Table Talk: Big Chef News + Meet Your Pastry Chef
March 25 — Happy Tuesday, friends! Let’s gather around the table.
I have some late-breaking Atlanta food news to report. Gerry Klaskala, the longtime chef and owner of Aria in Buckhead, is retiring! The news dropped into my inbox at 3 p.m. this afternoon, and I don’t mind telling you it’s bittersweet.
While I’m so happy Gerry will finally be able to slow down and concentrate on drawing and painting again, I’ll miss seeing him strolling the dining room at Aria, greeting guests with that big smile of his. But the restaurant will continue to serve in Buckhead and be in the most capable of hands under its new owner, Aria’s general manager and sommelier extraordinaire, Andrés Loaiza! And Gerry plans to stick around until a new head chef is hired, so be sure to show him some love the next time you dine at Aria.
I’m speaking to both Gerry and Andrés tomorrow about the chef’s legacy and plans for Aria going forward. So, look for that story to drop later this week.
Today’s edition of “Family Meal” leans into the sweeter side of the Atlanta food scene. First, I’m introducing you to Atlanta pastry chef Jon’nae “Jaye” Smith, who is currently competing in Food Network’s “Spring Baking Championship.” For “The Move,” I tell you where to find a green tea-flavored castella filled with vanilla buttercream in Duluth.
➕ Plus, Magnolia Room Cafeteria is sharing its recipe for the restaurant’s popular key lime cake – a recipe that is reportedly 80 years old!
Cheers!
🍸 Beth
🏅 The Bayne Battleson Group with Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty grabbed the No. 3 spot for volume sold at the recent Atlanta REALTORS® Association Top Producers Gala.
🏠 One of their 2024 highlights was bringing the buyer for Georgia’s largest and publicly listed home sold last year—a $35 million estate.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
Meet Your Pastry Chef: Jon’nae “Jaye” Smith
Meet Jon’nae “Jaye” Smith, an Atlanta pastry chef and member of The New South chef collective who is currently competing in Season 11 of Food Network’s “Spring Baking Championship.” Born in Miami and known for using ingredients nodding to her South Florida roots, Smith is one of ten bakers still competing for $25,000 and the chance to be crowned this year’s Spring Baking Champion. Episodes air every Monday at 8 p.m. on Food Network and are also available to stream on Max.
Which restaurants have you worked for in Atlanta?
👩🍳 Canoe, Four Seasons Atlanta, the Loews Hotel, Heritage Supper Club (dinner series) at Bread & Butterfly, and The Hill at Serenbe, to name a few.
When did you begin baking, and when did you know you wanted to become a pastry chef?
🧁 I began baking as a young girl, maybe 5, with my easy bake oven. My nana and my mom bought it for me for Christmas, and I’ve been in the kitchen ever since then.
I decided I wanted to be a pastry chef around 17 years old after I baked a dense cake, and I couldn’t figure out what had happened. Baking intrigued me because of the science that goes with it.
I started baking for my family and friends in college. I called it Jaye’s Creations (@jayes_creations). The Instagram page is still up to remind me of my humble beginnings. I was definitely the designated person to cook and bake amongst my family and friends in college. I can’t believe I’m doing this for a career. WOW!
Who are your baking mentors?
🤩 My baking mentors are chefs Arlety Estevez and Demetrius Brown of Bread & Butterfly. I am inspired by my life experiences, my family, and chef peers.
Any up-and-coming bakers or pastry chefs in Atlanta we should be on the lookout for right now?
‼️ I’m not sure about up-and-coming bakers, but here are a few pastry chefs making their mark in Atlanta: Chef Nickey Boyd/Indaco; Chef Charmain Ware/Tiny Lou’s; Chef Sam (Sadé McMullen)/Sam & Izzy’s Sweets; and Chef Claudia Martinez/Bar Ana ATL.
How has your experience been competing on the “Spring Baking Championship?”
💕 My experience on the show was amazing. I got to compete against the most talented bakers and pastry chefs. The days were long, but I had so much fun with my other castmates. I learned so many new things about myself as a person, chef, and an actress. At the end of the day, I am proud of how I showed up, being that it was my first time competing and being on national television.
Who from the cast did you bond with on the show?
🙌 During filming, I became close with Corey Jamison, Rav Oberoi (Ravioli), and Stacy Flores. I’d roam LA with Corey and Rav, and Stacy and I would hit the streets for good eats. We still maintain our connection today, and I’m grateful.
Shout out your favorite bakeries and restaurants in Atlanta.
