The Resy Hit List: Where In Atlanta You’ll Want to Eat in May 2025

Miller Union’s Steven Satterfield and Neal McCarthy have another hit on their hands with the new wine bar and restaurant they opened with Dive Wine’s Tim Willard. Folks have been fast to smash the Notify button since its opening, and the jury’s split between whether the small plates or the big glasses should take top billing. Shareable dishes range from light to less light; a poulet rouge and creamy potato gnocchi are as big as plates get. McCarthy and Willard are both esteemed sommeliers, and thankfully, their excitement to share their knowledge means a choice of roughly two dozen wines by the glass. Once you grab a seat, just follow our Dish by Dish recs and let that be your guide.

Delbar may be nicely settled into their newest digs, and Fares Kargar’s third location has shown no signs of slowing down. Lunch and brunch are in full swing now, in addition to the always-on-Notify dinner service. Validated two-hour self-parking makes this city central location even more convenient, and you’ll want to linger in the high-glam, convivial space, savoring shared plates like pomegranate molasses-drizzled red pepper muhumara spread (featured in our Rundown) and — perfect for spring — a strawberry- and currant-accented salad of peas four ways. Try the herbaceous sabzi polo rice with tahdig and frizzled onion with savory adana kabob to make the house soft serve and ice cream feel all the sweeter after.

Together with Paul Gutting, Leonard Yu of Omakase Table is leveling up Atlanta’s omakase expectations. At this new, intimate 10-seat counter in the historic Abrams Fixtures buildings, raw and rare seafood shares equal billing with cooked small plates and big flavors. On a daily changing menu, luxury ingredients such as abalone, hairy crab, and A5 Miyazaki wagyu beef are showcased along with grilling, steaming, and smoking, curated to represent different regions of Japan … and Yu’s multifaceted culinary career. For example, a miso and crab capellini pasta dish are a nod to his time working in Italian cuisine. Pro tip: Don’t skip the sake pairing option, where the pours are not only generous but also staff favorites, and often not on the menu.

It’s well-known that this New York/Jewish/Southern deli serves up a mean breakfast, brunch, and lunch with options that run the gamut from house-cured pastrami hash to bagels with schmears and various fish toppings and a buttery cardamon knot you’ll never forget. But go ahead and sleep in on the weekend … as long as you don’t sleep on dinner. Get on Resy for a comforting weeknight meal — the only time and way you’ll ever be guaranteed a seat here. It’s casual and charming with its nostalgic black and white motif, and weekend specials like fried chicken and short rib Stroganoff amplify its evening appeal.

Offering perhaps the only cocktail tasting menu in town, this a 60s-era, fur-trimmed, red-lit vintage tour bus is limited to 18 seats. Bites from co-owned Muchacho next door are paired to enhance four rounds of drinks over 80 minutes; add-ons are coursed accordingly. The current “Karate Kid” theme — call it hot Asian fusion, if you must — is waxing off for the last time, but in its place as of May 9 is “Pulp Fiction.” Two paths, Vincent and Jules, feature creative drinks named after key moments in Quentin Tarantino’s movie. Think ingredients like cherry tomato shrub, green chile-infused vodka, and more. Resys open up only every other Tuesday, so set a Notify to lock down your spot. 

Atlanta has plenty of steakhouses; every city does. But one of the best beef purveyors here has a steak cellar — who else can say that? Leave the wheels with the free valet, descend into the stone-walled space, and don’t let the surroundings fool you. They’ve got all the fancy stuff and do those dishes well, from oysters Rockefeller to a martini that Atlantans have sworn by for decades. Hickory wood-grilled steaks and slow-roasted prime rib are the classic orders, and come with a side for value. But with bread from Alon’s (a Hit List favorite), Georgia-grown ingredients, and fun takes on classics like a grilled meatloaf and bacon bourbon baby back ribs, there’s no one formula for a knockout meal here. 

Choose your own three-course adventure with Kevin Gillespie’s prix fixe menu, which offers plenty of opportunities to see how hearty Scottish fare can be given a contemporary Southern and New England twist. For instance, Georgia-grown wagyu culotte grilled on wood comes with barbecued sweet potatoes and Scotch ale mousse and Maine peekytoe crab is accompanied by brown-butter yuzu and a tattie scone. Or just let Gillespie navigate your “way of nature” with a six-courser freshly updated for the season. New winter riffs feature smoked mussels with hard cider cream and duck confit with spiced quince. Warm up further with a dram from his private whisky collection — just the right drink to feel like a laird in his lodge.

Hiking season is officially on, which puts Cartersville — home of Red Top Mountain State Park — on many a day-tripper’s map. This dog-friendly, casual and eclectic rock-and-roll grill is a gem the downtown city slickers too often skip. It’s well worth a stop if only for the house-ground steakburgers, like the pimento cheese version with fried jalapeños. Pair that with fresh fried potato chips for a real treat, or go light with a rice bowl. Big salads, like juicy blackened salmon on mixed greens dressed with mango pineapple salsa, are great for cooling down, even as the energy of the restaurant is kept high with music from the 8-track era playing from built-in bar speakers. 

