Atlanta has something for everyone’s taste. Diners seeking the Best Latin Restaurants in Atlanta will get fried chicken, greens, and cornbread at one of the soul food restaurants near Midtown. There are various luxury eateries in downtown Atlanta and the Buckhead region where you may celebrate a special event such as an engagement, birthday, or retirement. In addition to Italian, French, and Spanish cuisine, several of these restaurants specialized in modern local cuisines.
Stop by one of the hotels and restaurants for Happy Hour after work. There is also a slew of cocktail lounges across the city where guests can mingle with the residents, listen to live music and sip a fashionable drink while nibbling on tapas or small meal plates. Let’s follow us to find out right now!
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1. La Oaxaquena Taqueria: Best Latin restaurants in Atlanta
You’ll also discover some of the greatest tacos in town, wrapped in homemade corn tortillas with delicacies like braised cow cheeks, twaddle, and pig el pastor. Tamales de Pollo with mole o salsa verde has such a surprisingly delicate texture. Huaraches are loafer boats composed of masa dough that is filled with luscious goat meat. Our favorite recent discovery: a carnitas-filled tortilla that explodes on the tongue in all the correct way. Nothing can possibly go wrong.
605 Mount Zion Road, Jonesboro, 770-960-3010
2. Miller Union
Steven Satterfield, a Georgia native, gathers and composts every mistake about Southern cuisine at Miller Union. What remains are dinners that are both subtle celebrations and honest examinations of the new South. The fact that they’re served in Atlanta’s most inconspicuous high-end restaurant, which is equally suitable for a quiet lunch or a special event, elevates the pork belly chop over whipped greens and the pork belly with hoecakes and strawberries.
In 2017, Satterfield became only the third Georgia chef in 10 years to receive the James Baker Award for Best Chef in the Southeast. Satterfield has gladly picked up where his master, chef Scott Fowler, left off and at Miller Union; Side-to-side spent a decade working for Feather at Watershed, the famed restaurant that, at the time, revolutionized Southern food in a similar manner.
As Miller Union marks its 10-year anniversary in November, Satterfield and co-owner/general manager Neal McCarthy have clearly entrenched their Westside jewel as a hallmark of Southern hospitality, in both the warm, all-welcoming dinner table and the open, egalitarian kitchen. Miller Union is a picture of a thriving South, both on and off the field.
3. Tacos de la Villa
This may be the third greatest Mexican restaurant in the neighborhood, but it unquestionably has the finest tacos. This taqueria is tucked away next to a Japanese restaurant in a drab strip mall in Smyrna, yet it’s often packed with customers who’ve been told about the distinctive tacos, which range from hot lamb to crumbled chorizo. The richness of each filling contrasts nicely with an acidic salsa or fermented carrots from the salsa bar. Flautas, tamales, kid-friendly nachos, and platters with drink specials round out the menu. But, come on, you came for the tacos.
Smyrna, 2415 Cobb Parkway, 770-951-0415
4. Spring
In 2016, a remarkable little diner exceeded all expectations by bursting onto the scene. It was actually on top of the railroad tracks in an isolated corner of Marietta Circle, a neighborhood not known for its culinary prowess. Despite being upscale, the eating room was modest to the point of simplicity. The menu was as modest as the space: four appetizers and four main dishes.
So, how comes Spring is still open and one of our 10 leading restaurants three years later? The answer is as simple as the décor: chef Brian So’s food. Pappardelle with green garlic crème, oyster mushrooms, green beans, and Parmigiano, the restaurant’s namesake, is a joyous celebration. Pan-roasted fish with zucchini, wax bean, carrots, and poivre blanc is another of our favorite fish dishes in town. It may look straightforward, but don’t be tricked: nothing about Spring is as straightforward as it appears.
5. Bacchanalia
Bacchanalia’s three chapters are as much about the changing character of fine dining as they are about the evolving landscape of Atlanta. Bacchanalia lived in luxury digs in Buckhead, then the hub of the city’s food culture, in chapter one. Even before the horde of Atlanta’s high-end eateries (and high-end things) began their march towards a fewer zip code, Bacchanalia began its second series, boldly relocating in 1999 to a renovated warehouse in a previously quiet region of town: the Westside.
It was a wise decision, as the neighborhood later grew rapidly. Bacchanalia launched its third chapter in 2017, leaving its exclusive home for a more informal setting even further west. Chef Anne Quatrano and her spouse, Cliff Harrison, haven’t just kept ahead of the curve; they’ve created it. And, while Bacchanalia’s stunningly simple food—crafted with carefully sourced ingredients (many from Quatrano’s own farm)—hasn’t altered much in 26 years, it hasn’t lost its influence. There’s a reason why the top two eateries on our list include chefs who worked in Quatrano’s kitchen. Bacchanalia has influenced how we eat (and where).
6. Masterpiece
We identified a technique to excite each and each one of the 10,000 tastebuds on the normal human tongue with only two bites of food. The first bite: Masterpiece’s dry-fried aubergine (Eggplant with Chilli Powder and Red Ash Powder), which is the apex of every variant of the renowned Sichuan dish we’ve experienced. The outside is crackly-crispy and salty, the inside creamy and sweet, and the degree of ma la (numbing spice) is carefully balanced with a generous but not overpowering dosage of aromatic, crunchy Sichuan peppercorns.
