are part of the Damsel experience, which begins the minute you sit down for dinner. It doesn’t stop for over two hours.
As Green sees it, an evening at Damsel can include multiple experiences, starting with drinks at the bar before moving to dinner and a cabaret show in the dining room. The night could continue upstairs on the rooftop patio with more drinks, food from carts manned by chefs doling out small bites and dessert, and dancing later in the evening back downstairs. At midnight, the rooftop patio and members-only lounge upstairs serve a late-night breakfast.
Dinner and a show
Dinner begins with complimentary popcorn or tiered trays of charcuterie, crudités, and cheese. Guests will be prompted during the reservation process to preorder their drinks, which include wine and beer, cocktails, and low-ABV and no-alcohol beverages. Food and drinks start coming within minutes of being seated. Tables and booths surround the stage and everyone has a good view.
Once settled, servers take food orders. For $100 per person, there’s a choice of between eight and 13 dishes shared in pairs with the table, most of which are finger foods to limit the clanging of silverware while performances happen on stage. Dishes range from crab canapes, crepe cones stuffed with lobster topped with caviar, and foie gras benedicts dressed with a sunny quail egg to mini beef wellingtons, tenderloin sliders, and tuna spring rolls.
Shows begin promptly at 6 p.m. and continue throughout the night with 10- to 15-minute intervals between numbers to refresh drinks and serve more food. When a blue light appears above the kitchen, it’s three minutes to showtime. At one minute to showtime, a red light appears. All service stops during a performance. The focus should be on the stage.
“Everything at dinner is about artistry and the experience,” Green says. “And dress up! Dress to the nines if you want to because that’s part of the experience, too.”
“The presentation of food needs to be on par with the shows on stage,” Damsel chef Julian Parker adds.
Green tapped renowned choreographer Otis Sallid to create the numbers for the cabaret shows at Damsel. Sallid has worked with artists like Spike Lee and Patti Labelle, and co-created the Broadway show “Smokey Joe’s Cafe.”
For Damsel, Sallid auditioned dancers and singers in Atlanta, Los Angeles, and New York. Six dancers and one singer perform numbers featuring tap, swing, and modern dance styles set to original and popular music and show tunes.
Be warned: photography isn’t permitted during performances and there might be some audience participation. For those who wish to pop in for a drink or a bite at Damsel without a reservation, the bar downstairs allows walk-ins and serves an a la carte food menu.
Dinner in the dining room will last about two hours. When the bill comes, you’ll be presented with a poker chip inviting you to the rooftop bar where more food, drinks, and maybe flambé desserts await.
The rooftop
Located above the dining room and cabaret, the second floor at Damsel offers two more dining and drinking experiences: a members only club with a separate bar and a rooftop patio for enjoying cocktails and food before and after a show. The rooftop patio also accommodates walk-ins without reservations for the supper club. Both spaces are accessible via the stairs behind the dining room and an elevator.
Parker serves a variety of street foods from two carts each night on the rooftop patio, including yakitori and duck tacos. Look for flambé desserts, nodding to the flamboyance of the performances taking place on stage below.
“You’ll be overwhelmed with the food at Damsel. There will be plenty. The whole idea is to give you more than you need,” says Parker.
One more element likely to be added to the rooftop experience later this summer will be digital performances projected into the space via 3D mapping like a waterfall or dancing ballerinas.
Afterhours dancing and midnight breakfast
On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 11 p.m., the stage and dining room will transform into a dance club playing 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s music spanning multiple genres. Upstairs, the rooftop patio will start serving breakfast at midnight including sandwiches, breakfast burritos, and savory and sweet crepes paired with mimosas and coffee.
While Damsel will only be open Tuesday through Saturday for now, Sunday and Monday will eventually include other dinner theater experiences, performances, and a few guest stars. Weekend brunch at Damsel should also begin in the coming weeks.
“Damsel is about the extras presented to you. You’re not going to get this experience anywhere else in Atlanta,” says Green. “There’s always going to be something new and exciting, whether that’s the food or the shows. Everything will evolve. We’re building something that is alive. Damsel is a living experience.”
Check out the supper club menu for Damsel below.
Open Tues. – Wed., 6 p.m. to 12 a.m.; Thurs. – Sat., 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Reservations required for dinner and cabaret. Dress code. Weekend brunch coming soon. Special Sunday and Monday performances expected in the future.