Leon’s Full Service Ranks as Atlanta’s Top Restaurant
Decatur Metro | October 25, 2010Southern Living just released it’s list of Atlanta’s Top 20 Restaurants and Decatur’s Leon’s Full Service came out on top. Taqueria del Sol also made the list, along with King of Pops, which isn’t really a restaurant, but heck if the King don’t deserve it! Here’s the list, courtesy of the Atlanta Business Chronicle:
1. Leon’s Full Service
2. Ru San’s
3. Livingston Restaurant + Bar
4. Rhodes Bakery
5. LottaFrutta
6. Rosebud
7. Café Intermezzo
8. Flip Burger Boutique
9. Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q
10. Taqueria Del Sol
11. King of Pops
12. Highland Bakery
13. The Atlanta Cupcake Factory
14. Antico Pizza Napoletana
15. Paolo’s Gelato
16. Aria
17. Souper Jenny
18. Sotto Sotto
19. Sweet Auburn Bread Company
20. SweetWater Brewing Company
Thanks to Steve for forwarding!
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How is Sweetwater Brewery a restaurant?
Ru San’s #2? Really? Seriously??? I do not understand.
Agreed. The article mentions their “Gone With the Wind” roll, described as “eight sushi rolls wrapped together with a cream cheese center and fried in panko crumbs.” Sounds like something from a mall chain restaurant to me. Hard to imagine Mr. Kessler looking at this dish the same way SL did.
And Sotto Sotto #18?
I love Leon’s and TDS but some of the other restaurants listed are highly suspect.
Ru San’s? Barf.
Their sanitation grade is lower than that of the Clemont. And the Clermont has better sushi.
Worst Restaurant Rating List:
#1 Southern Living
Southern Living should stick to rating dried flower arrangements.
Brad Steel made a dirty joke.
Well Aria’s on the list, so clearly they’re on board with strip club dining.
Pretty weak list….I can’t believe McDonald’s didn’t make the cut.
We have a subscription to Southern Living (print: how archaic, I know), and the title of the article is actually “20 Places Everyone Should Eat in Atlanta.” It’s subtitled “Our favorite food finds, from apps to cupcakes.”
Although Leon’s is at the top of the list of 20, I don’t believe this article is an attempt to rank Atlanta’s restaurants or food scene. Instead, it’s just giving some great spots for food and drink in Atlanta.
That’s not to take anything away from Leon’s. We were there Friday night on a Parents Night Out and can attest that its inclusion on the list is well deserved – as is KOP’s and Taqueria.
You beat me to it– we, too, have a subscription, and the magazine has it as more of a “must-try spots” list than a “best of” list. Gotta say I agree with your earlier comment on RuSan’s– I’d rather have sushi almost anywhere but there, although they do have a great appetizer called “Hot Wok Tiger Shrimp”, which is the only thing I get when I’m there (usually when co-workers insist upon going for lunch).
Me too. RuSan’s not really good. It’s fast food sushi.
I prefer Sushi Avenue any day over Ru San’s. Don’t understand why people like it…the Buckhead location is beyond dirty – and the carpet in there just grosses me out. Icky.
Girl, please. You ain’t been to the Midtown location, have ya? It’s just plain grody!
Not the biggest fan of Sushi Avenue either (it’s decent, but not great), but at least when I leave there, I don’t feel like I need to douse myself in antibacterial gel.
Never set foot into the Midtown location – and just been to the Edgewood one once. Sushi Avenue works for us when we just want some quick and decent sushi – and I prefer the one by Cafe Lily over the Square location.
Where is some really good sushi? I thought it was MF – but went there once and the fire alarm was going off the whole time I was there – it was miserable.
If you have some cash to lay down, Sushi House Hayakawa on Buford Highway is awesome. It doesn’t look that special from the outside, but they get all the fish flown in from Tokyo and have like seven types of Soy Sauce and five kinds of wasabi.
I’ve been to the MF Buckhead & MF Midtown, and enjoyed them both. Garlic actually has some very fresh, innovative sushi. I’ve heard good things about Sushi House Hayakawa (see
Mr. Blonde’s suggestion), but haven’t been there yet. I plan to try it soon!
Yes. Sushi House Hayakawa is the best in town. No doubt. Blows those MF’ers away.
Nori Nori up in Sandy Springs. It’s buffet style, which I know has a negative connotation, but trust me.
I LOVE Sushi Mania in Brookhaven!
It’s just plain grody!
Is that how it’s spelled? I’ve been spelling it g-r-o-t-t-y, but I g-r-o-d-y seems more effective, as for getting the pronunciation of “groh-tee” or “grow-dee.”
No wonder people look at me funny when I’ve typed “grotty.”
LOL! I’ve never even thought about the “proper” spelling of that word, which, as far as I know, isn’t actually part of the official lexicon of slang (I could look in the Urban Dictionary, but I’m at work, & it wouldn’t be a good idea for me to access that particular site just now). I guess it’s one of those words I’ve always spelled the way it sounds (to me).
dictionary.com likes both words and relates them both to grotesque but, surprisingly, not to each other.
Gives grotty: seedy, wretched, dirty
Gives grody: repulsive, disgusting, nauseating
(I like words and where they come from.)
Parker, you’re awesome! I would think that the two aren’t pronounced the same, though, are they? (I knew “grotty” was a word, but never thought “grody” was anything but slang…)
atrributes them both to slang.
grot-ee and groh-dee
I love my dictionary.com app on my phone.
Yeah, I noticed that discrepancy too. The title in the printed magazine is the one to go by for this piece. I suspect an editor for the web site made a bad decision and retitled it ‘best restaurants’.
As a list of 20 interesting food & drink experiences to have in Atlanta, I think it’s a pretty darn good list and Leon’s definitely deserves that prime spot.
The linked article describes the list as “food finds, from apps to cupcakes”. That is what many of them are, not restaurants, but great spots for refreshments!
Ru San’s is nasty, nasty, nasty. When I hear someone recommend it, I shudder.
Has anyone ever tried or driven by this Souper Jenny place?
Rosebud is pretty good.
I’m really not sure why Souper Jenny got so popular. I have never been blown away by the food. I think Metro Fresh in Midtown in much better (I believe the guy who owns it came from Souper Jenny).
Metro Fresh is SO good, just not on the work to home route that would result in our family’s frequenting it more. I think it would make a killing in Decatur.
Agreed.
I have never tried Metro Fresh so I can’t compare, but I really enjoy Souper Jenny.
Where is the nearest Souper Jenny?
It’s some sort of food cart, isn’t it? It’s not a chain. I have heard Metro Fresh is better anyway!
I mean she HAS some sort of food cart somewhere, too, now doesn’t she?
No Iberian Pig ??? That’s just criminal negligence …
Little Bangkok on Cheshire Bridge gas awesome Thai food. It’s a little whole in the wall gem (with good sanitation scores)!
I have been eating there for years. It is a great family owned and operated place. Clean and delicious! And reasonable prices.
Gas awesome thai food? Sounds yummy.
I agree with cubalibre. Parker is awesome. Thanks for looking up the grody & the grotty!
(blushing) No trouble. I like words.