This week we had on the show Watershed's Matt Marcus. Matt is the owner of Watershed, a classic Atlanta Southern restaurant which was one of, if not the pioneering farm-to-table restaurant in Atlanta. Watershed has been through multiple transformations. Started in downtown Decatur, the restaurant moved to Buckhead about 10 years ago and has been helmed by several prominent chefs. Now it's under Chef Marcus' eye, it's expanding southern cooking exponentially. See my photos in the gallery for just a few of his gorgeous interpretations of southern classics.
With more than 15 years of experience in the kitchen, Matt Marcus was born into the business as a third-generation chef who inherited a joy for cooking from his mother Annette, who operates a catering company in Atlanta. Determined to turn his passion into a career, Marcus completed studies at the American Culinary Federation Apprenticeship Program and earned several chef certifications. As he developed his culinary career, Marcus became executive chef at Hennen’s in Chattanooga, Tenn., in 2011. Upon returning to Georgia, Marcus joined the team at Buckhead’s Italian dining gem, Portofino, as executive chef in May 2014, before taking the reins as executive chef and owner at Southern institution Watershed in 2018.
At Watershed, Marcus has debuted a fully reimagined menu that celebrates the restaurant’s reverence, while looking to its future with redefined “New South” innovation and ingredient-driven technique. He describes the new menu as experimental, celebrating rare finds like jellyfish and Ossabaw, while also offering diners the evolved, Southern cuisine for which Watershed is known.
Marcus has been included in “Best Chefs America,” a guide to top talent across the country, and has garnered media attention from publications including Eater, Atlanta Magazine, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Flavors Magazine, Restaurant Hospitality and more.
