Alex's Atlanta Food and Drinks Recommendations

Alex's Atlanta Food and Drinks Recommendations

Hello ! Since I have some time on my hands, I've finally gotten around to writing a guide to places that I use to frequent when I lived in Atlanta.

Of course there are some place I'm going to miss, but these are places I've been to and recommend. I was born and raised in Atlanta until I moved to San Francisco about a year and half ago.

So the areas of Atlanta that most people go to drink mostly, and sometimes eat are listed below. To the side, I put a description in my opinion of what kind of vibe you'll see in each area.

• Buckhead - Fancy, but also crazy. You can find high end dining, but also places to get black out drunk. 
• Midtown - The yuppie area where things are a little bougie, but I would say is the heart of the city.
• West Midtown - A lot of good restaurants and a lot of breweries and cideries are in this area.
• Little Five Points - The hipster area, with some pretty iconic bars and restaurants in this area.
• Edgewood -  I would say where a little bit of ghetto and hipster meets. Good if wanna get down and a variety of spots.
• East Atlanta - Also a little hipster, but more laid back and less grungy vibe than Little Five Points. 
• West End - Up and coming area with a lot of beer options here. A lot of breweries as well as my favorite beer on tap place have either moved or opened up new locations here.

These areas have more of a suburban vibe, but still worth mentioning:

• Brookhaven 
• Downtown Smyrna
• Downtown Roswell
• Downtown Alpharetta / Avalon

Those areas all have bars and restaurants, but since I use to live in the city, I don't have much to comment on besides the fact that there are good places to go to in these areas, but you're probably only going here if meeting a friend that lives in the area or if you live in that area yourself.

Most of these areas have been around for a while, with the exception of West Midtown, which seemingly became it's own area after a while, and West End which is popular due to the fact that it's off the belt line and relatively cheap to open up in that area since it's gentrifying. 

The majority of your breweries are in West Midtown, Little Five Points, and West End.

There are only three cideries as far as I know. The only two in the city are in West Midtown. One is called Urban Tree Cidery and the other is Atlanta Hard Cider but I don't think the latter is open yet.

The only other cidery I know of is Treehorn in Marietta.

As for eating, these areas of town have more legitimate types of cuisine that aren't terribly far from the city:

• Buford Highway
• Duluth

These areas are where you want to go to get good ethnic food. Skip going to anything for the most part in the city for ethnic food, and get better food and save money at the same time. 

Yes, it's a longer drive, but you're probably not going to be driving further than 30 minutes without traffic, and the traffic in the city during rush hour sucks anyways.

Enough talking, let's get down to my favorite places in Atlanta !

•  Pijiu Belly

 The name of this restaurant means beer belly, and it's a southern / Asian fusion restaurant. Sounds a little weird, right? I've been there since a month of them opening up and the owners, bartender, and staff are very nice there. 

The dishes I like there are the Wonton Nachos, Chicken Wings, Sweet Potato Tots, Taiwanese Chicken Nuggets, and the Dukbokki 

They have an outdoor patio area, shuffleboard, darts, board games, and a pretty decent beer selection.

•  Atlanta Brewing Company

Some of you guys may know this as Red Brick Brewing Company, but they usually have 20 beers on tap and there's always something on tap 

My favorite beers whenever they have them on tap are the Vanilla Gorilla, Beard Envy, Divine Bovine, Three Bagger, Hawaiian Cobbler, Juicy Joe, and Tiki Pale Ale. This is definitely my favorite brewery in Atlanta !

• 9292 Korean BBQ

Although this is in metro Atlanta, definitely my favorite all you can eat Korean BBQ spots. You can also order a la carte if you prefer, but make sure you make a reservation since this place can get rather busy.

• The Independent

This bar has beer and shot specials, excellent bar food and has 9 foot pool tables. Definitely one of my go to spots in Midtown.

• Northside Tavern

The best blues bar / hole in the wall in the city if this is your vibe. This maybe one of the last places in Atlanta that lets you smoke indoors, has cheap drinks, and pool as well. They do charge a cover sometimes, but definitely worth checking out if this is your kind of vibe.

• The Porter Beer Bar

I think this bar made a top 15 bar list in the US, but regardless a good restaurant and bar that server A LOT of beers on tap and in bottles. Definitely a great vibe, and located in little 5 points. I always get the salt and vinegar popcorn when I'm there.

The Porter's Salt and Vinegar Popcorn and a pint of beer

The bar when you walk into the Porter

One of the sandwiches I had there. It's been a while but I believe this was one of their specials.

• Pho Bac

This is another place that's not in the city, but not too far of a drive. This is my go to Vietnamese restaurant to get Banh Mi sandwiches, Pho, and BBQ meat with vermicelli noodles (31A on the menu). If you like yourself some strong coffee, order a iced Vietnamese coffee. I usually get mine in a to go cup so that I can drink it the rest of the day.

Vietnamese spring rolls with shrimp

Grilled meats with vermicelli noodles

Their delicious Pho.

• Red Fox Billiards Club

My go to whenever I want to shoot pool with friends. This place has been open for a year or so, which means their 9 foot tables are very new. Their service is good, and you can purchased bottled beer while you're there.

• Westside Pizza

Located in West Midtown, they have great food, a good beer selection, and John the bartender is chill and knows his alcohol. Definitely one of the places in Atlanta where I would have John whip up a mixed drink for me. This is also a pretty good spot for trivia since I believe they do it twice a week. 

