The Americano Atlanta by Scott Conant — Restaurant in Atlanta

We had a terrible experience at The Americano this month. We went for my boyfriend’s birthday because we love Chef Scott Conant, and halfway through the meal we wanted to leave.

Service was extremely slow. We waited nearly 10 minutes to receive water after being seated. Our server finally came over to introduce herself, and at best she was apathetic. At worst, she was lethargic and unprofessional.

I ordered the Versace on the Floor cocktail, which took a really long time to come out. The foam was so thick it was more like a custard. You couldn’t drink it. It needed a spoon. The liquid part was really spicy and delicious, but the foam was essential to balancing the drink. The foam looked coagulated, so I mentioned this to our server. She promptly took it to the bar manager, but then another 10 minutes went by before she returned. Meanwhile, the appetizers had arrived and I had nothing to drink. I didn’t know if they were going to be able to remake the drink or if I could order something else. The server finally came back with the same cocktail remade, but the foam was still as thick as a solid. I couldn’t drink it, and it sat on the table the whole evening. The server never took it away.

We tried to order a bottle of wine from our very unpolished, lethargic server, but several minutes later she came back asking for a back up bottle. Then our server went to another table with a man who we guessed was the sommelier to show him our backup wine, but he never came over to speak to us or talk about the wine menu. Quite a while later, a different man who was very nice came to bring our wine. He was very nervous, so much so that he was shaking pouring the wine. It was obvious he was not an experienced sommelier or server. From then on out, we had to pour our own wine. The server was so inattentive that once our entrees arrived, we didn’t see her for 45 mins.

When our server cleared our plates for the entree service, she just threw the utensils down hurriedly and sideways. I’m used to a very professional laying of the table. For dessert, she came by and laid the dessert menus at the corners of the table but didn’t speak to us. In my experience, the server places the dessert menu down in front of you or hands it to you at least. Several minutes later she came back and asked which dessert we’d selected for the birthday, but by this point we couldn’t wait to leave.

The food was very good overall, but the service was absolutely horrible. When you spend $300, you expect attentive, professional, exemplary service. I am so disappointed by this experience. I was so excited when Chef Conant opened a restaurant in Atlanta. I can’t believe how bad the service was. It ruined my bf’s bday. We had been looking forward to the evening so much, but the whole time we were there, we just wanted to leave.

To make a disappointing situation more disappointing, I made a brief comment on The Americano’s IG page regarding our experience. They deleted my comment and immediately messaged me attempting to address my concerns. I was asked for my contact info by two different accounts affiliated with the restaurant, but to add insult to injury, neither actually reached out even though I gave them my contact info. You can see this in my attachments.

Overall a serious bummer. We’ll...

My wife and I were coming into Atlanta for a 3-day getaway to just relax and celebrate her birthday. I made a reservation here for our first night after checking out reviews. We came with no expectations other than to enjoy a first class meal, and we were not disappointed! Upon arriving we were shown to our table, which was a booth near the window. However, the birthday girl preferred to sit at a table where the seating position was higher, and the hostess accommodated us with no hesitation. There was an envelope on the table addressed to the birthday girl with a very nice welcome and best wishes, which she loved. Our main server Augustus was a true professional and had answers to all our questions from beginning to end of our meal. We started with cocktails (Lemon Martini and a Negroni) which were mixed perfectly. Another server brought over complimentary artichoke heart sliders with an aioli sauce that were to die for. We ordered the polenta cremosa and the poached octopus appetizers. Both were cooked and seasoned perfectly: Octopus can be easily overcooked, making it overly chewy, but not if you have it here! The polenta was so outstanding I made a point of giving Augustus my compliments, explaining that my mother (who grew up in the Italian Alps) made polenta for me growing up in NY and I had never tasted anything that was even close - until now. The main course was the only bump in the road for us in this meal. My wife asked if she could have the campanelle pasta without the Calabrian chili scampi, but rather a plain scampi sauce due to her allergies. Although Augustus didn't think the chef would allow a substitution, he asked and the chef agreed. Unfortunately, when the dish came out it had a tomato sauce, which she didn't like, and the pieces of lobster were so small as to be insignificant. While both Augustus and the floor manager offered to have the chef recreate the dish, she was feeling rather full already and declined the offer. My order of potato gnocchi, however, was absolutely delicious. While I was enjoying my pasta Augustus brought another order of the polenta cremosa to my wife with compliments of the house. She did partake of that, although she couldn't finish it (I, however, had no problem in helping to finish it😊). We agreed to share a dessert since we were now very full, and the pear crostata was just as outstanding as the rest of the courses. All through dinner, we were served by various members of the waitstaff, and all of them made us feel welcome and appreciated. In summary, the service was outstanding; the meal (with the exception of the one dish) was flawless, and the staff made every effort to insure we were satisfied. In fact, we came back for another dinner on our last night which we thoroughly enjoyed and which was problem-free. Why 5 stars? Had the staff shown indifference to the hiccup in our first dinner I would be inclined to lower this by 1 star, however the opposite is true: they offered us every option to make up for it, and I cannot in good conscience hold it against them. We will be coming back. I highly recommend...

Was staying at the Intercontinental Buckhead and the daily resort fee included a $15 credit for The Americano so I had breakfast here one morning and dinner one night.

Breakfast Room service had a 25% service charge plus a $5 delivery fee for anything you ordered which seemed hefty considering it appeared they also charged more for the menu items than dining in. I may be wrong on last point as I didn't have both menus to compare but my recollection was that the prices were less for in person dining. I thought it might be nice to dine in the restaurant anyway so I could refill water or coffee and not have plates in my room to take care of after. I ordered the breakfast plate which was 2 eggs your way, a meat option (bacon or sausage) and a piece of toast or fruit bowl. I opted for the fruit bowl. This didn't come with a beverage and a regular coffee was $4 and the breakfast plate was $18. If I recall the room service option of the same was $26 (included the coffee) prior to the delivery fee and service charge. The eggs and sausage were fine, nothing remarkable. The fruit bowl was more than I expected and definitely a better value than a piece of toast. The service was a bit lacking. On a positive note they left the water and coffee jugs on the table so I could refill myself. When the bill came, it included an 18% service charge which felt odd to me (it was just me and usually a forced tip is for larger parties) and had me googling whether a service charge was the same as gratuity or not since a separate tip line also existed. I ended up tipping a little more even though I was pretty sure it was one and the same despite the service not really warranting extra because leaving nothing didn't seem right if I was wrong.

Dinner Dinner prices were that of a pricey steakhouse. Like $18 for a side salad. I ordered a pasta dish: tagliatelle bolognese. It was $36 before tax. The pasta was good and there was plenty of bolognese. I came hungry, ate it all and was overstuffed when I left so the portion was much more than it seemed at first glance. Oddly enough, there was no service charge listed when I got the bill so not sure how they decide when they will or won't include it on the bill.

All in all, it was convenient since I was staying at the hotel and it was too cold to venture much farther. However, I don't think I would make an effort to eat there otherwise. It felt like they were priced for convenience and knowing they have a captive audience vs having a good...