Lucian Books & Wine is the kind of place that feels both deeply intentional and completely…read moreeffortless which is a rare balance. The space itself sets the tone immediately. Intimate, warmly lit, and thoughtfully designed, it invites you to settle in. The presence of books, the scale of the room, the soft energy all creates an atmosphere that feels cultivated. What stands out most is the curation. The wine list is exceptional without being overwhelming, and the option for half pours makes it especially enjoyable for a slower, more exploratory evening. It's clear that every selection has been chosen with care and a point of view. The food follows suit--refined, seasonal, and quietly confident. Nothing is overdone, yet everything feels considered and well-executed. It complements the experience rather than competing for attention. Service is knowledgeable, passionate and attentive. My waiter was incredibly knowledgebale and offered the perfect suggestions. Then, when I was ready to try a drink, the bartender noticed, came over, and suggested a half pour of champagne with the omelette I ordered. Lucian doesn't try to be everything. It knows exactly what it is and executes it at a very high level. It's a place to linger, to read, to have a glass of wine that turns into two. An experience that feels both personal and elevated.

Lucian Books & Wine delivered a quietly exquisite evening -- the kind where the food, wine, and…read moreatmosphere all work together in this understated, elegant way. We started with the polenta appetizer, silky and warming, the kind of simple dish that becomes memorable when it's done with real finesse. The black grouper followed as the star -- perfectly cooked, delicate, and rich without ever feeling heavy. Paired with the seasonal salad, bright and crisp, it created a beautiful balance of depth and freshness. The 2021 Tempranillo from Rioja, Spain was a standout. Smooth, structured, and aromatic, it elevated every dish without overpowering them -- one of those bottles you immediately want to remember. Dessert was the lemon tart, light, fragrant, and absolutely divine. A perfect finish. And because it's Lucian, we didn't leave without wandering the shelves -- and ended up purchasing The Silk Roads by Anna Ansari, the perfect companion to an already thoughtful evening. A refined, welcoming space that feeds you in every sense. We'd return without hesitation.

This place fully lives up to the hype! Honestly my standards for Italian are high and this was the…read morefirst Italian I've had in Atlanta that I feel like is worthy of its high rating. The pasta is so fresh and the flavors are amazing. We had: Tagliatelle Al Funghi - 10/10 literally so amazing I dream of this! Basil Risotto - 9/10 delicious and creamy, the tomatoes on top were so fresh, would absolutely order again but the Funghi was definitely my favorite overall Caprese salad - 9/10 very fresh and light Beet salad - 10/10 so delicious I truly love beets and this was fresh and yummy The ambiance is also great for a date night or a gals night. Highly recommend coming here!

I visited Sotto Sotto for an impromptu dinner with my college friends and the experience was a…read moremixed bag. I'll start with the good which was the appearance of the restaurant and the service. The restaurant is beautifully decorated with indoor and outdoor seating as well as a bar. Although we had to wait an hour for our 7:15p reservation, the hosts were incredibly kind and gave us complementary drinks for the inconvenience. After standing in a busy walkway for an extended amount of time, we were finally seated. Our table was in a good location in the restaurant but we did have to deal with a bit of wobbling that was fixed by the server and a few gnats and flies. Our server was very nice and very informative as we ordered but seemed to get distracted at times due to how busy the restaurant was. The food and drinks were fine but not necessarily worth the hassle and wait. It wasn't as flavorful as I had hoped but the ingredients seemed to be fresh. It was a nice touch to have fresh Parmesan cheese grated table side with our meals. All in all, I don't think I would go out of my way to visit this restaurant again but it's worth giving a try if you are craving Italian and happen to be in the area.

Mussels and trout always a hit! Bread wine and service tres…read morebon! Our go to for French cuisine!

I've been coming to this restaurant for more than 10 years, and the quality has always been…read moreconsistently good. The white wine mussels are especially excellent. The mussels are always fresh, although their size can vary, sometimes they're large, and other times they're quite small. They used to allow parking in the back, but now it's valet or street parking only. The valet service is complimentary, you just tip the valet attendant, and they accept Venmo. My boyfriend enjoys their beer selection. I've had consistently good experiences with the food menu, but I find the mocktails to be just average. They tend to be more fizzy and soda-like than flavorful. I imagine their cocktails and wine are probably a better choice. They used to have complimentary bread. Now the bread is a menu item. The outdoor seating is very nice, although it can get a little hot during the summer. They have both ceiling fans and standing fans to help keep things comfortable. The only downside is the number of flies. We constantly had to wave them away from our food. Our server was friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. The only minor issue happened at the end of our meal. We ordered a large dessert and asked if they happened to have chocolate ice cream. The server said he would check with the kitchen. However, before coming back to confirm, he brought us the chocolate ice cream as if we had already ordered it. Since it was already served, we didn't feel comfortable sending it back, and ice cream isn't exactly something you can take home. We ended up eating it even though we were already very full. Aside from that small misunderstanding, we had a great experience. The food is consistently delicious, the service is friendly, and it's a restaurant I would definitely recommend.