Their fat and juicy BBQ wings

• Fox Bros BBQ

One of my favorite BBQ restaurant in Little Five Points. My favorites here is the Fox Bros Burger with Pimeno Cheese and Beef Brisket. Their Foxarito side is also pretty good as well.

Fox Bro's burger with beef brisket and pimento cheese and their Foxarito on the side

• Das BBQ

Another one of my favorite BBQ restaurants in West Midtown. Their sausage, ribs, cream corn are my favorites here.

Their 2 meat plate - ribs and brisket with creamed corn and potato salad.

Sausage with creamed corn and mac and cheese.

• Moe's BBQ

Although this is a chain, you can't go wrong with their smoked BBQ wings, 2 sides, and a drink for $12 and change. Their ribs are also pretty good, but I always get the wings when I'm there.

Ribs with cornbread and their skllet corn

Wings with some fried mac and cheese

• The Vortex

A pretty well known burger joint in Atlanta. They have a location in Midtown and Little Five Points. The Midtown location has a comedy club attached to it called Laughing Skull, while the other location is the original location. Either way, you can go wrong with either place. If you're at the Midtown location, don't forget to rub the wooden penis for good luck !

Pickle Rick burger with a side of tots.

The bar when you walk into the midtown Vortex.

https://www.google.com/maps/search/the+vortex/@33.7726644,-84.375589,15z/data=!3m1!4b1

• Jinya Ramen Bar

The best ramen place in Atlanta, even though it's a worldwide chain. I recommend getting the combo with either the chashu pork or gyoza, and don't forget to ask for garlic which adds a lot of extra flavor !

Tonkatsu Spicy Ramen

https://www.google.com/maps/search/jinya+ramen+bar/@33.8235075,-84.5049925,12z/data=!3m1!4b1

• Ssam Burger

I believe this is one of their Korean Burgers

Chicken Katsu Burger with a side of wings.

• Blackbear Tavern

The famous Awesome Burger on a croissant and a side of mac and cheese.

Eight Sushi

A few of their sushi rolls. Unfortunately, I forgot the name of these rolls.

And another roll of sushi.... I would also recommend their sushi and bento plates.

• Monterrey Mexican Restaurant 

Texas Fajitas for two. My favorite since there is Beef, Chicken, Shrimp, and Scallops

• Chick-Fil-A Dwarf House

Unfortunately, I only have a picture of a chicken, egg, and cheese biscuit. However if you've never had one of these, you must try it at a Chick-Fil-A. It's only available for breakfast so make sure you order before 11. 

As for the dwarf house, this is the original Chick-Fil-A and it has the normal fast food side, but is also a diner, and the only location that serves beef. I would definitely recommend getting the diner food over the fast food side, and it's delicious ! It's near the airport, so if you have a layover and have a few hours to spare, this is a perfect opportunity to go there.

• Hopstix

A pretty cool brewpub in Chamblee that brews their own beers with an Asian touch, and also good food. I don't think there's another place like this n Atlanta.

A view of the dining area and bar

Some grilled food they have and some other their sushi

Some grilled pork belly and mushrooms

• Waffle House

I know this isn't only located in Atlanta, but now that I'm on the west coast, I still go back to Waffle House. I either get an all star special or double hash browns scattered, smothered, covered, and chunked.

I know that Waffle House is a chain, but you can't deny how good it is. I usually get the All Star special or double hash browns scattered, smothered, covered, and chunked.

• Cyprus Street Pint and Plate

This bar is known for it's Sublime burger, which uses Sublime doughnuts as it's bun. It sounds weird since it's a sweet doughnut with a savory burger, but I tried it and it's pretty freaking good.

I think they still have buy one get one free bottles of wine on Thursdays, $3 IPA pints which is supposed to just be Sweetwater IPA, and a good vibe.

Definitely one of the places I like to go to in Midtown.

The infamous Sublime burger with a doughnut as the bun.

• Tasty China

There's two locations that I have been to - one in Marietta, and one in Smyrna. The Marietta location is the original one with terrible service, and the Smyrna one is relatively new and the service is way better. They also have beer on tap, but some people say the original one is better. My opinion? They're both good, and if there' s slight difference, I would still go to the one with better service.

My favorites are the twice cooked pork, bamboo fish, and the numbing beef.

https://www.google.com/maps/search/tasty+china/@33.8280136,-84.5640104,12z/data=!3m1!4b1

• Roy's Cheesesteak

My favorite cheesesteak place to go to that's located in Smyrna. Supposedly, it was owned by the owner of Philly Connection, and has been under new management for a while, but still good !

I also recommend birth beer, tasty kakes, and their super crispy fries.

• Figo

One of my favorite Italian restaurants to eat at. There's a few locations in Atlanta, and I like the Penne with Funghi sauce and their Arancini balls as an appetizer. 

https://www.google.com/maps/search/figo/@33.8384349,-84.4084806,12z

• Ginya Izakaya / Shoya Izakaya

Some of their sushi and yakitori. Ginya and Shoya are sister restaurants, but Shoya is the original restaurant. I have never had anything that wasn't good, and definitely a solid Japanese restaurant to go to if you're craving some Japanese food.

• Wrecking Bar

I wasn't able to dig up any photos of this place, but it has history.

Built in the 1900s, it is one of the older buildings in Atlanta, and you can see the history on their webpage here: http://www.wreckingbarbrewpub.com/

They make their own beers, and also server some delicious food !

I hope this post gives an idea or places to go to in and around Atlanta. If you have places you like going to in Atlanta, share below !