Rathbun's
Atlanta, GA 30307
Phone: (404) 524-8280
- Price:
- $$$
- Cross Street:
- Lake Avenue
- Specialties:
- Business Dining, Dessert, Fine Dining
- Best of Citysearch:
- Business Dining 2007, Dessert 2007, American Food 2005
- Hours:
- Mon-Thu 5:30pm-10:30pm, Fri-Sat 5:30pm-11:30pm
Editorial Review for Rathbun's – by Jennifer Soong
The Scene
Housed in a rehabbed industrial space, Rathbun's adds a touch of glamour to a former stove factory with high ceilings, exposed brick and sexy booths. There's a veritable buzz in the sensuous main dining room, divided by a swanky bar and bathed in a rose glow from luminous lanterns. For a quieter dining experience, seek out the wine room with a wall of glass-encased bottles, or the covered patio. Service is generally perky and pleasant.
The Food
Chef Kevin Rathbun's New American menu deftly weds seasonal ingredients and culinary sophistication for varying budgets and appetites. Diners can snack on small plates of eggplant steak fries or feast on comfort food like braised brisket and roasted chicken. For the ravenous, there are big and "second mortgage" plates like the scrumptious sea scallop Benedict on country ham grits. Don't miss out on satisfying sides like creamed white corn and Gouda cheese.
Editorial content is independent of paid advertisers. Any expenses are paid for by Citysearch.
Insider Tips
The ExtrasFor a dessert sampler, order "Kirk's picks" for a foursome from the pastry chef, which may feature an adorable mini-banana split.
User Reviews for Rathbun's
08/12/2008 Posted by mea1085
We arrive about 10 minutes before our reservation and were told our table wasn't ready yet so we could have a seat at the bar. Ha! It was literally impossible to walk or stand without touching someone, let alone sit and have a drink. Well we are finally seated, 20 minutes after our reservation. A manager or somebody comes by and tells us we'll be getting free eggplant chips for our wait. I was impressed with that and it did soothe my frazzled mood a little. Enter the snooty, early twenty-something waitress. She did not introduce herself, didn't welcome us, didn't discuss specials with us, and generally seemed irritated that we were there. We had several questions about the menu, but she didn't seem to eager to check on us so after a few minutes we flagged down another waiter who looked like a deer in the headlights so we let it go. Finally our darling waitress returns and we place our order. My boyfriend asked a question about the side dish of one of the menu items and her response was "to me, the meal is really about the fish, not the side dish." We thought that was a laughably unprofessional response for a restaurant of that caliber but let it go. So cut to the food: the appetizer (beef tartare) was pretty good, my boyfriend's fish wasn't very impressive, and my duck was absolutely delicious. So it wasn't a horrible experience or anything but certainly didn't live up to our expectations. I liked the atmosphere and the food was good (or mine was anyway), but they have really got to get it together as far as honoring reservations and hiring a professional and competent staff. I can't imagine that anyone who had our waitress would want to return.
Pros: decent food, cool atmosphere
Cons: had to wait in a crowded bar 30 min despite reservations, horrible waitress
07/01/2008 Posted by zahnk23
We went here for our 9th anniversary and we amazed at the delicious food and the great service. The menu is very creative.
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