bacchanalia

have you ever had a place that you’ve literally been thinking of going to for over ten years?  did you ever (finally) get to go?  did it live up to your expectations?. for me, thatrestaurantwas bacchanalia.  this atlanta staple has been in every top foodie list the city has to offer, and i’ve not once made it for a visit.  until now.

very pleased, i accompanied my wife for our anniversary dinner. and it was worth it. the atmosphere and food was phenomenal. definitely arestaurantfor a special event

if you are in search of a great, quiet, excellent fine dining experience, look no further. it's by no means cheap, but it is as good as any 1-2 star michelin starrestaurantyou'd find in ny. our experience was excellent. the first 3 courses and samples in between were simply perfect. the only disappointment was the desserts. i'm not a huge dessert person, and i lean more to the less rich (creme brûlée variety) style. the blueberry soufflé i got and the chocolate soufflé my wife got were just ok. perfectly fine at any other restaurants, but when they have perfection served at every other course, it was a bit of a let down. that being said, we can't wait to come back...when our bank account recharges.

first time. i was recommended thisrestaurantby the chef and owner of therestauranti work for. my wife and i celebrated our anniversary here. we made sure to choose different prix fixe selections so as to enjoy as much as possible. the knife skill, precision, and food presentation were very impressive. we greatly enjoyed our dishes, except for the dry pastry during dessert. the only negative i had with service was our server seemed restless or annoyed when we asked questions. other than that, i never "needed" anything. from marks to fresh cocktails, we were adequately taken care of. i would go back next time we're in atlanta, especially if i felt like splurging.

  i arrived for a milestone birthday and had such very high hopes and expectations for a flawless fine dining experience.  lovely modest sized space behind a very much frequented white provisions shop where i buy cheese, cured meats and coffee fairly regularly. it’s really quite lovely inside and smaller than i had imagined due to the big reputation. this certainly lends to the very personal service and quiet dining room. i will say the service here is without question the best i’ve had in any fine diningrestaurantin atlanta.

fine dining with a southern twist. this is a very unique setting, and therestauranthas done well to make the space simultaneously contemporary and urbane with a southern warmth. the staff were friendly, helpful and professional in an analogous manner to the physical setting with a slight casualness, but not too casual. as to the food, it was outstanding. the fois gras was the best i have had in many moons, and the far niente dolce wine pairing was perfect. and the assorted cheese platter was quite good. as to price, i thought is was rather a bargain for this type of dining with wine pairings. i would definitely recommend going.

a layman's nitty gritty guide to bacchanalia. price: $85 prix fixe. decide upon your five courses at the outset of the evening.

wine: world renowned list, with few choices under $50/bottle but..... you can do as we did and bring your own, with a $25 corkage fee. (previously unaware of this option, people at neighboring tables said, "we're doing that the next time!')

service: impeccable, and contrary to other posters' comments, friendly and helpful. allow two hours for your meal.

dress: business casual. (a suit and tie is fine, but not necessary)

reservations: a must on weekends. despite being rainy and cold saturday evening, therestaurantwas filled to capacity.

parking: no valet. free parking in the lot outside the restaurant.

now for the amazing food:

course 1 -- the confit foie gras torchon with subtle hints of peanut and cocoa, is melt-in-your-mouth wonderful.

course 2 -- nantucket bay scallops with cauliflower watercress and truffle vinaigrette is indescribably succulent and delicious. the gulf crab fritter -- my original choice -- couldn't hold a candle to t's scallops. when our server suggested i change selections after my initial taste, i didn't hesitate to do so.

course 3 -- you can't go wrong with the local berkshire pork, prepared three ways. each bite is a burst of flavor and texture. t thought the same of his jamison farm lamb.

course 4 - omg, if you like the combination of salty and sweet, buffalo milk ricotta 'ice cream' with toasted oats, pears, cranberry and lemon mint is absolutely perfect. i wanted more, more, more. t had the bucheron celles-sur-belle which was very good, but the accompanying spaghetti squash was bland and lacking.

course 5 - we ordered both versions of bacchanalia's signature valrhona chocolate. t's with hazelnut, cornmeal and frozen orange custard was more interesting and tastier than mine. if requested, your server will bring excellent french press coffee -- a good way to cap off one's meal.

