The Resy Hit List: Where In Atlanta You’ll Want to Eat Right Now
There’s no question we hear more often: Where should I go eat? And while we at Resy know it’s an honor to be the friend who everyone asks for restaurant advice, we also know it’s a complicated task. That’s where the Resy Hit List comes in.
We’ve designed it to be your essential resource for dining in Atlanta: a monthly-updated (and now expanded!) guide to the restaurants that you won’t want to miss — tonight or any night.
Five Things In Atlanta Not to Miss This Month
- Celebrate American History Somewhere Historic: This Fourth, head to “the corner of yesterday and tomorrow” to Covigton, less than an hour away from central Atlanta. Grab a ticket for a VIP Hangout at City Pharmacy, an expertly renovated former drug store with a history of gatherings around food that goes back to the 1920s. Entry includes a Champagne toast, “heavy hors d’oeuvres,” a table for the night, and access to primo patio views of the fireworks.
- Bubbles & Caviar: Southern Belle is getting even fancier and more special on July 10. Bubbles & Caviar is back, they’re offering sturgeon caviar with traditional accompaniments — cornichons, chives, capers, shallots, crème fraiche, egg, brioche toast — and less-traditional housemade Pringle chips for $55. Tack on a flight of bubbles for $40 and one-night-only caviar-starring specials for a real pinkies-up kind of night. Make a regular booking on Resy for that date to grab your spot.
- A Night in NOLA: Chef Tom Branighan of MaMou in New Orleans is cooking up a one-time-only Sunday Supper at the Garden & Gun Club at the Battery, and word is: this is an event not to be missed. The native New Orleanian’s restaurant ranks among the best new restaurants in the U.S.; this is your chance to try it without leaving town. And of course, keep up lots more of the fun things with our Resy Events page.
- Branching Out: With only weeks more of Spring 2nd Branch Pop-Ups remaining, the clock’s ticking to get a preview of Brian So’s soon-to-come concept. Book your ticket to liven up your summer Tuesdays and ramp up excitement for the full experience to come.
- Dine Outdoors: Consider this your reminder that vitamin D is essential and as much a good mood food as ice cream. Patios are wide open and outdoor dining is in full swing. Don’t forget your guide to Resy’s top al fresco spots … or your sunscreen.
New to the Hit List (July 2024)
Hart & Crown Tavern, M by Tasaku Murakami, Southern Belle, Recess.
1. Lazy Betty Midtown
The many petals of Lazy Betty’s expanded, elevated space unfurl luxuriously, blooming into an expansive bar and lounge and three distinct dining rooms. (Even if you know its former occupant, Hugh Acheson’s Empire State South, the space is now unrecognizable.) And, yes, the food: With a seasonal seven-course tasting menu, the friendly staff works as a team to deliver bites like poached Icelandic cod with green tomato “caviar” destined to swim in a broth of country ham, to a trio of petit fours with unexpected twists like miso caramel. Not ready for a deep dive? The newly introduced bar menu lets you dip a toe into Aaron Phillips and Ron Hsu’s award-winning experience; bonus items like foie gras brioche doughnuts make it worth checking out regardless.
2. Nàdair Restaurant Woodland Hills
In what was once Floataway Café, a setting that always brought him joy, Kevin Gillespie proudly reclaims a part of his culinary heritage that he once pushed into the shadows. His latest follows “the way of nature” in every way, beginning with a park-facing property and progressing to a return to his wood-fired cooking days and Scottish roots. Multi-course tastings and three-course prix fixe menus feature modern takes on that country’s hearty fare: think meat pies, Stornaway-style black pudding topped with a seared scallop, Scottish cheese dumplings, smoked haddock chowder, and Banoffee pie, all sourced and prepped in an earth-friendly manner. Enjoy in a modern interpretation of a laird’s lodge, with deep greens, reddish woods, and a custom carpet in the pattern of his great-grandfather’s military tartan.
3. Bacchanalia Westside
A moody former industrial space – shared with counter-service sister Star Provisions – sets the stage for some of Atlanta’s most show-stopping cuisine. This 1993 establishment founded by Anne Quatrano and Clifford Harrison just keeps growing better. Their local farm, Summerland, whose production continues to guide their farm-to-table approach. Because of that, their format of a four-course prix fixe menu is the only thing that remains constant. One night you might find crab fritters made remarkable with citrus and avocado, or steak tartare with a twist of lime, toasted rice, and chile. And if your Notify didn’t pan out for that special occasion, just go during the day and grab a Bacchanalia-quality lunch or a pastry from Star Provisions while you hunt for an artisan “I’m sorry” gift. It’ll be a nice taste of what’s to come when your Resy comes through.