The second bite: Dong Po Pork from Masterpiece, a braised block of pork belly coated in a mahogany-hued sauce that tastes like a syrup harvested from a fabled tree. The first mouthful will take your breath away with its electrifying intensity. The second will transport you to another realm of flavor by simultaneously softening and expanding the enjoyment of the first. Rui Liu, a licensed master chef from northern China, entered the United States on an O-1 visa, which is reserved for “individuals of outstanding success.” Wait till you try the other 125 things on his menu. A second facility has opened at 11625 Medlock Bridge Road in Johns Creek.
7. Wonderkid
The American restaurant is a difficult shape to expand upon—but maybe if it could? It may be similar to this spot in Atlanta’s Dairy farms complex, which foregoes old kitsch in favor of a wacky visual mashup: This is a fantastic restaurant with cool design, ’70s light, and Prince pictures on the wall, as well as bar serving potent cocktails behind a curved counter. It’s the result of a partnership between Big Citizens (the firm behind Une Chance and the Lawrence) and Queen of Pops, and the soft-serve is available here on its own or combined with alcoholic beverages.
The bar manager, Jac Campbell, is in control of those beverages and others, while Sarah Hagamaker crafts the exquisite layer cakes that greet customers as they arrive. Opening chef Justin Dixon, who has now left the eatery, was similarly disloyal to the diner concept: his often fantastic understandings involve not only the works of art (English breakfast, lasagna molten metal with pork ribs and bacon jam), but also fantastic shiitake empanadas and chicken wings told to prepare “Buford Road style,” with peanut sauce, groundnuts, and lime.
8. Little Bear: Best Latin restaurants in Atlanta
Jarrett Stieber has constantly proven and he’s one of Atlanta’s most distinctive musicians. Stieber, who rose to prominence with the rock series Eat Me Say Me, has finally made the leap to the big screen with Little Bear, which will debut in Summerhill in January 2020. Fortunately, everything went smoothly, and Stieber rapidly gained the recognition he deserved. I’m joking! Actually, everything is a total mess almost quickly.
Stieber, who had moved to a takeout-only approach, survived the outbreak and was finally able to welcome tourists this past May to find a seat in Little Bear’s bright, contemporary dining room and sample his odd, iconoclastic, Jewish-ish/Sichuan-ish food. Seasonal treasures (one night recently: Georgia shrimp with fig sweet dish and spicy pickles; aubergine with fruits, protein powder sauce, sweet hot sauce, and “herbal products out the ass”) join a few regulars, including such chicken thighs to dan salah cottage cheese and Manischewitz white wine vinegar and an impressive black and white torte) join a few standbys, including such chicken thighs with dan Ahmad yogurt and Man The cocktail and wine menus are as thoughtful—and acerbic—as the food.
9. Nur Cuisine
Driving out on Buford Road toward Norcross, you’ll hear the siren music of about a thousand amazing restaurants before you even get to Nur Kitchen’s parking lot—but if you’re looking for some of the metro’s best mezze, put your hands over your ears, keep your attention on the road, and arrive hungrily. This Middle Eastern restaurant opened in a flashy, Korean-owned retail mall in 2019, but it wasn’t until the arrival of Shay Lavi in 2021 that it became well-known.
Lavi, a great talent with a wide range, acquired followers through his catering company Let’s Eat and in the kitchens of the exquisite but short-lived downtown eatery Rozina Bakehouse. He’s a magician with staples like hummus and baba ghanoush, and his varied backstory was born in Israel, of Turkish & Libyan descent—informs the restaurant’s broad Eastern Mediterranean reach, which spans “from Turkey to Jaffa Port.” That means wonderful menu staples like schnitzel, tzatziki, and mussel sandwiches with garlic sauce, a Turkish seashore specialty.
10. Cuban Bakery Buena Gente
Anyone who is unsure about the Topics that are relevant sandwiches that, in inexperienced hands, can be salty, fatty, and heavy—should head to a professional Cuban bakery, and we have a recommendation for you. Manny Rodríguez and Stacie Antich, the lovely folks behind this cute-as-a-button enterprise, originally debuted their food truck in 2016, later expanding to a tiny shop in a busy Decatur strip mall in 2020.
They spare no expense in the creation of the renowned Cuban sandwich: The bolo ham is wonderful, the mustard is pungent, the mojo-roasted pork has an enticing touch of the citrus in which it was marinated, and the melty Swiss cheese and pressed, crisp bread lift this masterpiece to pizza-like perfection.
Buena Gente excels at more than just Cubanos and sandwiches (medianoche, pan with bistec): From chicken arepas to guava-filled pastelitos, arroz leche to tres leches cake, the glass dessert cabinet is brimming with exquisitely portrayed desserts. It’s superb Cuban baking, reminding us that tonight and tomorrow can only be as wonderful as we make them.
We had listed the top 10 of the Best Latin restaurants in Atlanta that tourists do not miss. Hoping this article is useful for the reader.