Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in Atlanta for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in Atlanta for grown-ups.
Kimball House in Decatur, Atlanta runs the city's most-awarded cocktail and oyster bar inside a converted 19th-century train station. Booking recommended.
Signature drink: Absinthe drip service
Food: Oysters, raw bar
Tip: Sunday Happy Hour 17:00-18:30 runs cheaper oysters and cocktails. The bar takes walk-ins late on weekends.
Ticonderoga Club at Krog Street Market in Atlanta opened 2015 from a team including Greg Best. Located in Inman Park. Order the cuban-style cocktails.
Signature drink: Cuban-style cocktails
Food: Bar snacks and small plates
Tip: No reservations; bar seats are first-come. The naval-officers-club aesthetic carries through to the punch service.
S.O.S. Tiki Bar in Decatur, Atlanta runs classic tiki cocktails in a thatched Polynesian-themed room since 2013. The mai tai is the canonical first order.
Signature drink: Mai tai
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Cash and card. The patio is open in summer. Reservations not taken; queue forms by 21:00 weekends.
The Wrecking Bar in Little Five Points, Atlanta runs a brewpub in a Victorian mansion basement. The house saison and IPAs anchor the rotating taps.
Signature drink: House saison
Food: Brewpub menu
Tip: The patio is the move in summer. Brewery tours run Saturday afternoons; the upstairs ballroom hosts private events.
12 Cocktail Bar on The Roof at Ponce City Market in Atlanta runs a sophisticated speakeasy-style room with expertly crafted cocktails and elevated small.
Signature drink: Seasonal craft cocktails
Food: Elevated small plates
Tip: Reservations or walk-ins Monday through Saturday; closed Sunday. The rooftop terrace runs the seasonal pours in spring and fall.
Clermont Lounge in Atlanta's Hotel Clermont basement runs the city's longest-running dive bar since 1965. Located in Old Fourth Ward. Order the beer and shot.
Signature drink: Beer and shot
Food: Snacks only
Tip: Cash only at the bar. The Clermont Hotel above has a rooftop bar with a much different vibe; same building.
Manuel's Tavern in Poncey-Highland, Atlanta opened 1956 and has been the city's political-newsroom hangout ever since. Located in Virginia Highland.
Signature drink: Cold beer
Food: Burgers, wings, bar fare
Tip: The booths fill with political-press regulars on election nights. Burgers are the kitchen's strength; reservations not taken.
Argosy in East Atlanta Village, Atlanta runs a beer-and-cocktail bar with wood-fired pizza and snacks in a converted bowling-alley space since 2012.
Signature drink: Beer-and-cocktail program
Food: Pizza, snacks, sandwiches
Tip: Patio is dog-friendly. The Beer Boards run rotating local taps. Weekend brunch service Saturday and Sunday.
Ladybird's Camper Bar on the Beltline in Old Fourth Ward, Atlanta runs summer-camp-themed cocktails in a vintage Airstream parked on the patio.
Signature drink: Summer-camp themed cocktails
Food: Smores, snacks
Tip: The Airstream patio is the move in spring and fall. Smores and snacks the menu; full dinner at the Ladybird restaurant.
The Porter Beer Bar in Little Five Points, Atlanta runs 800 bottles and 38 taps of craft beer with a sharp gastropub kitchen since 2008. Booking recommended.
Signature drink: Rare-beer flight
Food: Gastropub menu
Tip: Brunch on weekends is the under-the-radar service. The Belgian beer cellar runs rare bottles for the right pour.
Elmyr in Little Five Points, Atlanta has run since 1995 as a Tex-Mex-and-dive-bar combination. Order the margarita. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.
Signature drink: Margarita
Food: Tacos and burritos
Tip: Cash and card. The patio sits on Euclid; the inside runs darker and louder. Open until 02:00 most nights.
Red Phone Booth in Buckhead, Atlanta runs a 1920s speakeasy entered through an authentic London phone booth, with 400 plus rare whiskeys, hand-cut ice.
Signature drink: Smoked Old Fashioned
Food: Neapolitan pizza and bar snacks
Tip: Password required at the door; check the website. The Neapolitan pizza oven runs late; absinthe fountain service for groups.