4. La Semilla Reynoldstown
Plant-based dining is sprouting up all over Atlanta, but among the growing options, this Cuban and Mexican began restaurant is blossoming to rave reviews. The inspiration point of Latin flavors is modernized with a consciously vegan ingredient list, offering creative riffs like “bistec” de palomilla using Southern Cap lion’s mane mushrooms, “carne” asada tacos that bring in seitan, and Cubanos with jackfruit. Even desserts are vegan – including any you bring from outside (fee applies). Accompany it all with virtuously farmed wines, and cocktails using rum and agave spirits, to keep the distinct plant-based focus. This summer-all-year feelings is easy to get into in the dining room, where illustrations of jungle foliage grace the upward view above a graceful, tile-accented bar lit with basket-weave pendants.
5. Delbar Middle Eastern – Inman Park Inman Park
The shiny new Alpharetta location has gotten a lot of attention lately for its big, bright spaces, but the original Delbar has no intention of fading into the background. The heart (the meaning of “delbar”) is certainly captured by a dream of a lamb shank stew, and a ribeye with a walnut pomegranate marinade cut for sharing. Accompany that with adas polo, a buttery showstopper of a rice dish that hides pops of sweetness from buried raisins. But don’t fill up, as tempting as it may be. The pistachio lava cake with molten white chocolate and ginger date cake with toffee and roasted tahini mousse blend the best of Middle Eastern and Western sensations. Same with well-considered cocktails such as the Dubai Drift – an intriguing blend of ginger, maple, soy, and apple brandy.
6. The Alden Chamblee
We’ve known all about chef-owner Jared Huck’s uniquely international, seasonally driven cuisine, inspired by a seven-year intercontinental sojourn, for a while now. Huck’s travel memories — still unfaded — include sweetbreads with his signature sweet chili sauce and oysters with galangal and lemongrass to honor two years in Thailand. Tortellini stuffed with yucca and butternut squash “bolognese” pay homage to two hemispheres united in pasta.
It’s best to let the kitchen guide your journey. Make a Resy for the seven-course tasting menu (pro tip: come hungry; the Alden is generous with amuse-bouches) for a privileged seat at the stage-lit chef’s counter. Or go with Huck’s five-course tasting menu takeover the first Thursday of every month.
7. Prefecture Japanese Steakhouse Buckhead
Starry lights burst from midnight ceilings; tables are generously spread out; and oversized booths make diners feel like they’re in in a private bubble, as attentive servers provide insight through an extraordinary six- or eight-course omakase menu. Cuts representing different prefectures where Japanese cattle hail from are paid homage with A5 cuts, dressed up with ribbons of cured egg on a bed of Kintoki carrot puree, or with caviar, nikiri soy sauce, and garlic chips. Crab rice and sashimi lighten things up in between, as do a la carte add-ons like yuzu ponzu and serrano oysters (NoriFish fans, you’ll recognize these). Or go rogue, and design your own tasting.
8. M by Tasuku Murakami Buckhead
At direct odds with dark and moody Umi downstairs, M by Tasuku Murakami is subdued, small, and bright white — a prepped canvas for 18 courses meant be revered and admired like the artwork it is. Discuss each generous bite with chef Murakami, who offers thoughtful insights on the inspiration and preparation behind each dish. It’ll turn into a group chat as conversation among the eight diners per seating — available only twice nightly and thrice weekly — picks up as you journey through the experience. But feel free to rush that organic progression along with a sake pairing and fine Japanese whisky.
9. Southern Belle Poncey Highlands
New season, new reasons to see what magical mischief chef Joey Ward is cooking up in the kitchen. Now fully à la carte (unlike fancy brother tasting menu-only Georgia Boy), you can sidequest how you like with a tight selection of dishes sorted into three sizes. Descriptions name ingredients, but rarely technique and never presentation. This opens the door for textural surprises like a roasted potato “bucatini” carbonara and unexpected combos like warm curried banana b. Gratuities are already included in the menu prices, so go ahead and treat yourself to a cocktail — conveniently marked with notes like “Light. Refreshing. Herbaceous” — with the money normally earmarked for tips. You deserve it.