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if you're a hearty steak-and-potatoes kinda person, bacchanalia will not be for you. but if you relish a food experience with innovative flavors and textures, by all means try this #1 zagat rated restaurant. courses are small, but combined with chef's amuse-bouche and other little 'gifts' ( as the wait staff say), you will be satisfied, happy and actually full when you leave.

i can't wait to return!

did i go to the right place??. i feel as if i dined somewhere completely different than every review i've read everywhere!! my husband and i dined there (party of 4) for new years; they must have has a rough night because thisrestaurantwas terrible!!!
we know about good food, how to cook it as well as when it is prepared properly... this place was indescribably bad.
my first course was the hamachi which was not scales properly and i was fishing them out of my mouth. yuck. then i had the snapper which was really overdone and flavorless. my third course was a beef tenderloin which yes was cooked properly but you could tell it was a cheap end piece and not quality tenderloin... the cheese course was blue cheese in which i think catered to people who do not know much about cheese because they had so much stuff on the plate that you couldn't appreciate the pungent cheese at all. finally my one true treat was a goat cheese cheesecake which was pretty good; however not able to change my feeling towards this place. definitely dissapointed and ripped off!!!! if i'm in atl area again i am not going back.

for the last three or four years, every list i’ve read relating to atlanta’s restaurants has listed bacchanalia as the toprestaurantin the city. about once a year, we have a “big night out”. this year, bacchanalia was the destination.

a bit disappointed. so i ate at bacchanalia for a second time (the first time was years ago when they first opened and were at the old location). i decided to give it a try with a party of 4 and see what we thought of the "best" restaurant. i was initially irritated as it was raining that night and the entrance to therestaurantwas not clear. although the name is outside we were not aware that we had to walk through a market to get there. when we came into the market and asked the staff working there just pointed at therestaurantand didn't speak to us. i had arrived with one guest earlier than the rest of our party and we wanted to sit at the bar for a cocktail; we were told we could not since there were "walk-ins" dining there. we waited for our party and sat down. the food was mediocre to say the least and the best part of the meals was for sure the accompanyments which were fabulous. the entree choices were not of the caliber that arestaurantsuch as this should have offered. the portions were small but exactly what you should get when dining this way so no complaints there. i left a bit disappointed unfortunately and have dined in far better in atl. one last note is the decor was quite cold and the bathrooms were old and dingy reminiscent of a 1973 school house bathroom. i expected a lot more. not sure how the rating is deserved.

waste of hard-earned cash. if you love mediocre food at astronomical prices, than this is therestaurantfor you! i don't judge restaurants on poor ambiance or service (which this place had), but on quality of food. whoever likes this place must have had waaaaayy to much money in their pocket, been really high, or just doesn't know good food. i grew up in atlanta, have eaten at all the dives and all the "high-end" restaurants, and this is at or near the bottom of the list (save yourself $150 and grab a burger at five guys down the street)

disappointed. i couldn't fairly rate our experience at bacchanalia as below average in general, but with respect to its reputation and our expectations, it was definitely sub-par.
of course the food was delicious, and beautifully prepared to the eye and palate. but the service was so poor, that it all but ruined our evening, and left us with a bad taste in our mouths (idiom and pun intended).
it was not even close to "the bestrestaurantin atlanta", and we regretted spending our very special night there.

consideration. just a reminder to everyone reading reviews: anyone who talks about how they visited arestaurantfor their "birthday dinner" or complains about the price shouldn't be listened to. "birthday" diners, never eat out except on that one special day, so their palatte is more apt to enjoy mcdonalds than a decent meal. price complainers get indigestion at the thought of paying more than $9.99 for an entree, no matter how good it is. those who complain about price during their bday dinner - the worst possible person to listen to. disregard these reviews and listen to the people who eat out more than once a year, and have deep enough pockets to afford something that isn't on a value meal.

not my favorite. i don't understand the love affair with this place. massively small portions, overpriced, overhyped. i went several times and left still only really liking the crab fritters! for the price, i will stay over atrestauranteugene.