Athens chef and owner of restaurant Five and Ten Peter Dale poses outside of Five and Ten, located on 1073 S Milledge Ave., on May 3. Dale, who started his journey in food as an apprentice at Five and Ten in 2002 and proceeded to open popular Athens restaurants The National, Seabear Oyster Bar, Condor Chocolates and Maepole, purchased the restaurant on April 19. “Like the rest of the businesses that I’ve made, we grew up here in Athens and we plan to live here. We don’t have any plans to leave anytime soon,” Dale said. “We really like to create places that become part of the community and that are good citizens that contribute to the community and I don’t typically go for places that are kind of fads or trends. So we like to create places that are going to last and be part of the community and I think Five and Ten’s part of the community and we want to continue that.” Photo courtesy of Peter Dale
Local Athens chef Peter Dale discusses his passion for food and his plans for the future of restaurant Five and Ten as the new owner.
Variety Editor Jane Ripps: Could you tell me a little bit about yourself and your journey as a chef?
Athens Chef and Restaurateur Peter Dale: I grew up in Athens and then went to Georgia and studied Public Relations and was interested in politics. My first job out of college was actually in Washington, D.C. so nothing was food yet. I was working in politics and then realized that was not for me. I have a lot of creative energy and I didn’t have an outlet at that time. My mom is from Ecuador, and they entertain in a different way than Americans do and we hosted a lot of events and parties when we were growing up in my parents house. So I loved hospitality (and) entertaining people. I just loved eating and learning about food. When I was living in D.C., I started cooking for myself and going to really cool markets and restaurants. I started putting two and two together and realized that I wanted to explore cooking professionally. I got back to Athens (in 2001) and Five and Ten had just opened (in 2000). I went to Five and Ten (because) I felt like they had the most interesting menu, (and) they were doing something really different from the other restaurants. I started an apprenticeship, and I would help the team get ready, get all their prep together and then I would stay during the first few hours of dinner service and kind of help out where I could. Eventually they gave me a job. I was there for five years, and then had the opportunity to open a restaurant next to Ciné downtown and that became The National. I helped open Seabear Oyster Bar. And then with my brother, we do Condor Chocolates, and then we opened Maepole a few years ago.
JR: How has this experience been seeing the personal progression and and also the progression of Five and Ten?
PD: I left (Five & Ten) having never run my own restaurant, and now (I’m) coming back having had a lot of years of experience, so I’m definitely looking at it with different eyes. I think the restaurant has ebbed and flowed and a lot of people around here have memories of the early 2000s when it was new and it was like something really different. My goal is to continue to make it a restaurant that evolves and grows and reflects what’s happening in the current times, but there’s a legacy that we want to recognize, and so we’ve put back a couple of dishes on the menu that are from the early days.
Athens chef and Five and Ten owner Peter Dale poses in the Five and Ten kitchen, located on 1073 S Milledge Ave., on May 3. Dale became the new owner of 5&10 on April 19, returning to the restaurant that began his career as a chef. “Previously, when I was the chef (at Five and Ten), I was in the kitchen all night and sometimes I would be so busy (I) wouldn’t walk into the dining room very much at all. Now, in my new role, I’m in the kitchen a lot, but I’m also walking on the floor and talking to people,” Dale said. “One of the things I love about restaurants is (that they) brings people together, and so as a restaurateur, I get to see people from all parts of town and we get to celebrate a lot of special occasions, especially here. (Five and Ten) just becomes a special place for people.” Photo courtesy of Peter Dale
JR: How has the culture in Athens fostered your passion as a chef?
PD: One thing about Athens is the dining community is super loyal to local restaurants and really supportive. I don’t think that I could have been able to do all the things that we’re doing in another city. They’ve been really supportive of every project that we’ve taken on and that’s really great. Because of the (University of Georgia), so many people come to Athens to learn and figure out who they are. As a result, (we) have a really great talent pool of really interesting, smart people who work for us. Once they’ve graduated, a lot of folks just hang out in Athens (because) maybe they’re musicians or artists, and this gives them the freedom to pursue their interests. This is just a great community for that because everyone is learning and growing here. Also, just because we are in a college town, people were pretty open-minded, so we can probably be a bit more adventurous than if we were in a similar-sized town that didn’t have a big university where there weren’t so many people who are well-traveled, highly-educated and open-minded to trying new things.