10. Talat Market Summerhill
Photo by Bailey Garrot, courtesy of Talat Market
To no Resy reader’s surprise (except maybe chefs Parnass Savang and Rod Lassiter, per their humble responses) Talat Market is back in the headlines, this time for a James Beard Foundation finalist nod. But we’ve been telling y’all about the former pop-up’s famously fluctuating menu for some time now and how they use Thai cooking techniques to transform regionally grown fruits and produce. The street mural-style artwork creates a casual ambiance as vibrant as a menu that starts with beef tartare seasoned with prik laab, salads that feature crispy rice and red chili jam or fruit like Asian pears and black sesame, and curries with fresh housemade coconut cream and milk — the only kind they’ve used in seven years of wowing Atlantans.
Photo by Bailey Garrot, courtesy of Talat Market
11. Little Sparrow Westside
Atlanta mourned the closure of chef Ford Fry’s beloved JCT Kitchen, but that grief has turned into cause for celebration with its replacement. A tribute to Edith Piaf, the songbird sweetheart of the French boxer Fry’s steakhouse Marcel takes its name from, this Art Deco-ish brasserie exudes Parisian grace. With chef Bob Ryan in the kitchen, expect an onion soup dripping with Gruyère, crispy-edged poitrine de porc lightened up with fennel and apple, and thrice-fried beef tallow frites with tableside skillet raclette. This and pommes aligot might tempt you to fill up on potatoes, but bear dessert in mind, namely the (also tableside) chocolate soufflé and the Basque cheesecake. To drink? A refreshing Genepy Highball with lime cordial goes down easy.
Call 404-355-2252 for reservations.
12. Bread & Butterfly Inman Park
James Beard-nominated chef Billy Allin knew he was leaving his last outpost in good hands when he sold it to Demetrius Brown and Brandon Blanchard last September. After all, they were no strangers to this kitchen, where they’d already executed Caribbean and Afro-American Heritage Supper Club pop-up events with aplomb. And they’ve found the balance between honoring Allin’s legacy and their own. Brown’s daytime menu preserves the traditional French style that made B&B so popular: soft-scrambled eggs, shrimp crepes, mini eclairs. But as with all Atlanta transplants, once the sun (and wine) goes down, out comes your natural accent. Here it’s a Haitian lilt: Roasted chicken is prepared with peanuts, sweet potato, and plantains; and Elljay mushrooms move aside to make room for Haitian ones.
13. Hart & Crown Tavern Madison Georgia Historic District
After a recent expansion and refurbishment, Hart & Crown Tavern in the historic district of Madison, GA (where Hit List fave and sister restaurant The Dining Room is also located) is making a hop across the pond as easy as an hour and change in the car. Now that they’re on Resy, you can plan ahead to check out the show kitchen churning out gourmet bangers (and mash), including fish and hand-cut chips, a double burger with Red Dragon cheese, and sticky toffee pudding in a classic pub-style setting that looks (and feels) dropped right out of the English countryside. Signature twisted-tradition cocktails for only $10 each remind you you’re not paying in pounds.
14. Carmel Buckhead Village
Celebrated restaurateur Tal Baum turns “coastal” into a concept as fluid as the ocean with a menu that spans the globe. Yet the experience starts on land, with the scent of wood smoke floating from the kitchen through a dreamy, dimly lit dining room with hand-textured plaster and woven rattan accents. Clear your throat with a Low Tide Spritz, with gin and cucumber, before diving into a recently updated menu with seasonally inspired dishes like summery diver scallops with lemon risotto, garlic aioli, and sunflower seeds. Perennial favorites include a tamarind-glazed roasted chicken, hamachi crudo with pineapple, golden milk buns with togarashi butter, and seared milk cake with apple butter and compote.
Call 470-355-7245 for reservations.
