Amazing Atlanta: here's your guide to the best Atlanta has to offer: dining, nighttime haunts, majestic esplanades, unrivaled museums, monuments and battlegrounds, and the most formidable golf courses this side of Augusta

Art Business News, August, 2004

Good eats

Atlanta plays host to a wide-variety of restaurants featuring everything from home-cooked, Southern dishes to the elegance of fine dining. Below are some of Atlanta's best and most unique restaurants, offering choices for hearty Southern breakfasts, Atlanta's best burgers, coziest coffee shops, finest Chinese food, tastiest pizza, and several selections for outdoor dining on a beautiful Georgia evening.

Crescent Moon

174W. Ponce de Leon Ave.

Decatur, GA 30030

404-377-5623

The funky, deep colors and metal kitchen tables bring the 50's to life in this genuine diner with retro interior. The menu complements the era with home-cooked American meals--burgers, open-faced sandwiches, meatloaf and pot roast. But, the real draw at the Crescent Moon is the breakfast. Served all day, the breakfast menu makes regulars out of first time visitors. DECATUR $

Flying Biscuit Cafe

1001 Piedmont Ave.

Atlanta, GA 30309

404-874-8887

With two locations in the greater-Atlanta area (Midtown and Grant Park), The Flying Biscuit is a favorite breakfast eatery among locals who crave their signature feathery biscuits and apple butter. Breakfast is served all day, but the cafe also features a variety of lunch and dinner options. The Flying Biscuit Cafe has an ever-changing menu, and often features vegetarian specials. CANDLER PARK $

Good News Cafe

1271 Glenwood Ave. SE

Atlanta, GA 30316

404-635-1611

The Good News Cafe pairs delicious food with a media theme. Appetizers are called "Advertisers," sandwiches are referred to as "News Briefs," and entrees are "Today's Top Stories" Even the menu items have unusual names, such as the BLT sandwich, which is called "The St. Louis Dispatch." But the Good News is the food is cheaper than anything this side of Waffle House. EAST ATLANTA $

Sweet Melissa's

127 E. Court Square

Decatur, GA 30030

404-370-1111

Located in the heart of downtown Decatur, Sweet Melissa's (which borrows its name from a song by Georgia's own Allman Brothers) is a cozy little place to have lunch and relax after a morning of perusing the shops around East Court Square. All in all, the laid-back atmosphere, cheap prices and great location makes Sweet Melissa's a definite place to visit. DECATUR $

Murphy's

997 Virginia Ave.

Atlanta, GA 30306

404-872-0904

Boasting a retail wine store, pastry shop, and a fine wine bar, Murphy's is more than just one of the best places to dine in the Virginia-Highland business community. Murphy's offers an extensive menu, and an exceptional wine list, at affordable prices. VIRGINIA-HIGHLAND $5

Agnes & Muriel's

1514 Monroe Dr.

Atlanta, GA 30324

404-885-1000

Bright colors and lots of windows add to the cheery, home-style atmosphere of Agnes & Muriel's. Southern-style food highlights the menu with unique dishes like salmon pot pie, turkey meatloaf, and salmon croquettes. Agnes & Muriel's is also famous for its southern-style vegetables. MORNINGSIDE $

Vortex Bar & Grill

438 Moreland Ave. NE

Atlanta, GA 30316

404-688-1828

Atlanta tourists won't want to miss one of the most unique buildings in the Little 5 Points neighborhood. The mouth of the giant skull adorning the store front of the Vortex swallows hungry visitors whole, as they pour in to enjoy some of the best burgers the South has to offer. LITTLE 5 POINTS $

The Varsity

61 North Ave. NW

Atlanta, GA 30308

404-881-1706

Take a trip back in time and enjoy all of the nostalgia that The Varsity has to offer. With curb-side service, The Varsity is the best place to enjoy a burger or a shake with your best girl. MIDTOWN $

Ted's Montana Grill

133 Luckie St. NW

Atlanta, GA 30303

404-521-9726

Ted's Montana Grill was inspired by Montana rancher and Atlanta mogul Ted Turner. Ted's features 20 different beef and bison burgers, blue-plate specials, beef filets, salads and roasted "beer can chicken;' plus cedar-planked steelhead salmon. While there, don't miss the homemade cookies and shakes. DOWNTOWN $$

Hsu's Chinese Restaurant

192 Peachtree Center Ave.

Atlanta, GA 30303

404-659-2788

Located amongst the city's major hotels (Marriott Marquis and the Hyatt Regency), Hsu's is a popular spot for out-of-town visitors. Also popular with celebrities, pictures of famous faces that have dined at Hsu's adorn the walls. DOWNTOWN $$$

Golden Buddha Chinese Restaurant

1905 Clairmont Rd.

Decatur, GA 30033

404-633-5252

The Golden Buddha offers the popular familiarity of Americanized Chinese fare. Buddha statues surround guests of the colorful Chinese restaurant. DECATUR $

Java Monkey

42B Church St.

Decatur, GA 30030

404-378-5002

Java Monkey, the most laid back destination in Atlanta, is a popular hangout for local college students from Emory, Agnes Scott and GSU. Decatur residents frequent Java Monkey, which features live music Wednesday through Saturday nights. DECATUR $

San Francisco Coffee Roasters Co.

1192 North Highland Ave.

Atlanta, GA 30306

404-876-8816

San Francisco Coffee Roasting Co., based in Atlanta, is the perfect location for the seasoned coffee drinker in search of beans from the Americas, Indonesia and the Pacific Basin. San Francisco Roasting Company is one of the only coffee houses in Atlanta that roasts all of its coffee on the premises. PONCEY HIGHLANDS $