Amazing!! Drinks were well made , food was great, came out timely…read more Thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere and ended up ordering dessert and coffee Daytime date was a must repeat!

3.5 stars actually. I have been to this restaurant twice. The first time was for Christmas Eve…read moredinner, the second time was last week -- to try their Buckhead Restaurant Week brunch set. This restaurant features Mediterranean-Spanish fusion tapas and a few large plates; some are also American inspired. I could not remember clearly what we ordered during my first visit. We definitely ordered the chicken and it was too salty. Service was a bit slow even if the restaurant was nearly empty that night. For the brunch, my friend got the Cinnamon Roll and Prawns & Polenta on the $25 set menu, while I tried their labneh and Local Roots Salad. The Cinnamon Roll was too soggy. The other dish my friend had was similar to "shrimp and grits". It came with seven large, fresh prawns; full of umami. However, the polenta was disappointing as it was too salty, not hot enough and contained chunks of cornmeal. My labneh was very interesting; there were lots of different herbs and spices, and it tasted rich and spicy. It was served with lots of vegetable crudités (radish, sweet peppers, cucumber slices). Finally, the Local Roots Salad actually had not root vegetables; it had better be called Local Greens Salad lol. The olive crumbs were interesting though. Besides, the restaurant charges $3 for two tiny pieces of bread:(

Decent location if you're looking to see a live show in the Emory area. Fantastic selection of…read moretapas, and their drinks are delicious. The hightop tables were a bit too high for us, but the other traditional seating was great with a candle at every table. We ordered all types of things. The pulpo (octopus) and baked mussels really stood out as our favorites. Owner/manager came out to speak with us. He and his staff clearly care about creating a great business with the best Spanish dishes in the area. Give this spot a try--you won't regret it!

My husband and I came here last month with one of my friends and it was an excellent introduction!…read moreMy friend had been here before just for dessert and had been wanting to try more dishes, so we visited upon her recommendation. The ambiance is classy while not being stuffy, with business casual dress code. All of the staff were welcoming and kind to us, from the hostess to our waitress to the food runners. We shared several tapas: paella verduras, Pulpo parrilla (grilled octopus), Pan con tomate, empanadas with beef, Calamares fritos (calamari) , Espárragos (asparagus), and Patatas bravas. Everything was absolutely delicious! One of my favorite items of the night was the bread with tomato (pan con tomate)! The bread was toasted perfectly and came with garlic and grated tomato to spread on it, along with a sprinkling of greens. My typical favorite at Spanish restaurants (patatas bravas) was done very well here too, with the right crunch and tasty sauces. The perfectly tender octopus came with a side of beans that I wished to ask for the recipe for because they were seasoned so nicely! The calamari was breaded lightly which allowed the natural flavors to shine. The beef empanadas were juicy and crisp. The asparagus was cooked to perfection. The vegetable paella was also filling and wonderful! We ended our meal with the toffee butter cake which was an absolute dream. We look forward to coming back for more!

After moving from DC to Atlanta, it has been very hard to find good Lebanese cuisine…read more That ended today. Wow!! Great service! Restaurant was absolutely stunning. Just go.

Wow, Zakia was probably one of the best restaurants I've gone to in a while! The food was just…read moreamazing and we got a tasting menu that I thought was set up so well! We all got pita and a BUNCH of dips and starter dishes to share. There was labneh, hummus, olive oil, baba ganoush, falafel with tahini, and wrapped grape leaves there was just SO MUCH and it was all so delicious! Like I can't pick a favorite starter cause it was just all so good! I usually don't love baba ganoush, the ones I've had in the past were just kinda weird tasting but this one was really good and it was SO smoky! The stuffed grape leaves were also really good I think! The falafel with the tahini was the perfect texture and flavored really well. I love how they brought us more pita even when we ran out! They definitely did not skimp on the starter dishes, by the end of it I was already full . The first drink I got was just okay, it was really pretty but I didn't love it. For my main course I got the kafta kebab. I put hella harissa and toum on it, not pictured is Lebanese rice which had toasted almonds and vermicelli. I LOVED that the dish came with grilled veggies, I was not expecting it! The kebab was super flavorful and juicy and I only had enough room in my stomach for one, I had lots of leftovers! Honestly, no complaints from me on this one, it was a perfect dinner! Dessert was just alright, we got date cakes and Dubai chocolate. The chocolate was really rich and I liked it a lot. The cake was meh. They said there's usually baklava but I wish they had't said that because then the dessert just felt like kind of a let down. Overall the entirety of the meal was excellent, I think they could've done more with the dessert but with that said, I did NOT have room for dessert Parking was easy to find and there's plenty of parking in the garage! They validate for 3 hours! Don't scam the QR codes in the parking garage, they have a QR code in the restaurant. Service was also great! The servers were very very nice! The interior of the restaurant was beautiful! Highly recommend, definitely a nice date night place or just girls night!

