The Southern Gentleman in Atlanta

I haven’t brought you one of my eating out adventures since the beginning of the year. Rona has stopped me from eating out for the most part. I grab a lot of food to go but eating out somewhere and actually sitting down… it has only happened 4 times since Rona started. I am very careful where I eat out. I pay attention to the scores because if you can’t bother to have at least an A how can I trust you with Rona running around in these streets. A few weeks ago some friends and I decided to try The Southern Gentleman in Atlanta. We originally were supposed to eat somewhere else but other places were either closed (call first because a lot of websites haven’t been updated) or over the capacity. We literally sat in a parking lot and picked this spot. I’ve never been but I will tell you what I got, what to pay attention to when you are eating out during a pandemic, and my score on this spot.

The Southern Gentleman in Atlanta

So this place is in a new area on Peachtree. I haven’t been down in that area since the Cheesecake Factory closed years ago…yeah it’s been a minute. I try not to travel downtown unless I absolutely have to. The traffic is horrendous even with Rona going on. We did have to call ahead since it was a few of us eating out but they accommodated us within an hour which was good. They really did a good job on the last minute reservation. Now I didn’t check the score which I normally do when I go to new places but I wasn’t paying attention because you know I saw actual people which is rare lol. We got there and was able to sit outside! That’s a plus and hard to do during the Fall and winter months unless they plan on investing in heaters. It will be interesting to see what restaurants do in the next few weeks.

The place was clean but the menu was limited. I think it was due to Rona that they only had a few select items. My advice is to go during Brunch they seemed to offer more if you go earlier in the day. We all had a variety of things from their menus I will start with what I had.

A Ceasar salad

This was excellent. I would get this as an appetizer if you love salads.

We did order the bread while it was good my ass doesn’t need any more buns to this big bun lol. I wouldn’t order this you have bread at home.

My daughter got the steak dish for her dinner and I got the chicken which I believe is what they are known for. Always go for what the spot is known for. If they can’t get that right then the rest of the food won’t be good. Thankfully they got the chicken right!

My friends had the shrimp and grits. When I saw their grits were purple you know I frowned upon it but she said it was decent. Code for she wishes she had gotten what I had lol.

I’m very anal about my shrimp and grits being from Charleston. I need fresh shrimp for mine, not the farm-raised and my grits have to be exact. I never get Shrimp and Grits out unless I know where their shrimp comes from. I don’t know if this spot had fresh shrimp but make sure you ask if you are anal like me and like fresh seafood.

The views were amazing sitting outside and my kids ate their food so that’s a good thing because they tell the truth. Overall I will give this spot a good 8 out of 10. If they had a few more things on their menu to choose from it would have been great. I need options. Service was ok and that played a big part in my score. Overall I would try this spot out see if you like it.

When eating out during Rona here are a few tips

• call ahead and make sure they are open and not full. A lot of places require a reservation
• Carry your own hand santizier and cleaning supplies or even a wipe to wipe down the table again even if you think they did
• Make sure you wear masks entering and only take it off when seated if you can (some people don’t take it off until they eat)
• If your gut tells you the place ain’t it kindly get up and leave
• Wipe down your own forks and spoons
• be understanding because these restaurants are going through a lot

Have you eaten out since Rona started? What are some tips that you can give if you have? I know one good tip is to cook at home lol but sometimes folks just want to get out and nothing is wrong with that as long as you know the risks.