<p>cangel,
I hope you had a chance to go to Soto sushi. It was phenomenal. But the chef was too stresssed out and closed up shop Monday. We're all in mourning.</p>
<p>Is Soto Sushi that place in Buckhead close to the Kroger's? I had heard the Japanese restaurant there was great, but I never had a chance to go there. We went to a place out Peachtree Industrial, close to where some friends used to live - we always went there with them.</p>
<p>Last time I was in Atl I went for a special dinner at Bacchanalia. I had been once before, years ago before it moved. Super place for a very special occasion. </p>
<p>Any other good ethnic recommendations?</p>
<p>Yup-- Soto was the one in the "disco Kroger" shopping center in Buckhead. Such a loss... There are other great sushi places, but Soto had one-of-a-kind preparations.
The links to the Atlanta Journal/Constitutions articles rewuire registration, so heres a brief article/blog <a href="http://www.accessatlanta.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/accessatlanta/chatter/%5B/url%5D">http://www.accessatlanta.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/accessatlanta/chatter/</a>
Bacchanalia is special. Always a treat.</p>
<p>When my friends made the reservations at Baccanalia last fall, the chef at Joel won the James Beard award (or whatever it was he won) the next week, so they kind of wanted to go there, but we were too late. i also like Horseradish Grill and Ray's on the River. I've never been to the "famous" places like Aunt Pittypat's or the Abbey</p>
<p>I know it sort of boring, but I really like the Buckhead Diner - the kids like it too, that is equivalent with going to Atlanta for them</p>
<p>That's it. If my daughter does attend Emory, my wife and I are going out to dinner with both JYM and Cangel.</p>
<p>Seriously, I'm remembering that this thread is out here in CC-land. It's an old lawyer's trick (not that I'm an OLD lawyer, or anything) ... you don't have to know anything, you just have to know where to find it when you need it. Here it is ... the unofficial guide to Eating in Atlanta. My daughter might not gain the freshman 15 ... but I'm worried about me.</p>
<p>Reasonable and decent food near emory</p>
<p>Dusty's BBQ at the corner of briarcliff and clifton rd. NC style if you lke the style you'll love this 1 mile</p>
<p>Sundown Cafe. Good lunch cheshire bridge road Mex in a strip mall 3 miles</p>
<p>Phuket Thai Restaurant (404) 325-4199 2839 Buford Hwy NE Atlanta, GA 30329 5 miles away </p>
<p>Thai Chili 2169 Briarcliff Rd NE, Atlanta, GA, 30329-3449, (404) 315-6750
Minor miracle: strip mall Thai preaches the gospel of flavor at the corner of la Vista and Briarcliff about 2 miles from emory. </p>
<p>Havana Sandwich Shop a hole in the wall on buford highway. have someone take you its hard to find.</p>
<p>These are the other places my dad and the people he works with eat lunch. </p>
<p><a href="http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/2004-06-24/cover2.html%5B/url%5D">http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/2004-06-24/cover2.html</a> </p>
<p>these are not gourmet they are reasonable, they are where my dad goes for lunch and if you look at him you know he eats well LOL. His office is next to Emory</p>
<p>We went to Joel's for my 50th bday (I wont tell you when that was..) with a group of about 12 people and we were underwhelmed. Maybe it was an off day. Paul Karatassos (of Panos and Pauls and the Buckhead life group restaurants) opened his own restaurant, called... (drumroll...) "Paul's". Its in the Peachtree Hills neighborhood. Right smack in the middle of a quaint neighborhood. It was quite good, and it helped that the couple we were with's daughter was dating the sous chef, and one of the waiters was their nephew (an unexpected. Other good restaurants near Emory are Bluepointe (by Lenox Mall) and Twist (a fun tapas and sushi place-- a bit loud, but fun. It has a sister restaurant.. "Shout," intown. There are several good restaurants in and around Lenox and Phipps (a funky middle eastern restaurant around the corner from Bluepointe, but I forget the name). Steviesteve mentioned many of the classics right near Emory. There is also a nice French restaurant on Clairmont, Violette, but the owner died and it hasn't been quite the same... Here's a like to one list of the top 50 restaurants. I agree with some, not all of them <a href="http://www.accessatlanta.com/restaurants/content/restaurants/diningguide/dg_top50a-l.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.accessatlanta.com/restaurants/content/restaurants/diningguide/dg_top50a-l.html</a>.
Dude-- you will see that Spondivits didnt make the list :( It's an aquired taste- true local color).</p>
<p>By the way cangel, stay AWAY from the tourist-y places. I've never been to Pittypats either and I plan to keep it that way. The Abbey is an interesting setting (in an old church - waiters dress like monks) but last time my h. went with work colleagues a few got food poisoning. I would, however, recommend the restaurant atop the Peachtree Plaza- Sundial.(Its across fromPittypat's) Not for the food (its decent- nothing special) but for the view. The restaurant revolves (slowly), and by the time you finish your meal you've seen all of Atlanta and the surrounding areas- all the way out to Kennesaw and Stone Mountains (on a clear day) from, like 60 stories up. We went up there the week before the Olympics and had a wonderful view of all the venues and the pageantry set up everywhere around town. Ask for a seat by the window, but don't leave your purse on the ledge. It will go bye-bye (actually it won't but you will)</p>
<p>Oh wow, memories - I went to Sunday brunch at the Peachtree Plaza a hundred years ago not long after I graduated from college. Fried chicken for breakfast - imagine that, Yankees! I didn't know if it was still open or not, do they still have the big Sunday brunch?</p>
<p>Thanks for the list Stevie - most people think of Atlanta as a purely Southern city, but it has a large Asian population - Cambodian, Thai and Vietnamese are especially large.</p>
<p>Yeah, Jym, the Varsity is the only "touristy" place we go to, and I haven't been there in a while. There's enough chain restaurants we don't have down here to take up the quick meals.</p>
<p>I had heard Twist and Shout were good.</p>
<p>Not sure about the brunch at The P'tree plaza, but Rays on the River has a nice Brunch, as does Chequers and the Renaissance Waverly Galleria. Too much food for me, though.. so I haven't been in ages.</p>
<p>The Varsity is an institution down by Tech. The late Nipsy Russell used to be a waiter there.</p>
<p>Off to the ski slopes-- see you folks in a few days...</p>