This speakeasy had been right in my face and I had no idea it was there! Secretly tucked away…read moreinside Ponce City Market, La Cueva is a cute, dimly lit, romantic spot with a cozy atmosphere and really good food. We ordered the 24 oz Prime Bone-In Ribeye, short rib, Brussels sprouts, and broccolini, and everything was delicious. No complaints at all. The live band was also a great touch and really added to the vibe. The space isn't huge, but that actually makes it feel more intimate and cozy--perfect for a date night. Definitely a hidden gem I'm glad I finally discovered. 10/10, would absolutely go back!

So I've been meaning to come across this spot but every time I'm in the area I always forget. Made…read moreit in there finally and it was actually pretty cool . It's in Ponce City Market so you already know how that's going to go. You have to pay for parking but it's not that big of a deal because it's not overly expensive. For a couple of hours you're going to pay under $6 so it's not that bad. It's on the second floor of the market so at least you know where you're going but it's very inconspicuous so just look for the barber shop. You probably need to have reservations if you're going to try to go so let me just say that right out the gate. If they can make space for you, they will but it's not necessarily guaranteed. If you want to sit at the bar, you can probably try to finagle your way there. If you want a table, you're going to have to plan it out a little bit . The decor is very cave-like, which is the whole premise of it. It looks like you're inside of a cave because of the stone decorations and the stone surroundings but it's still the inside of a warehouse type of situation. It's still pretty cool . Met one of the owners of it and his name was Rob and he was a really cool guy. He stopped to have some conversation and had really good customer service. I would definitely consider that a plus and a bonus because a lot of times you don't meet the owners or the managers of spots that you go into. He was making rounds so that was awesome. This spot has live music so if you want to get a little music vibe in, this would be a good spot to go to. Rob said that they usually have live music at around 7:00 and it's almost every day. It could be a DJ or it could be a live band. When I went it was a jazz band type of situation . There's not plenty of seats but there are enough seats. This is not a spot that you would go to if you're going to go ahead and try to have a group of 20 or something large like that. This is not that kind of party but if you wanted maybe a group of four then this probably would be a better option for you. It's not overly big even though they do have seating there so just keep that in mind when you're planning . Buford highway - so this is an interesting drink but it handled itself pretty well considering it had two liquors in it. It's very light compared to what you would think it would be and it's not overpowering so you could actually probably drink more than one of these and be good . Overall this is a cool little spot. I'm not sure if it's going to be the new summer or fall spot but it has potential. Since it's not easy to get into, it's not going to be something you can just walk into with a bunch of friends. If you want a really decent vibe, then I would definitely say give it a shot for some drinks .

This place is everything I didn't expect. My wife made the reservation. All I was told is it's…read moreItalian and dress legit nice. Suit and tie level nice. We show up and I think we are in the wrong place. Valet directs us to the elevator and down we go. When we get out, it's like we went back 30 years to a restaurant in an Italian section of New York. It's amazing. Place looked like we time warped in all the best ways. It looked like it was straight outta a Sopranos episode. Staff is dressed to the nines. Customers too. Loved it. And the food, forgetta bout it. We went with our kiddos and had half the menu. All of us trying each others food. All of it amazing. With that, we made a point to act like it was 80-90s era and didn't use our phones, so no pics. But if you want another way to know how amazing the food is, try and get a reservation last minute on a weekend. Better luck winning the lottery. That said, make the reservation pronto and enjoy.

Worth it!! I have been dying to come to La Grotta for years and I made a reservation for the…read moreSaturday of Mother's Day weekend for my mom. Valet is complimentary which is great and they provide directions for how to get in to the restaurant. The hostess was super nice and our table just needed a few minutes to get cleaned off. Once seated, we settled on a good bottle of Malbec to drink which was delicious. For an appetizer, we got the mussels which were probably some of the best mussels I have ever had using the bread to soak up the sauce was divine. Truly delicious. For the pasta, I got the the tortelli de vitello which was so good. Some of us at the table also tried the shrimp linguine which was delicious and so fresh as well as the chicken parm which was MASSIVE and came with a great side of pasta. We also tried the little pasta shells/ears with sausage and broccolini and it was delish. Truly these dishes were stunning and cannot wait to have it again! To wrap up the dinner, we got some coffees and the tiramisu... Which was delicious and as stunning as everyone says. Overall, this meal was divine. The vibes of the restaurant really bring it up because it is so calm and classic and just such a great place for a lovely meal. 10/10