15. Varuni Napoli Midtown / Morningside
Chef Luca Varuni’s original location’s just reached the decade mark, but the buzz is still as fresh as the made-to-order pies, where even online orders don’t hit the custom Neapolitan ovens until checking in at the counter. Grab a seat at the 20-seat pizza bar, where a massive cornicello hangs from the skylight — they’re the most entertaining seats in the communal-style dining room, especially during brunch. Watch sweet fig, Gorgonzola, and prosciutto puff up into crackling-crusted fork-and-knifers and get a preview of combos like egg yolk sauce, sausage, pancetta, and black truffle. As the weather warms, the patio’s also a good choice, especially with a spritz, and the pick-up window is a convenient way to access this ATL institution.
Find more info here.
16. Recess Buckhead Village, Midtown
It’s salad season, and that’s anything but sad in Atlanta. In Krog Street Market and Buckhead Village, this Atlanta-only option is good enough to lure salad chain loyalists to supporting local. Mix-ins like charred broccoli, sea salt crunchy chickpeas, citrus red onion, and parmesan crisps appear in signature salads as well as exciting bowls that buck the expected and feel fully Southern. For example, the Notorious P.I.G. comes with bacon jam, fried onions, and swicy cukes, and the Dirty Bird is a clear shout-out to the Falcons. Braised collard greens and loaded sweet potato fries are sides that do the same, but global influences like Pepita slaw, coconut rice, and Spanish rice keep the menu fresh.
No reservations. Find more info here.
17. The Dining Room Madison Historic District
Before team Michelin gets wind of The Dining Room, we’re scooping it first as a great reason for a field trip. This 36-seat fine dining restaurant in historic Madison’s town square sparkles in every way, from crushed velvet seating to dishes inspired by farms down the road. Led by chef Russell Hays, its à la carte selections and a three- and four-course prix fixe with paired wines changes weekly. Find roasted halibut with potato pavé and saffron mussel jus, or plump spinach gnocchi with lobster knuckles and curried lobster cream. And count on the perennial local cheese plate with apple red wine jam for dessert. Traditional sweet endings, including complimentary petits fours, are by renowned pastry chef Edouard Fenouil, another former Atlantan making country life steps above simple.
18. Pricci Buckhead
Channeling Art Deco-era NYC-fancy with metallic accents, live music, and attentive servers in white jackets, this Italian classic manages formal but not stuffy and established without feeling stale. Perhaps it’s because they’re great at making what’s old new again. For instance, while the pasta’s been made in-house by the same woman for 30 years, it takes on new life in a new monthly rotating series, where chef Piero Premoli supplements the usual menu with regional cuisine inspired by travel through his homeland. Yellowtail crudo is made modern with butternut squash and blood orange, Alba truffles are shaved tableside, veal chops are bone-in, and ravioli doesn’t waste your time with filler. After dinner here, you’ll feel like their carefully swaddled Black Label prosciutto: treated with reverence and thoroughly coddled.
Call 404-237-2941 for reservations.
19. Chai Pani Decatur
This may be the Atlanta offshoot of the James Beard Award-winning Asheville original, but as chef de cuisine (and Atlas alumna) Sahar Saddiqi was named a semifinalist for Best Chef Southeast title just last year, Decatur’s version of Chai Pani is more than holding its own. The big patio is a perfectly appropriate way to remember that Chai Pani celebrates the intricate, bold flavors and textures of Indian street food. Start with the signature matchstick okra fries seasoned with chaat masala and lime while you wait for savory rice and lentil-batter crepes called uttapam. Or go for multi-culti fun with opportunities like Hakka-Chinese fusion Chilli Chicken from Kolkata and street “burgers” in griddled soft buns, both great nods to the diversity of Indian culture.
No reservations. More info here.
20. Kimball House Decatur
Photo courtesy of Kimball House
Kimball House has a preternatural ability to charm. Is it the setting, in a renovated rail depot, inspired by an Atlanta landmark, the Kimball House Hotel? (An old hotel menu became the foundation of the menu.) Whatever it is, the excitement quickly extends to the particulars of the menu, starting with a selection of around 20 oyster varieties, and refined modern cocktails such as a ponzu martini or green apple Negroni. No bad seats here, but for a full meal, make a Resy for one of the tufted leather booths in the classically elegant dining room. You’ll want the table space for updated classic dishes; ravioli en consomme comes with venison; the osso bucco is lamb; grilled oysters have kimchi butter and the opera cake is Earl Grey. And in true local spirit, don’t miss the lemon pepper chicken skins as an app.
Photo courtesy of Kimball House
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