Now Open: Jules at the Barnsley Resort in Adairsville, Georgia

Amid the rolling foothills of the North Georgia Blue Ridges sixty miles outside of Atlanta, the three thousand acres of Barnsley Resort encompass a former 1840s estate. The resort’s  accommodations feature an inn and cottages, and the slew of activities include horseback riding, clays shooting, and golf. Last year, the spread underwent a full renovation, and last month, a new restaurant, Jules, opened as the latest addition.

Atlanta chef Shaun Doty—known for his James Beard Award–nominated restaurant, the Federal, which closed during Covid, plus Yeah Burger, Shaun’s, and Bantam & Biddy—has relocated to Adairsville to lead the kitchen of Jules, which takes its name from the original estate owner’s daughter, Julia Barnsley. “Julia traveled the world, which is reflected on the menu,” Doty says. “It mirrors my journey too, spending time in kitchens in Europe and traveling Asia. But all these influences are filtered through the lens of the South.”

Take the pork schnitzel, a signature dish Doty has been perfecting over twenty-five years: It features local pork alongside a salad of ingredients with state pride: Vidalia onions, peanuts, and cheese from Sweet Grass Dairy in Thomasville, Georgia. Doty invented new dishes for the menu, too, like Virginia or Alabama oysters topped with turnip green butter and lardo. Greens atop the seasonal “music paper bread,” a flatbread from Sardinia, Italy, come from on-site gardens, and fish from Bramlett’s Trout Farm shine alongside South Carolina’s Marsh Hen Mill farro. “We try to come up with unique dishes because we’re curious and genuine,” Doty says. “We don’t want it to feel like you could be at a resort anywhere.” (More details that fall into that unique category: a surprise seasonal small bite called the lagniappe, the tableside cheese service, and the fact that the waitstaff all wear Brackish accessories, a Lowcountry brand that uses feathers in its designs.) 

The restaurant’s space tells its own story. It started out as a private farmhouse built in 1854 in Rome, Georgia, and Barnsley relocated it to the property in 1994. The architects at Charleston’s David Thompson Studio reworked the entire building, and thoughtful finishing touches include a specially commissioned eight-seat cherry dining table with a Lazy Susan, European antiques, velvet and leather booths, and appliqued walls. 

Below, take a peek inside.

A portrait of Julia B. Barnsley, the restaurant’s namesake, by the New Orleans artist Bayard Cole, circa 1850s.

The farmhouse’s original fireplace anchors the dining room. David Thompson Studio designed the brick piers, drawing inspiration from the original porch floors.

Along the back wall of the dining room, antique mirrors from artist Bob Hines’s Charleston workshop hang above leather-clad banquettes from Atlanta’s Bjork Studio.

Chef Shaun Doty’s Rohan duck comes with cranberries, cipollini onion, Farm & Sparrow corn cakes, and a finishing Virginia hickory syrup drizzle.

A butcher block bar top invites visitors to grab a seat for a drink.

The cocktail lounge features upholstered booths and a color palette of reds, greens, and browns to evoke a traditional hunt club vibe.