Palo Santo — Restaurant in Atlanta

Palo Santo will ruin your celebration with passive remarks and lack of etiquette.

1. When I called to make a large reservation for a celebration, all they told me was they needed a card to hold on file in case no one shows. I thought, wow that's fantastic, most high-end restaurants in Atlanta charge a minimum + card on file. They call me 2 days before to confirm and start with, "We're just checking that you're aware of the $130 minimum per person and that you must use a pre-fixed menu, family style either $75 or $90 per person." Not only was this not disclosed when booking, but I was made aware at such late notice with complete disregard to the fact all restaurants have been booked out for at least a month and I had 10 guests RSVP'd to attend. I couldn't turn down the reservation if I had needed to.

2. Of course, I spoke with the manager and after basically forcing their hand, they agreed to not hold us to the minimum or pre-fixed menu but noted "we can't guarantee dishes coming out at the same time." In all my years, with restaurant owners in my family and close friend, across the world and nation, I have never heard of a restaurant who cannot serve a full table at a time; especially considering the small serving sizes.

3. Their team rudely followed up with me to "confirm whether I'll make the reservation" twice more, despite previously speaking with the manager and two other hostesses to confirm. They might as well have just asked me to cancel. The passive aggression was clearly stemming from the fact their team had poor communication in house when setting the reservation and I would not comply with their faulty rule making.

4. To dodge any further complications before arriving, I asked the manager to please add a note on our reservation to explain the differences we discussed in comparison to their usual large party "requirements." Not only did another hostess call me to "confirm" the day of but there were no notes in the system so I had to re-explain all of our agreements to ensure things went smoothly. AKA, doing the manager's job.

5. Plus, they charge a $30 "cakeage" fee for bringing a birthday cake. The kicker is, the manager told me $30 but when I showed up, it was allegedly $35. Again I received false information until I absolutely had no choice but to show up for a dinner planned for a month.

6. To make matters worse, I showed up and a few of my friends were behind schedule. Although, I was there and most arrived within the grace period. Yet, the person who sat us immediately threatened the time span to which we could sit at our table, despite them having NO OTHER big parties that night to use our table. "I just want to remind you that your reservation started at X time." Not only were they the ones complaining about having enough time to make our food in the first place but they expected us to overpay for their watered down drinks, food, and cakeage fee in a little over an hour?

7. Plus, the first thing our waitress said to me was "Yes the manager told me you're doing the pre-fixed menu." Again, after speaking to 4, 5,... maybe 6 staff members at this point, it was beginning to feel like they thought if they forced it on me enough, I would just give in! Poor communication or poor management, who cares which one - they both indicate an awful, pompous business.

8. After all of the misunderstanding on their part, they still upcharged the "cakeage" fee, which was absurdly high in comparison to some of the finest dining establishments that are actually IN the city. Also, thanks for being the only restaurant in town to not even offer a birthday dessert but rather make my friend pay $30 after setting 5 people straight that the manager said it wasn't $35. Don't worry, the manager did argue at our table to prove his point that they can charge whatever they want too.

I know plenty of new restaurants in W Midtown with kind wait staff and managers, as you should encounter when paying good money to enjoy out with friends and family. But Palo Santo is not...

This dining experience was by FAR the worst I have had in a long, long time - "A Complete Disaster" would be a good title for this review.

Upon arrival, the only parking option was valet - for $10. For a supposedly upscale restaurant that they claim to be why not offer complimentary (or subsidized) valet parking, seriously?

Our table was not ready when we arrived, so we stopped at the bar to have drink while we waited. I ordered a vodka martini and glass of rose (they only have 3 wines on their menu). The bartender told me that she could not make a martini so would I like something else? I asked why (there was a Grey Goose bottle behind the bar) and she replied that she didn't have olives nor vermouth. I asked if she could shake up and "extra dry martini straight up - no olives" and she looked at me like I was from Mars. I had to explain that meant just shaking some vodka in a shaker and pouring it in a glass. Then she started pouring my wine, which had bubbles. I asked if that was the wine I ordered (non sparkling) and she said they "were out of what you ordered so she was pouring me something else" (without asking me?). I told her I didn't want sparking wine. I told her I would take a glass of their white wine (only one available by the glass) and she said they were out of it. I then tried to order a glass of Pinot Grigio and she said that they do not serve that by the glass - only by the bottle. That exhausted the wine menu options. She handed me the martini which was the size of thimble and the bill, which included a 20% service charge. When I asked about the automatic service charge, she replied "it's our policy to add 20% to all bills". I handed the martini back to her and said she could keep it. I am typically a heavy tipper - 20% or more, but I want that to be at my discretion - not the restaurant's.

We moved to the table and the food was good (3.5 out of 5) but the service was disorganized and SLOW. The space is so dark that we had to use our phones' flashlight to see the menu and the noise so loud that my Apple Watch gave me 3 notifications that the noise decibels were potentially dangerous to my hearing. Suffice to say, we were not able to hold a conversation because it was so loud.

The restaurant also states on Opentable that you will have your table for 90 minutes. As I mentioned the service was slow and disorganized, so about 75% of the way through our meal, our server informed us that we needed to hurry up and finish because there was another reservation for our table - telling us this as she was delivering another round of $80 drinks. WHAT? We told her to go ahead and bring us our check (three times) and finally went to the maitre'd and asked her to get it for us. For someone wanting to reseat our table, they seemed in no hurry to let us pay and leave. For a $500+ dinner for 4, I have never been asked to vacate my table. SMH

Finally back out to the valet which were like Keystone Cops. It took us 30 minutes to get our car back, and then another 10 minutes to get out of the parking lot because of the disorganized manner in which the attendants were trying to arrange the cars.

Suffice to say, I will NEVER return to this restaurant and would highly discourage anyone else from going. "What...

Starting this off by stating this is a review of the indoor restaurant. They have a rooftop with the music booming and a different menu and you will definitely hear the rooftop music while dining inside and they're also playing different music inside.

The ambiance of the restaurant is nice. Lights dimmed down so much you'll need your phone or a flashlight to view the menu. You have a view of the kitchen to see the cooks doing their thing. Service was nice and personally didn't have much of an issue with my visit. There is a bar area but it probably only seats about 10 or less.

Onto the important stuff, the restaurant experience. Going to tell you up front, if you plan to experience the full course of this restaurant (appetizer, entree, dessert, drink(s)), be prepared to spend $100+ per person. To each their own but I don't feel you get a lot of bang for your buck here. May want to save this location for a special event or when you feel like splurging. 20% gratuity will be added to the bill off the rip too so be ready for that. While I did enjoy all I had, an argument could be made whether or not it was worth it

As for what was enjoyed this evening, it was a Tulum Colada mocktail, Dragon's Blood cocktail, Pork Belly, Branzino Zarandeado, Las Bravas, Hot Stone Shrimp, churros, and cheesecake. If you ask for water, they bring you bottled Acqua Panna water and charge you for every one they pop the cap on. As stated previously, it was good. The Pork Belly stood out as very delicious. Fatty piece with some meat and the outer skin had a nice crunch to it but it was a very small 2x2 inch piece of meat garnished with some green leaf veggies and they ask $29 for it. Use the attached photos to give scope here. Las Bravas was probably the best thing I had. It's an appetizer with potatoes cooked and smothered in what appeared to be a chipotle mayo.

All in all, this place is the upscale of the upscale. You will spend a lot and get what may feel like a little in return and I'm not just saying that. I encourage anyone reading this to check other reviews to see what they have to say on the matter so you know I'm not just talking out the side of my neck here. If you're ok with that though, then by all means stop in and enjoy some good food, drinks, and service. Give these...