Trader Vic's — Restaurant in Atlanta

First off let me say that getting to the restaurant once in the hotel was ridiculous. The sign stated that to get to Trader Vic’s you must use the core elevators. The elevators there are shaped in a square. We knew you had to go down to get to the restaurant, but what we didn’t know was that only one set of elevators took you there, and apparently you had to hit the down button on those elevators. After standing there for 5 mins with the down button pressed and numerous elevators coming and going, we asked the concierge. He said you have to go down. We explained to him that we had been trying, then he tells us which elevator we needed to use.

We went during the week. We originally had reservations for 9. Two of the couples we were going with at the last minute were unable to come. When we check in we let the hostess know and she did not hide her aggravation well at all. She took us to our table. The place is amazing, seeing the stone ovens and walking through the place to our table was awesome. From what I could see, there were maybe 3 other tables in the restaurant. I understand we had reservations for 9 and only 5 came, but there was plenty of seating and no one was waiting or had to go without a table because of us.

Our server was really nice. Her name was Rena. She was quick to get to us and get our drink order. We all got alcoholic drinks, and they were amazing! The fresh peanut butter they bring to the table is great. Different, but great.

On to our meal, two of us ordered steak (both medium) one the scallops, one the volcano shrimp and one chicken rice. When our friend ordered the volcano shrimp, she asked how spicy the food was. She was told spicy, but sweet. It’s not really that spicy.

The women that ordered the scallops and the chicken rice loved their food. The Volcano shrimp was so spicy, it was hard to eat. We all tried it. She loves spicy food and her eyes were watering. It was hard to taste anything but hot. She ate it, but most likely would have went with something else if she would have known how hot it was. Our steaks that were ordered medium came out rare. Completely red. When I sent my food back, it took so long for them to bring it up to temp, everyone was done eating by the time I got my food back. It was good, but would have been better if I could have eaten...

Ok, somebody has to say it: it's time to admit that Trader Vic's is way off their tiki game.

As a longtime fan of Trader Vic's, I've watched the association with the new management quickly rob Vic'sof what was special. This is the establishment that helped to invent Tiki way back when. Sadly, it is a shadow of its former self. And the decline has happened quickly. If you want the true Trader Vic's experience, you are going to have to make the trip to the Emeryville location across the bay from San Francisco. That is the only location that retains the original spirit and quality.

First, the good points Of Trader Vic's Atlanta:

The food is still very good. We had the mahi-mahi with Singapore noodles, and it was delicious. The portions were large, and we took enough home to make a meal the next day. We also had the cosmo bits poo poo platter, and it was very good.

The decor is classic Tiki. Many of the tikis in the Atlanta location are modern creations, but they retain the look. There is one room entirely wrapped in tapa cloth, And it looks magnificent. There is also more bamboo, and more jade Tiki tiles than you will see almost anywhere else.

Now for the bad part: The cocktails are a hot mess.

Trader Vic invented the Mai Tai but you would never know it from the swill that they are pouring now. Go to Emeryville, and they actually mix them from the correct ingredients. Go to Atlanta, or go to Bangkok, and they are coming out of a bottle of the same mix that you can buy online from their website. A Mai Tai should not be the color of dark molasses. And when they top it with a floater of Don Q 151, which belongs nowhere near a Mai Tai, you end up with something that is just a sugary tasting mess with a hot finish. The Samoan Fog Cutter was not much better. It tasted like a glass of brandy with some juice added to it. Their version of the three dots and a dash tasted like a glass of honey syrup. Every single cocktail that we had was unbalanced, overly sweet, and had little resemblance to the original.

So my advice is this: go for the decor and the food. But don't think that you're going to get good Tiki cocktails at Trader Vic's Atlanta. And definitely do not think that the thing that they are calling a Mai Tai is a Mai...

As a guest at the Hilton I tried out Trader Vics. I love the decor and the live entertainment. Just a nice chill vibe. Tampast and Destiny were the hosts/greeters that evening, and they were fantastic. They were a pleasure to talk to, and absolutely very friendly and helpful. They are a definite asset to the team!

I grabbed a seat at a low table in the bar area, because I'm not a drinker and don't care to sit at bars. I just wanted an appetizer and a non-alcoholic beverage. My server whose name I can't remember seemed not too friendly. Just very matter of fact, he took my order, asked how the drink was but no small talk. I had to ask for a glass of water because the drink I ordered was very small. I ordered the Puerto Principe, which although very tasty was extremely tiny. For an appetizer I had the Beef Cho Cho, It comes precooked a little bit with some seasoning and some ginger glaze. They also give you a flame to cook it a little more if you like. It was good but not spectacular, I think a side of the glaze for dipping would have been very nice. It was a good size portion though I would say.

When finished, and after finishing both drinks I had I sat there for about 5 minutes or so while my server was behind the bar and doing other things and then finally came back to ask if I was done which I was. I was actually getting ready to get up so he got the message I was done. He came back and just gave me a check to charge my items to the room which I didn't want to do. I asked can I pay cash, or card, and he said whatever you want but didn't offer a way to do it. So I just left cash. He would have got a better tip if his service was better.

Overall it was a great experience, I enjoyed talking to the hosts, the manager and also the gentleman that oversaw the entertainment. My only disappointment was my server and my interaction with him. Next time I will seek out a different person if he winds up being my server. He needs to work on people skills.

In closing, it was a great experience, and I am definitely looking forward to my next visit when staying at the...