New Zagat Survey of Atlanta Restaurants released
The Zagat Survey has released the biannual update of its little red book of Atlanta restaurants. As it has in every edition since 1996, Bacchanalia once again receives the top ranking for food. On the guide’s 30-point scale, Bacchanalia scored a 29. It was followed by Antico Pizza Napoletana, Aria, Bone’s Restaurant and Valenza with scores of 28. Rounding out the top 10 are Chops, La Pietra Cucina, Star Provisions, Restaurant Eugene and Sotto Sotto.
The print guide is much smaller than those in years past; it seems more breast pocket and less glove compartment. It retails for $6.95.
Atlantans eat 48% of their meals out (compared to 49% in 2010). Of the respondents, 59% think the dining scene is the same as it was a year ago, 37% find it improved and 4% find it worsened.
Respondents overwhelmingly found the greatest irritant of dining out to be poor service.
Here are some other rankings:
Top 10 most popular restaurants (i.e., most often mentioned):
- Bacchanalia
- Bone’s Restaurant
- Antico Pizza Napoletana
- Canoe
- Atlanta Fish Market
- Chops
- Cheesecake Factory
- 4th & Swift
- Aria
- Rathbun’s
Top 5 Best Newcomers:
- Local Three
- Heirloom Market BBQ
- Chicken & The Egg
- No. 246
- Cibo e Beve
Top 5 for Decor:
- Nan Thai Fine Dining
- Canoe
- Aria
- Davio’s
- Kevin Rathbun Steak
Top 5 for Service:
- Bone’s Restaurant
- Bacchanalia
- Chops
- Restaurant Eugene
- Canoe
The rankings for these and more than 450 other restaurants were submitted by nearly 3,000 Atlanta-area restaurant goers.
What do you think of these lists? Are they mostly on target?
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57 comments Add your comment
jonnymack
May 2nd, 2012
2:11 pm
The Cheesecake Factory was a top ten mentioned restaurant. Uggggghhhhh.
Ana Logy
May 2nd, 2012
2:18 pm
Jeez! With todays economy how can anyone afford to go out to eat?
Sideline Dude
May 2nd, 2012
2:31 pm
Glad to see Oceanaire wasn’t on the list. Dined there last week & it wasn’t up to its Trip Advisor reviews. Great atmosphere, good service but overpriced, bland seafood.
SMC
May 2nd, 2012
2:39 pm
No Miler Union?
Bone's does not deserve anything - ever..
May 2nd, 2012
2:40 pm
…Still getting by on its past frep (from about 15 years ago) and is not even a top 100 as far as I am concerned…but that is just my opinion…
Duder
May 2nd, 2012
2:54 pm
Bone’s is the best restaurant in the 404 by far. Best steak and baked potato you’ll ever eat. Legit.
Tammy Jenkins
May 2nd, 2012
2:56 pm
I can’t believe Steak ‘N Ale did make the cut!
The Dude
May 2nd, 2012
3:02 pm
Any list that has the cheesecake factory as a top restaurant isnt worth the typeface it was typed on !
George
May 2nd, 2012
3:24 pm
I some folks didn’t actually read the post. Cheescake Factory was top 10 in terms of places mentions most often among the people who took the survey. It was not among the tops in actual ratings.
JJ
May 2nd, 2012
3:27 pm
I noticed they are all high-end restaurants. None that I care to go to.
Bone’s is so incredibly overpriced it’s ridiculious. For what they charge for a steak, I can feed a family of 4 for three days…….I don’t care who cooked it, or brought it to me, or cleaned up after me, that is too expensive for a steak, when you can buy a good one at your local butcher for less than 1/2 price of what they charge.
I refuse to dine out anymore. I love to cook, and I’m pretty damn good at it. There is nothing more enjoyable than a steak on the grill, good friends, and good drink!!! I’m not driving down town for that.
Paul
May 2nd, 2012
3:27 pm
@Ana Logy: Some people have worked hard, saved their money, and made good investments. If you followed that pattern, you could afford to go out to eat, also.
RK
May 2nd, 2012
3:28 pm
Valenza? Who?
