Atlanta diners are not too adventurous, but I want to get my customers to accept new trends that start in New York or San Francisco. It spurs my creativity in the kitchen. There’s a particularly steep learning curve when it comes to menuing seafood. We can’t serve a whole fish with its head on to most of our guests. So when I plan my menus, I give the people what they want 80 percent of the time, and experiment with new, unexpected dishes 20 percent of the time. This formula keeps my restaurant profitable and me and my customers happy.