Art of the Meal

Taverna Fiorentina 3324 Cobb Parkway SE, Atlanta, 770.272.9825 www.tavernafiorentina.com Reservations: Accepted; encouraged on Cobb Energy Center performance nights. Parking: In attached lot. Dress code: Anything goes, from tuxedos to blue jeans. We were on a tour of Italy, with five…

Home Grown GA 968 Memorial Drive, Atlanta 404.222.0455 www.homegrownga.com Open for breakfast and lunch. Credit cards: All major. Parking: In attached lot. Dress code: Work shirt and construction hat. Tattoos optional. Just about the time you’re about to get depressed…

Tybee Island Social Club 1311 Butler Ave. Tybee Island 912.472.4044 www.tybeeislandsocialclub.com It’s still cold outside, but I’ve already detected Emily Dickinson’s winter afternoon “certain slant of light” – that earliest harbinger of the earth’s revolution, the one you can almost…

Empire State South 999 Peachtree St., Atlanta 404.541.1105 www.empirestatesouth.com Reservations: Recommended. Parking: Complimentary valet. Dress code: Comfortably stylish. For months, foodies had been holding their collective breath (and expanded bellies), waiting for Hugh Acheson’s new spot to open in Atlanta.…

Farm Burger 410B West Ponce de Leon Decatur 404.378.5077 www.farmburger.net Credit cards: All major. Reservations: Not accepted. Parking: In attached lot. Dress code: Anything you don’t mind dripping ketchup on. If, as the saying goes, “You are what you eat,”…

Alfredo's Italian Restaurant 1989 Cheshire Bridge Road N.E., Atlanta 404.876.1380 Dinner served nightly. Credit cards: All major. Reservations: Recommended. Parking: In attached lot. Dress code: Comfortably stylish. www.alfredositalianrestaurant.com Most good restaurants have a kind of cinematic quality. They are places…

Appalachian Grill 3909 Steve Tate Road, Marble Hill 770.893.3389 Hours: Dinner, Tuesdays-Sundays. Credit cards: All major. Parking: Available in attached lot. Dress code: Upscale rustic: North Face fleece vests, Dockers, pearls. For all the cool splendor of a North Georgia…

Cakes & Ale 254 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue (until mid-to late October). Check website for updates on new location. Decatur, 404.377.7994 www.cakesandalerestaurant.com Reservations: Essential, especially on weekends. Credit cards: Accepted. Parking: On the street and in nearby garages Dress…

61 Main 49 South Main St., Jasper, 706.253.7289 Schedule: Breakfast, Monday-Friday; brunch, Saturday; lunch, Monday-Saturday; dinner, Thursday-Saturday and Monday. Closed Sunday. Credit cards: Accepted. Reservations: Recommended for dinner. Parking: On the street. Dress code: Casual. Jasper’s Main Street faces blue-ridged…

Carver's Country Kitchen 1118 W. Marietta St. NW (at Longley Ave.) Atlanta 404.794.4410 www.carverscountrykitchen.com When I first visited Carver’s Country Kitchen many years ago, the luncheonette was a small section of this grocery store in working-class Howell Station, west of…