www.atmospherebistro.com
Dave and I came here just three short weeks ago and LOVED Atmosphere Bistro! We returned just this past weekend to celebrate our anniversary.
This restaurant is located in a beautiful old house in mid-town. It has a really nice outdoor seating area as well - not great for hot summers in the ATL but nice for all other times of year. Also, the restaurant has valet parking. The bar area is not large but nice enough to sit and have a drink before dinner (which we did because we arrived thirty minutes before our reservation time). We loved the atmosphere...small tables, low noise level, and dim lighting. The service was excellent both times that we have been. The waiters really know their stuff! We had a different waiter each time we went, and their recommendations were right on.
On our first visit we ordered:
Escargots cooked in a garlic butter sauce - our waiter recommended that you put them on the bread to eat, then use the bread to soak up the left over garlic butter. DELICIOUS!! is putting it mildly!
French rolls are served at the beginning of the meal with softened butter - You may think I'm crazy, but to me that is the key to an outstanding restaurant. I HATE having to spread chilled butter onto bread. Maybe I am picky after all.
Terrine de lapin maison similar to a pate. We ate this on the bread as well. Very, very good.
Confit de canard oh, oh the duck. C'est manifique! We have searched high and low for somewhere to get some good duck. Atmosphere delivered. The duck is reminiscent to what we had in a cafe in Paris except that it is served with a sauce. We think that next time we may ask to have it served without the sauce...we'll see. The potatoes and green beans that the duck is served with are a nice accompaniment BUT next time, we'll ask for the frites - we discoverd them this last time and they are AWESOME!!
For dessert Profiterolles - very nice. We split dessert and this was not too heavy to round off the evening.
On our second/latest visit we ordered:
Fois gras du jour - all I can say is WOW! That night the fois gras was served in a cherry, port reduction sauce with dried cherries on top, on a piece of "toast". You don't get a lot, but it is extremely rich and an adequate portion to share a few bites. This was a phenomenal dish!
Escargots - yes, again. I know how unoriginal we must be to have ordered the same dish again (we do this often), but I had been dreaming of these escargots. Really, that good!
The special for the night Peppercorn encrusted beef tenderloin in a ? sauce served with Frites and green beans - the tenderloin was cooked perfectly. I ordered the sauce on the side (I'm not a sauce on my steak kind of gal) and had to remove the majority of the peppercorns. Even so, the steak was very good. Dave and I shared our entrees. But the FRITES were PERFECTION! Soaked in water overnight and twice fried in peanut oil - the true Dutch, Belgian, French way. Also, I was asked if I would like a side of mayonaise (or ketchup) for my frites - the true way to my heart. Having grown up in the Netherlands, eating frites with mayo (frites met) as often as I could, this meant a lot to me!
We skipped on dessert, as we were stuffed, but we had mentioned it was our anniversary and the management sent us out a Creme Brulee - it was definitely the thought that counted on this one. It was not my absolute favorite. (Maybe I was just full.) The pudding was very chilled (maybe it was supposed to be) but the topping was done very well - not burnt as I have had it before. You'll just have to make your own judgement on this one. Probably not the dessert I would've chosen.
So, in summary, I give the:
Atmosphere - a HIT
Service - a HIT
Food - a HIT, HIT, HIT!
Price - a HIT
French bistro
Great for couples, romantic
small, quaint
$$
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