💯 Bread & Butterfly, Auburn Angel, Sauce Queen Kitchen & Pantry, Marcus Bar and Grille, and Kupcakerie in East Point.
Meet Ripple Fries— Sweetgreen’s Fresh Take on a Fast Food Classic!
SPONSORED BY SWEETGREEN
🥔 Sweetgreen’s new Ripple Fries are air-fried in avocado oil and made with just five simple ingredients for a crispy, flavorful bite—without seed oils. Enjoy them solo or with housemade Garlic Aioli or Pickle Ketchup.
✅ Now available at Sweetgreen at Ashford Lane.
The Move:
Green Tea Castella from Bread Museum
🧁 One of my favorite things to do on the weekends is to hop in the car and spend a day visiting restaurants in Metro Atlanta cities like Marietta, Stone Mountain, and Jonesboro. This is how I stumbled upon Bread Museum on a recent Saturday, a family-owned bakery, cafe, and coffee shop in Duluth specializing in French and Japanese pastries and breads.
Located on Old Norcross Road in the McDaniel Square Shopping Center, Bread Museum’s pastry cases are packed with everything from cream-filled eclairs and decadent chocolate brownies to croissants, boules of savory bread, and mini quiches.
🇯🇵 I ordered a green tea castella, a Japanese sponge cake flavored with honey ($5.50). Bread Museum filled the middle of this hunk of tea cake with vanilla buttercream, which also crowned the top. It came garnished with a bright red sugared strawberry. But even with the vanilla buttercream, the green tea and honey cut through the richness and kept the castella subtly sweet. With the warm, humid air outside ahead of thunderstorms rolling in later that day, I also ordered a yuzu tea cooler ($5) to pair with my cake.
I’m eager to return to Bread Museum to try more of the savory baked goods, including the egg salad salt bread. Make sure to partake in the free samples at the register.
Magnolia Room’s Key Lime Cake
🍰 Today, I’m bringing you a recipe for the key lime cake from Magnolia Room Cafeteria in Tucker.
Owner Louis Squires opened Magnolia Room in 2017, following the closure of his favorite restaurant, S&S Cafeteria at Embry Village, a year earlier. As a regular patron of S&S for 17 years, Squires was friendly with many of the Southern cafeteria’s employees and wanted to pick up where this beloved Atlanta restaurant left off. He modeled Magnolia Room after the Embry Village location of S&S Cafeteria and hired 24 members of its staff to work at his new Tucker restaurant.
Named for the dining room inside the former downtown location of Rich’s department store, Magnolia Room quickly became a go-to restaurant for Southern comfort food in Tucker.
🍋🟩 According to the restaurant’s marketing manager, Nate Martin, this S&S Cafeteria recipe for key lime cake is over 80 years old. A little tart (thanks to a combination of orange juice and fresh lime and lemon juices) with sweetness from vanilla and sugar, lime Jell-O gives the yellow cake a slight green tinge. It’s then iced with white cream cheese frosting or buttercream.
Check out the recipe for Magnolia Room Cafeteria’s key lime cake below.
Ingredients
- 3 oz. lime Jell-O
- 1.5 cups white sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 5 eggs
- 1.5 cups neutral oil
- 6 oz. orange juice
- 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract
- ¼ cup lime juice
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Directions
After the cake has cooled, assemble the layers using a cream cheese frosting of your choice, including store-bought or this easy recipe from Southern Living.
Combine Jell-O, white sugar, flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a small mixing bowl.
Add eggs, oil, orange juice, lemon juice, and vanilla extract, then using an electric mixer, mix until well blended, no more than two minutes, on low speed. Scrape down bowl.
Prep three 9-inch cake pans with canola oil spray. Fill each cake pan evenly with batter.
Bake at 350 Fahrenheit for approximately 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool.
Mix the powdered sugar and lime juice in a small bowl. Before assembling layers, and while the cake is still warm, pour the coating over the cake. If desired, pierce layers with a fork.
🏆 Kevin McBride landed the No. 3 spot for volume sold, while Jessica Sheevy claimed No. 4 at this year’s Atlanta REALTORS® Association Gala.
🏡 In 2024, the advisors with Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty made their mark on Atlanta’s real estate landscape with the groundbreaking success of The Dillon selling 95 units in just a year.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
➡️ If you know somebody who would like to receive our dining newsletters, “Family Meal” (Tuesdays) and “Side Dish”
(Thursdays), please have them subscribe at this page. ⬅️