So. Fox From the Kinship Team Redefines Southern Cuisine

1. It all begins in the garden.

It doesn’t get more local than sourcing from your own garden, and that’s what Moody does on the daily at Under Acre Farm.

“I go down to the farm every morning to grab garnishes or ingredients for the dishes on the menu,” Moody says. “This really allows me to understand our climate, the season, and most importantly, the life cycle of the different produce we use. I like to think that where Kinship is a whole animal program, So. Fox is a whole plant program.”

That proximity gives the restaurant a resounding sense of place and seasonality. If it’s growing, it will likely be used in a dish.

2. The seasonal Southern-inspired menu doesn’t rely on nostalgia.

Moody has built a menu that looks, feels, and tastes Southern without relying on nostalgia. Instead, familiar ingredients appear in surprising forms. His current infatuation? Butter beans.

“I’m really obsessed with these petite fresh butter beans we’re getting in. They aren’t anything like what I grew up eating … I feel as though they are our Southern fava bean equivalent.”

That ingredient stars in a dish that perhaps best captures So. Fox’s identity: The aptly named butter beans.

In it, the beans are lightly blanched, shucked, and dressed in kombu oil and herbs from Under Acre. It’s then served with a chilled dashi made from kombu and leather britches, and topped with Antonius caviar. “It’s a clear expression of time and place in the South, but delivered in an unexpected way,” shares Moody.

The menu will change with the seasons, but the first iteration already has guests talking. The house sourdough arrives with cultured butter topped with delicate garlic microgreens. Beef tartare is brightened with citrus-cured yolk, capered coriander, and crisp lavash crackers. Sweet corn is transformed into an unforgettable bowl of dumplings with Sungold tomatoes, foraged chanterelles, and gulf bottarga. Perfectly cooked snapper comes paired with zucchini, sweet potato leaves, and lemongrass. And the grilled beef comes with green garlic, shishito, corno di toro, and spiced tallow.

And don’t overlook all three of the dessert menu’s offerings. Currently, there’s the Thomasville Tomme cheesecake; the light and summery peach granita with marshmallow and shiso; and the bay ice cream with scuppernong and buckwheat.

In addition, as a thoughtful, non-edible touch: Every menu is stamped with the day’s date, making it an easy keepsake to slip in your bag and pin to the fridge when you get home.

3. Cocktails embrace constraint, while wines showcase thoughtful intention.

Alongside So. Fox’s stellar cocktails (including non-alcoholic options), it’s the restaurant’s wine selection that takes center stage here.

Thanks to partner and sommelier Rachael Pack, whose thoughtful curation showcases bottles made with intention, So. Fox offers one of the best wine lists in the city. Pack’s natural hospitality and warm personality adds to that; she’s known for sidling onto the bench next to guests — even if it’s their first time meeting —  to chat pairings and what she’s excited for folks to try.

“The beauty of ‘natural wine’ is that some of the best and most famous wines in the world are made with low-intervention farming and winemaking techniques but lean classic in taste – they just don’t proclaim that they are natural wines,” Pack said.

For guests curious about low-intervention wines, she suggests reaching for a glass that challenges expectations.

“I like to show that there are contemporary and classic iterations of natural wine, and I love that I have many wines that span the entirety of the spectrum,” she adds. To help guests understand that natural wine doesn’t have to be turbid, candy-colored, or a little funky, she recommends a pour of the COS, which is one of her favorite Sicilian producers. “It’s linear, mineral, and fresh, but with good body — and delicious, red and dark berry notes.” She serves this biodynamic red wine chilled, to further “highlight its structure and minerality, and makes for a refreshingly satisfying glass in the summer,” she says.

With just a handful of drinks to choose from, the cocktail program follows the same approach. Rather than building a sprawling menu, the team embraces constraints, collaborating with their farmer at Under Acre Farm and local foragers to create drinks using hyper-seasonal ingredients like black walnuts and kudzu blossoms to make cordials, tinctures, and oils. Notable options currently include the Tomato Fight, a clarified Cherokee Purple tomato martini with gin and tagetes oil, and the zero-proof Rose City Fizz.

4. The space is designed for lingering.

Across the dining room, each table features a diminutive floral arrangement, and the wider tables were designed specifically to encourage sharing.

Moody led the overall design plan, partnering with local makers including Silt Studio for the white oak cabinetry, tables, and signature standing bar, while B10 Union crafted the cozy orange leather banquettes, a color that subtly nods to a fox itself.

With the room accommodating up 50 guests, expansive windows overlooking the neighborhood offer a view of light dancing on tables during sunset. There’s a free parking lot, which is a generous gesture always worth celebrating in Atlanta, and a standing area cleverly titled the “Zipper Bar,” which offers guests enough room to comfortable enjoy a full meal, as opposed to just holding a drink while squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder with others.

When asked what it was like transforming a former burger restaurant into what it is now, Moody said the biggest challenge wasn’t construction, but imagination.

“Restaurants are full of life and stories, so it was very difficult to see where the previous iteration ended and how we could begin telling ours in such a storied space.”

It all seems to be working beautifully so far. Reservations are booked out weeks in advance.

So. Fox is open Thursday to Monday from 5 to 10 p.m.

Allison Ramirez is a bicoastal, Atlanta-based (for now) freelance journalist. She has over a decade of experience writing for publications like Travel + Leisure, the Daily Beast, Liquor, Thrillist, and others. Her recent work spans art, architecture, travel, and food & beverage stories, focusing on diversity within those spaces in the South and beyond. Follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.