Lee
May 2nd, 2012
3:32 pm
I’m a long-time Atlanta resident. Frankly, I am disappointed that Little Bangkok on Cheshire Bridge Rd. is not mentioned at all in this article.
Chris
May 2nd, 2012
3:40 pm
I agree with Lee. Little Bangkok is the best Thai I’ve ever had. Also, Hal’s beats Bones, Rathbun’s and Chops for steaks, easily. There are plenty of better restaurants not mentioned here.
bill
May 2nd, 2012
3:48 pm
What about Harold’s for bbq?
Brian
May 2nd, 2012
3:49 pm
Cheesecake Factory being listed as a top ten most popular list shows how far Atlanta has to go before being considered a premier dining destination. Even for national chains, that place is a dump and the food is disgusting.
I’m thrilled to see Heirloom on the list of newcomers and I agree with Chris that Hal’s is far better than the other three steakhouses mentioned (especially since Rathbun’s failed their recent health inspection).
mambo
May 2nd, 2012
3:54 pm
@jonnymack, this city is the black mecca and Cheezecake (sic) is where they go for banana banshees and Hennessy and coke.
Cump Sherman
May 2nd, 2012
3:55 pm
All the hostility towards the Cheesecake Factory demonstrates how this column and these lists are only of interest to foodie snobs who think Willard Romney is one of their own since he’ll cut taxes on millionaires, eliminate medicare, gut social Security and administer Xyclon B to welfare recipients.
GaPeachy
May 2nd, 2012
4:02 pm
Whoever came up with this list obviously does not actually eat out in Atlanta. Those are restaurants vistors frequent, or Atlantan’s visit if its a holiday. If I ate out regularly at those places I would be broke! There are soooo many great Atlanta restaurants with food just as good. Maybe if this was based on just decor, but food and service does not always have to be the same few overpriced restaurants! I need to write a Zagat for the real Atlantan!
Paul is an A**
May 2nd, 2012
4:02 pm
@Paul. Go and vote for Romney you white Ahole
Easy people....
May 2nd, 2012
4:03 pm
Some people commenting here need to chill… no need to get in a tizzy over a top ten list.
Edward
May 2nd, 2012
4:08 pm
I think the lists are rather spot-on. I’d like to know where JJ gets a prime, dry-aged steak for “less than half” of what Bones or another high-end steakhouse charges. They don’t sell them at Kroger or Publix, you know.
Grasshopper
May 2nd, 2012
4:08 pm
“…and administer Xyclon B to welfare recipients.”
More info please! I’m trying to decide who to vote for and this may seal the deal!
Decatired
May 2nd, 2012
4:09 pm
WATERSHED is still the best and they are no longer open. They even had the best air! WATERSHED
forever!
markie mark
May 2nd, 2012
4:21 pm
good god, “paul is an a” – he advocates the things our parents taught us in the way of hard work and call him an a**hole? Your an incredible one yourself…..what has being intelligent and hardworking got to do with race, politics, and all the junk you injected…..damn….just damn. What a pathetic small minded human being….enjoy your McD’s if thats all you want….
Brian
May 2nd, 2012
4:23 pm
Quote: @Paul. Go and vote for Romney you white Ahole
Is “white” now an insult in Atlanta? Keep it classy Phatlanta
Layla
May 2nd, 2012
4:28 pm
This list lost all credibility with the inclusion of Cheesecake Factory. Nasty…
Confused
May 2nd, 2012
4:29 pm
Hal’s on Old Ivy is the best steak in the city and the atmosphere is second to none!!
rudyt
May 2nd, 2012
4:46 pm
Can’t believe Maggiano’s didn’t make top 10!
p
May 2nd, 2012
4:59 pm
sorry you missed Nuevo Laredo…..it is the best!!
ReadingComprehension
May 2nd, 2012
4:59 pm
It’s really a sad state of affairs when people can’t comprehend that the Cheesecake Factory is only on the list insofar as it’s among the “Top 10 most popular restaurants (i.e., most often mentioned).” Just to reiterate: “MOST OFTEN MENTIONED”—not “best” or “tastiest” or “fanciest.” You can’t criticize the survey as irrelevant because the fools who participated (i.e., people like you) ate at Cheesecake Factory. Why are people so dumb?
