Two Atlanta Restaurants Cited As Among Nation's Best

ATLANTA, Ga. — Two Atlanta restaurants were among those cited as among The Top 100 Hot Spot Restaurants in America for 2017, according to a survey by the website OpenTable.

O-Ku Atlanta, the Asian restaurant located on Howell Mill Road in Midtown, joined Two urban licks and its American cuisine as among those honored.

Here’s a look at the entire list of The Top 100 Hot Spot Restaurants in 2017.

O-Ku-Atlanta, which has a sister restaurant in Charleston, S.C., offers a “fresh and innovative” take on traditional Japanese sushi and cuisine, according to the restaurant website, as well as unique options with traditional sashimi and specialty rolls. The establishment’s website says that it sources its seafood “from the finest finish markets in Tokyo and Hawaii,” in addition to local and seasonal ingredients.

“The meal was delicious, the service was amazing, honestly some of the best sushi I've ever had,” a diner said in a review of the restaurant posted on its website. “Will definitely be back again soon.”

Two urban licks, which is located on Ralph McGill Boulevard near the Virginia-Highlands area of Midtown, has steadily been gathering steam as a city hotspot since its opening in 2004. The restaurant features what it calls “Fiery American Cooking” prepared in a nine-foot, wood pit rotisserie in the dining area and nightly blues.

“The menu has a lot of delicious favorites with a creative twist, including roasted oysters with leeks and Caesar salad with a chipotle kick,” said one diner in a review posted on the restaurant website. “The complimentary bread and fresh ricotta was such a simple yet satisfying and delicious way to start the meal, and the ambience is very sexy, with flickering gas candles on the wall. We loved being able to walk to it on the Beltline and watch the sunset over the skyline, too. We were celebrating a birthday, and we'll definitely be back. Dessert was wonderful, too!”

The OpenTable survey was based on the analysis of more than 10,000,000 reviews of more than 24,000 restaurants around the country and took into consideration the quality of each restaurant’s food and drinks, as well as vibrant bar scenes, live music and festive atmospheres. The reviews were submitted by verified diners.

OpenTable is a website that finds restaurants for more than 21 million diners from around the globe each month. Every month, OpenTable diners compile more than 850,000 reviews.

Photo courtesy of Two urban licks