No reservations. More info here.

There’s nothing like open-flame cooking, and with a lion like chef Julio Delgado manning the flames? It’s worth the trip OTP. Spanish flavors seemingly dominate the menu — think deviled eggs with Iberico ham, albondigas, tortilla espanola, paella — but look closer and you’ll see he heads west. Latin America’s represented in dishes like ceviche, adobo wood-roasted chicken, rum-maple glazed salmon, and birria-style lamb shank barbacoa. Peeks of the chef’s Puerto Rican heritage add a personal touch. For instance, compare croquetas to sorullos, or patatas versus yucas bravas. Post up at the outdoor counter seats for prime people- and performer-watching as live music returns to the patio.

Filipino flavors are on fire right now, and this local favorite has been generating both local and national accolades. Plus, next year’s upcoming expansion is hotly anticipated as Resys fill up ever faster with the growing recognition. Book a kamayan-style feast as a private event for the most memorable spread in town, or design your own with an array of lumpia ranging from pork or Filipino sausage to jalapeños and cheese, then chicken adobo, and sisig with pork belly cheek, snout, and pate. Ube fans won’t want to skip the desserts, as the purple yam takes three forms.

Everyone knows about the crispy duck lasagna with cocoa bechamel at this refined southern European mainstay, but the pro tip here is to journey through the Pasta Odyssey, which shows off the range of chef Craig Richards’ talent … and includes this signature dish in sampler size. On this multi-course taster, cacio e pepe takes agnolotti form with quadruple the pepper power, beef and black truffle merge with thyme and star anise, and braised rabbit becomes smooth and silken when tucked into thin sheets of pasta. End with the Meyer lemon cheesecake, whose soft, whipped texture recalls the center of a perfect Basque-style version and is perfectly punctuated with macerated blueberries and basil.

Chef Santiago Gomez’s urbane oasis remains one of Atlanta’s hot spot fixtures, but that’s never kept innovation off the table here. Bar director Orestes Cruz is new to the team, infusing cocktail offerings with fresh fruit and herbaceous twists — often literally. Also new: Taco Tuesday, with a la carte gourmet tacos that let you mix and match proteins such as birria and double-fried pork belly with sauces like salsa macha and molcajeteada with toppings like beans, guac, and pickled radish. Pro tip: some drinks are exclusive to the rooftop or dining room (drinks upstairs are designed to pair well with the Japanese light bites offered there), so make your Resy accordingly.

Speakeasies and secret bars have been all the rage for some time, the likes of Propaganda recently joining the ranks of Jojo’s Beloved, Roaring Social, Irie Mon Bar and Lounge, and others. But Richard Tang’s done it a little more traditionally, his pocket-sized hidden lounge still below most radars. Many guests don’t even know of its existence, distracted as they are by dishes like brussels sprouts with Chojan and XO sauce, blackened mahi-mahi with Thai creamed corn, and Southern comforts such as meatloaf with braised collards and fried catfish. After all, with cocktails like the gold-dusted Velvet Vixen and Kung Fury with Thai chile citrus honey available at the bar, why not take the first seat you see?

Recently reopened with chef Robert Butts (formerly of Twisted Soul Cookhouse and Pours) and Tregaye (Fraser) at the helm, this Angel has definitely earned new wings. A revamped menu features dishes whose flavors match the polished but unabashedly bold décor of the jewel-toned, historic space. For instance, roasted cauliflower topped with toasted sunflower seeds surprises with a succotash emulsion that packs secret heat in the finish. Then mains like meaty lobster ravioli with Creole bechamel and smoked lamb chops with spicy pepper jam and chimichurri made with collard greens make global dishes distinctly Southern and soulful. Don’t skip dessert or the cornbread by Megan Brent as she flexes her pastry chops. Pro tip: Charcuterie lovers will want to book a Resy for Thursday’s Grazing Hour.

Within a deceptively modern building, past a spacious patio in Heritage Walk, this French staple is all about elegant tradition the minute you step inside. Ornate crystal chandeliers illuminate countryscape art, and white tablecloths and carpet underfoot recall classic textures and style … as does the menu. Sole meunière is presented beautifully, its bones inverted for display; our state’s famous Vidalias are finished tableside as onion soup; and coq au vin is given a contemporary twist with a pan-roasted breast atop braised dark meat. Pro tip: the unlimited rib eye steak frites with salad and bread service is one of the best values you can get for $49 a person at any French restaurant.

This global cruise ship and resort hotel phenomenon — where live narration, themed music, props, and projection tech do some culinary storytelling — is now in Georgia with its debut at Grand Hyatt Atlanta in Buckhead. But as this city does, we’ve left a mark of our own; all four available menus are locally inspired, including ingredients like Georgia Coast grouper, Savannah shrimp, Springer Mountain Farms chicken, and our state’s famous peaches. For parents looking for something novel and fun for their kids’ first dinner “theater” experience, this turns the tables into a far more captivating screen than any device.

Find more info here.