New Hotel in Atlanta

OK. So I went to Atlanta this weekend. Have a friend whose wife was out of play this weekend, so he decides to surprise his two teenage kids with a weekend in a suite in the new Hotel Intercontinental - Buckhead. Just opened this year, this new hotel is very nice. Don't know the exact ratings, but shouldn't be five star as are several Intercontinental properties around the world.

Restaurant: Au Pied du Cuchon, or "Pig's Foot" as we might say in Georgia, is a French brasserie restaurant, both elegant and casual at the same time. I had two meals there over the course of the weekend. For dinner, I started with Kumamoto oysters from Washington state. Then had Lemon Dover Sole for my main course. The oysters were very good (despite the month without an "r"). The sole was a little lacking. The main attribute of sole is its delicacy -- any heavy- or even mild-handedness with this white fish is too much. Simply broil it or pan sear it and plate it. A little lemon to garnish. That's it. They went a little too far with it; but it was still good. Others at the table had the signature dish, Trotters with Fois Gras. This dish was good, but was so over-the-top rich that those who ordered it, even with sharing out bites, could not begin to finish it. For dessert, we retired to the Club Level (Floor 21) for champagne and sweets.

Now the second meal the next night was much better, mainly because I had just finished playing golf, got cleaned up and was wanting some "comfort food." We sat outside on the patio and had Croque Monsieur with pomme frites -- basically grilled ham and cheese with fries. The California Viognier wine was a perfect match for the casual patio evening.

BTW, if you like summer white wines, but don't really care much for the over-oaked style of many California Chardonnays, then check out Viognier. Here's a quick website with some information about this grape varietal.

Back to the hotel... it's a very nice place. There was a fairly trashy conference going on which had many people rummaging around the lobby at odd hours (as we were as well, obviously). But, up on the Club Level, things are more quiet and acceptable. Especially in the suite!

My friend's 17-yr old son got a kick out of calling room service, ordering some desserts one night and just randomly asking them to bring up some playing cards. Like any good-quality hotel striving for those all-important "star" ratings, they obliged, without even batting an eye. I'm sure they batted something onto the room charge, but hey! It's all about the service.

Enough about this hotel. Suffice it to say that it's a very nice place with a wide range of accomodations -- standard rooms up to penthouse suites. As with any upper-level hotel, however, I'd highly advise checking yourself into the Club or Concierge level -- it's well worth the extra bucks you'll pay because of all the free gnoshing that you'll get.

So, next time you come to Atlanta, do what George and Weezy did and "move on up" to a higher level hotel like the Hotel Intercontinental - Buckhead.

Cheers!

CB