have reservations at the grand hyatt. any suggestions for dinner for two with the works--atmosphere is very important. is this hotel located in a good spot for getting around? safe at night for walking? not at all familiar with the city.

I'm not a local, just a frequent Atlanta visitor, but my two cents are that Buckhead is the place to stay. Downtown is a little scary. I haven't gone downtown in years. Underground Atlanta is too "touristy" for tourists. I'm not familiar w/ Grand Hyatt, but the Ritz Carlton and Swisshotel are both nicely located.

Dinner suggestiions: Brasserie Le Coze (in the mall, but still fabulous...sister restaurant to Le Bernardine in NYC) or Baccanalia (sp?). I have not been to Joel or Seegers, but they are recently selected by Gourmet as tops in ATlanta.

Terri, I second staying in Buckhead. There is a Hyatt in Buckhead which is very nice; if that is the Hyatt you're talking about. We stayed at the Swisshotel in Buckhead which was very nice but the Hyatt is a little better. Buckhead is safe for walking around at night but downtown is more iffy. We went to the NCAA Basketball Tournament last March and had the same decision of downtown vs. Buckhead and was glad we choose Buckhead. You can also ride the MARTA subway/tram system to downtown & midtown and it is clean and efficient. Do a text search for Atlanta to get more info. Good Luck!

Grand Hyatt is a great hotel. It is about a 5min. walk to Marta. Search Zagat on the web for great rest. & reviews. Many choices! We had a great meal at Nova, a southwestern rest. with great atmosphere. Try their prickley pear margarita for starters. See fodors review. You'll need 2wks to try all the rest. choices!

Hi Terri,
Joey was referring to Nava, not Nova. Nava is delish and he's right about those margaritas! Mmmmm.

I've been dying to try Kyma on Piedmont Rd.--my friends have raved about it. Kyma is another Panos restaurant and this one has a Greek theme. (Nava is also part of Panos Karatosis' Buckhead Life Group) and any of his restaurants are good. Bluepointe is another spot w/great atmosphere and if you stay in B'head or the midtown Hyatt on 14th St., none of these restaurants will be far if you have a car. Like the others said, I'd avoid staying downtown.

Here are some links:
www.buckheadrestaurants.com
www.accessatlanta.com
www.zagat.com

If you are looking for a specific type of food, post again and I'll try to help out.

Debbie

Ummmm.....the Grand Hyatt IS in Buckhead, so recommendations to stay there are redundant.

The Grand Hyatt wasn't built by Hyatt. It used to be the Nikko.
It's a nice hotel, though not quite as luxurious as the Four Seasons (in midtown, not too far away). Excellent location, central to everything worth seeing in the immediate area.
The Ritz Carlton in Buckhead is in need of some TLC and is currently not quite worth the money IMO. Great location, service and public areas. Disappointing rooms.
Walking around Buckhead at night is fine (before, say, 1AM). Buckhead is very suburban and not like the downtown, which is not charming, not particularly safe at night and pretty dead anyway most nights.

This is thread I believe Terri is giving thanks for.

Ah Ha... the former Nikko. Thanks for the clarification, Mary. That hotel is indeed well-located...sorry to bring up the downtown red-herring.

Very near that hotel is the sushi restaurant Soto. I did not recommend it for the romantic dinner becuase the atmosphere sucks...but the sushi is FANTASTIC...I liked it better than Nobu. Maybe if you have another evening.

Personnaly, I try to avoid the Buckhead Life Group chain. ALthough the food at all those restuarants is perfectly acceptable (and we would be happy to get them here in Greenville), Atlanta has better spots if you are a wretched foodie like myself.

One of my favorites for a romantic restaurant is Pano and Paul's- a car drive away and well worth it...Make sure your order their french fried 1 lb lobster TAIL!

Have been to Bacchanalia for Lunch-Exp, good but devoid of atmosphere-very contemporary and stark

Terri,

Bacchanalia is incredible! The atmosphere is contemporary, but it will definitely be a dinner to remember. Second choice is Seegers(closer to your hotel) rated #1 in USA by Esquire a few years ago.

Also LOVE Bacchanalia, best food in Atlanta, went to Joel as well..pretty and good service but food gets no raves. Cavu and Spice are nice too and all the restuarants near/on Crescent...LOVE Tamarind for Thai.

Grand Hyatt is a fine choice and accessible. For romance the Dining Room at the Ritz is actually the best and is second only to Bacchanalia in most guides and reviews. Joel and Seegers will require a cab ride.

Walking in Atlanta is fine as long as you are on Peachtree Street.

Other excellent walkable restaurants include: Bluepointe, Bone's, Prime, Brasserie le Coze and the standbys Mortons and the Palm.

Have lunch at the Varisty at North Ave. Shopping is excellent.

You will love the Grand Hyatt! My wife and I stayed in a suite there on our wedding night. Don't miss the beautiful private Japanese Gardens accessible from the third floor. Braserie La Cose is very good (try the skate wing), if you want to go all out try the Dining Room at the Ritz (just down the street). Bachanalia is probably the best food in Atlanta but you may be dissapointed by the minimalist atmosphere. Have fun!