Eco Eateries
by William Inman, photos by Carolyn Richardson
GSU magazine, fall 2009

When Tad (BBA '89) and Nancy Mitchell (BBA '90) met, they were both working their way through Georgia State's business school and waiting tables. Fitting, then, that when the two teamed to open their own business it would be a restaurant.

"We knew that's what we wanted to do - start our own restaurant," Tad Mitchell said. "But we didn't figure it would take off as quickly as it did."

Seven years ago, the Mitchells opened the original Six Feet Under Fish House and Pub on Memorial Drive in Grant Park, and the quirky establishment - taking its name from its across-the-street proximity to the Oakland Cemetery - quickly became one of Atlanta's favorite dining destinations, known for its ambitious but down-home seafood and wide selection of cold, craft brews.

In 2007, they opened a second venue, Six Feet Under West on 11^th Street. For the new location, they kept the same menu as well as their trademark rooftop patio - but swapped out the view of historic Oakland Cemetery for a sweeping vista of the Midtown skyline.

And now the restaurants - and their owners - have become just as well known for their green initiatives as they are for their dining experience.

Their efforts range from water-saving installations such as low-flow water valves in kitchens and waterless urinals in restrooms, to using only recycled paper, eliminating plastic straws and using biodegradable to-go containers.

But, as anyone who's dined on the roof of the Westside shop lately knows, the restaurant's biggest - at least in size - energy-saving undertaking is its towering 45-foot-tall wind turbine.

"Well, they said we couldn't put one up at our house," Tad said. "We're trying to do what we can. The windmill has been a lot of fun, and hopefully we're helping out."

Tad Mitchell, BBA '89
Nancy Mitchell, BBA '90
Owners,
Six Feet Under restaurant