JR: How do you get your inspiration for your dishes?
PD: It comes from a lot of places. Some of it is nostalgia of things that I remember having eaten in the past or even cooked here 20 years ago, or were things that my family made that I wanted to reinterpret into something. Dishes my mom made growing up may not be what we’d want to serve in a fine dining setting, but it can inspire a dish. I travel a good bit and go to other cities and see what other restaurants are doing (as well as) go to other countries and experience other cultures and that’s a big thing for me as well. I think also just because my mom was from South America and having gone to Ecuador a lot growing up, the food is punchy and bright and colorful and that’s been a big inspiration to me, so I try not to have dishes that are just really beige. I (also) want a lot of different textures. If something’s really smooth and creamy, I want something crunchy next to it to balance it. If something’s really rich and maybe has a lot of creaminess to it, I want some acid to balance it. I think that Ecuadorian culture taught me about having lots of contrasts in food.
JR: Are you looking to bring all those flavors into Five and Ten?
PD: The interesting thing here is that there is a lane here that the restaurant established early on, which is Southern ingredients and working with local farmers. When you’re buying local produce, you need to be able to change things on the menu all the time. If you’re buying from just our surrounding area, ingredients are only available for a short amount of time or a limited amount because they’re small farms. Back then, Five and Ten was very much farm-to-table before that was a term. (They were) buying from local farmers, seasonal local ingredients. (Right now), we have a young chef. He’s a really interesting guy, his name’s Fausto (Zamorano), and he grew up in Mexico City. He’s got a lot of interesting perspectives. We want to keep it in the Five and Ten lane but also, I want the food to represent Georgia today in 2024, which is a really diverse place. There may be some inspiration that we have Fausto bring from his Mexican background, combined with southern ingredients and southern dishes.
JR: How do you think your experience with other restaurants and establishments, even though it was so different, is going to translate into Five and Ten?
PD: The interesting thing is when I worked at Five and Ten, it was not in this (location). A lot of times people come to a restaurant (because) they like the food, but the atmosphere and the vibe (is just as important), so that’s something that we really want to work on. We’re working on some new decor, new lighting. They’ve had the music really low and we want to turn up the music a little bit and then also turn down the lights and just make it just a little bit more of an intimate space, but also a more fun space than I think it has been.
Various dishes served at restaurant Five and Ten, located on 1073 S Milledge Ave., are shown. Athens chef Peter Dale recently purchased local restaurant Five and Ten and, as the new owner, hopes to continue the restaurant’s legacy of creative southern dishes. “(Right now) we have a young chef. He’s a really interesting guy, his name’s Fausto (Zamorano), and he grew up in Mexico City. He’s got a lot of interesting perspectives,” Dale said. “I want the food to represent Georgia today in 2024, which is a really diverse place. There may be some inspiration that we have Fausto bring from his Mexican background, combined with southern ingredients and southern dishes.” Photo courtesy of Peter Dale
JR: So what does being able to come back mean to you?
PD: It’s really kind of surreal. Every day is really fun and there’s so much to do. I’m excited about helping the chef and guiding him on things and we’re working with friends who are interior designers who are helping us with the decor things. It’s just really been fun to hang out here at night. Previously, when I was the chef, I was in the kitchen all night and sometimes I would be so busy (I) wouldn’t walk into the dining room very much at all. Now, in my new role, I’m in the kitchen a lot, but I’m also walking on the floor and talking to people. One of the things I love about restaurants is (that they) brings people together, and so as a restaurateur, I get to see people from all parts of town and we get to celebrate a lot of special occasions, especially here. (Five and Ten) just becomes a special place for people and every night it’s somebody’s birthday here. Every night, when (I) go to work, (I%E2%80%99m) going to be celebrating somebody’s birthday and that’s just a small piece of it, but it’s really cool and it’s an honor that people would want to come spend a special occasion here.
JR: Is there anything else you would like to add?
PD: Like the rest of the businesses that I’ve made, we grew up here in Athens and we plan to live here. We don’t have any plans to leave anytime soon. We really like to create places that become part of the community and that are good citizens that contribute to the community and I don’t typically go for places that are kind of fads or trends. So we like to create places that are going to last and be part of the community and I think Five and Ten’s part of the community and we want to continue that.
