A gluten-free Mexican seafood restaurant opened Friday, Sept. 18, in the former Jekyll Brewing space at Alpharetta City Center.
Amasa Mexican Kitchen, at 15 Academy St., Suite 1E, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony with complimentary drinks and appetizers starting at 2:30 p.m. Dinner service began at 5 p.m. The event was free and open to the public.
The restaurant is the latest concept from TQM Hospitality, the group behind Buena Vida Tapas in Dunwoody, Chichería Mexican Kitchen in Atlanta and The Silver Dollar. Owner Juan Sebastian Calle said in a news release, according to Patch, that the team is expanding on what diners love about Chichería "while introducing new experiences, from our seafood-forward menu to our tequila program and live entertainment."
Executive chef Joey Vazquez leads a kitchen built around Baja California-inspired dishes. The entire menu is gluten-free. Calle told What Now Atlanta in a preview interview that the restaurant's masa program uses organic, non-GMO blue corn ground in-house daily.
"We grind the blue corn every day and press our tortillas fresh daily," Calle said.
The soft-opening menu included sweet corn esquites, gourmet tacos, baked oysters, a Baja surf roll, carne asada fries, a shrimp lobster quesadilla, a tuna tostada and a chorizo smash burger. Desserts include churros and chocolate tres leches.
The space features communal tables upstairs and two private dining rooms downstairs. A dedicated tequila room offers margarita flights. Evenings will include live jazz, saxophone performances and Spanish singer-songwriters.
Amasa also plans a Sunday cazuela brunch buffet drawn from Mexico City's culinary traditions, along with a children's menu, according to a preview in Rough Draft Atlanta.
The restaurant had a soft opening earlier in September before Friday's formal ceremony. Amasa participated in the Grand Tasting Alpharetta event Aug. 27 at the Hotel at Avalon, signaling its entry into the local dining scene ahead of the official launch.
City Center is a 26-acre district surrounding City Hall and the Town Green. The restaurant is listed as a participant in Alpharetta Restaurant Week, running Oct. 10–17.
