By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
Once upon a time, actually just a few months ago, award-winning veteran chef Bill Harden was down at our Farmer’s Market with some friends who were part of Rocket City Chefs and decided to take a stroll around the Square. He came upon Athens Ale, which is sometimes referred to affectionately as “ATH Ale,” wandered in, and just “knew in his know-er” that the place was “calling his name” to come work there. Bill told me that he walked in to the Alehouse and wondered in a positive way, “What is going on here? Where is the owner? I gotta be a part of this!” However, at the time there was no plan to hire a chef.
A bit of time passed, a friend of Bill’s got wind of the fact that Athens Alehouse owners Ken and Lori Hill were open to the idea of hiring a chef, and a meeting was set up. Bill told Ken and Lori, “I’d like to help you with this,” and the rest is becoming Athens Alehouse history. I actually had the chance to meet Bill on his first day of work back in December, and his enthusiasm to bring his expertise to an already successful and unique venue was contagious. Bill has the strong feeling that he was born to do what he’s doing, and that is causing food to be an art form as well as a welcome addition to any place he works.
Speaking of work, Bill has been a chef in the Huntsville/Decatur area since 1996. He has been a part of Tortellini’s, Heidelberg, Chop House, 801 Franklin, Below the Radar, the Railyard, and more. During COVID he was intensely involved in caring for the health of a family member, and is glad to be back in the kitchen. Having a chef at ATH Ale has made the journey easier for the Hills, and Chef Bill enjoys the idea of the food now served as being “lighter, brighter, seasonally-focused, fresher, and NOT from California,” he said with a chuckle. There is no desire on his part to radically change what ATH Ale regulars have come to love and expect, just give some other options to explore from time to time.
Bill wants to have five menus a year. They correspond to winter, spring, early summer, late summer, and fall. “We also have wonderful evets planned,” he said. They just had a hugely successful Valentine’s Day celebration, and are gearing up for Saint Patrick’s Day. On Saturday, March 15, Athens Alehouse & Cellar will “scrap the whole menu” and serve traditional Irish food. There will be Irish potato stew, shepherd’s pie egg rolls with lamb, “bangers and mash” (which is the British term for sausages and mashed potatoes), Reubens, and for dessert there will be grasshopper pie cheesecake and a Guinness chocolate cake with a light cream cheese frosting. For St. Paddy’s Day, the celebratory beverages will be Guinness, Harp Lager, and Hi Wire Irish Cream Stout. ATH Ale will also be the last stop on the St. Patrick’s Day Pub Crawl, and Bill is confident that “the best is being saved ‘til last.”
Another new event that is coming to Athens Alehouse will be a once-a-month brunch on a Saturday. The first one will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, March 1, two weeks before St. Paddy’s. There will be pancakes made from scratch, shrimp and grits, and three types of egg-based breakfast sandwiches.
Bill grew up in his grandmother’s authentic Sicilian kitchen and knows the secrets that make for great food of all kinds. In her honor, Bill sports tattoos on his right arm that are exact replicas of her long handled wooden spoon and her meat cleaver. He told me with great affection that she used to tap him between the eyes with her wooden spoon to get his attention and get him focused on what he needed to be doing. At his own home, his favorite pan is a cast iron skillet that he inherited. He also is experienced in making sourdough bread, and once worked in a place that used a starter that was over 100 years old. He had a bit of culinary training at a tech school, but the things that have “made” his career have been learning from family, along with on-the-job training. Come celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and get a literal taste of carefully selected and authentically prepared Irish food in a family-friendly place that even has old-fashioned rope swings outside for all to enjoy; Athens Alehouse & Cellar on the Limestone County Courthouse Square.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
February 21, 2025