Reading comprehension is dead
May 2nd, 2012
5:01 pm
To all the posters getting butt hurt about the Cheesecake Factory, please go back and reread John’s clarification on ‘most popular’. Hint: i.e. is shorthand for ‘in other words’.
Reading comprehension is dead
May 2nd, 2012
5:03 pm
You beat me to it by two minutes, RC. lol
Relationship Expert
May 2nd, 2012
5:05 pm
Waffle House is severely underrated.
Can't see the forest
May 2nd, 2012
5:12 pm
No, we know that the list is for the “most popular” or “most mentioned.” It’s the fact that the Cheesecake Factory is on THAT list is ridiculous.
Can't you read?
May 2nd, 2012
5:21 pm
Cheesecake Factory is on there because it is popular, not good! They didn’t list the top ten on Food. Idiots! Bones is still the best. JJ, stay in the burbs. We don’t need you down here.
Doug
May 2nd, 2012
5:48 pm
Love the ITP bias by the Urinal and constipation. Technically about 15 restaurants currently have a 27 for food. That puts them all at the 3 spot for overall ranking. Keep up the crappy work.
Foodie Snob
May 2nd, 2012
5:48 pm
No Majestic? This list is lame…
Mack
May 2nd, 2012
5:57 pm
I had dinner on the rooftop deck at Six Feet Under on 11th St. a few nights ago. Six Feet may not show up on Zagat’s list of best or most popular but the service, the view, and the food were simply awesome. Check it out……it’s a fun place. (No, I don’t work there!)
rebelliousrose
May 2nd, 2012
6:13 pm
Davio’s for decor???????????
Weena
May 2nd, 2012
7:47 pm
Poor Atlanta, you will always be D list town. I could find ten restaurants in my neighborhood (east 50s in NYC) that would top any of these listed. I like Bell Street Burritos, but the rest of Atlanta food is mostly blah…
Id Est
May 2nd, 2012
7:56 pm
FYI: i.e. is not “shorthand” for “in other words.”
It’s Latin for “that is.”
What this blog needs is an I.Q. test before permitting people to poast.
Daedalus
May 2nd, 2012
8:04 pm
I’m glad someone mentioned Hal’s. I’ve had this discussion with a number of friends who are big proponents of Bones. Both are expensive but both have amazingly good steaks and atmosphere. I’m not sure how/why Bones is #1 but Hal’s isn’t even mentioned. Not popular enough with those on corporate expense accounts?
Daedalus
May 2nd, 2012
8:10 pm
Id est … technically correct, but wouldn’t “that is” translate equivalently to “in other words”? Translations are always at the mercy of common vernacular and “in other words” seems more common in conversation than “that is.” Not a major point. Don’t see why there is so much incivility on here.
BradB
May 2nd, 2012
8:15 pm
Cheesecake Factory, what a joke. Zagat’s didn’t really do too much work for this list obviously. Babette’s is hands down one of the best.
Darlene
May 2nd, 2012
9:24 pm
I’m beside myself that The Flying Biscuit was NOT listed anywhere on these lists, y’all.
Goldie
May 2nd, 2012
9:44 pm
Whatever piece of credibility Zagat’s had left is gone.
I.T. Psnob
May 2nd, 2012
10:09 pm
Silly OTpers. Dining is only for those residing in apartments with no children,only small dogs.
I bet they even use ketchup on their steak!
been there...not impressed
May 2nd, 2012
11:15 pm
Bones? Chops? Canoe????
Last Resort or Five and Ten over here in Athens is better than any of the restaurants on the
‘food’ list. Okay, I’ll give you Bacchanalia, not been there.
Cheesecake Factory????? Even if not for food, but ‘popularity’….more evidence that overweight, overtaxed, overwrought Atlantans have one requirement to frequent a place: lots of food. not good, but lots.
Reading comprehension is dead
May 2nd, 2012
11:28 pm
@Id Est: Thanks for proving my point about reading comprehension. You correctly noted I said shorthand. I did not say ‘literally translated as’. There is a difference between the two, at least in the real world. And as long as we’re picking nits, you would fail your own little test, unless spelling is exempted.