Atlas The Restaurant — Restaurant in Fayetteville

It’s 3.5 stars, if I’m being more precise. The service was very good. Carson was attentive and helpful. Pandemic. It felt very safe. Everyone was wearing masks and properly. Tables and guests were well spaced. Hopefully this part of the review will soon be useless. Ambiance. Very nice. Curtain dividers dampened the noise. Lighting appropriate. Dimmed but not dark. Location great. Parking was easy and a short walk to square Wine list. Fairly brief but we all enjoyed our selections. Apps: cheeses and oysters. Everyone enjoyed the cheeses. Oysters were just okay. We got East Coast and West Coast. This is possibly more preference. I’ve had James River before and since. I found these to be rather flavorless. West Coast were harshly salty (beyond what I would describe as briney) and then a strong fish flavor. Not a lot of experience with West coast but would pass next time. Entrees: Elk: very good Arugula salad NY Strip: customer found to have a strong herb flavor that dominated the flavor of the beef Tuna. Unfortunately disappointing. Flavor not appealing and presentation surprisingly poor. Tan slices of tuna on a tan bed in a brown broth and tired looking vegetables. Lamb. As good as I’ve ever had. Nice light char on exterior on rare side of medium rare interior. Very pleasant texture. Marvelous flavor. The risotto or whatever had a pleasant sweet fruity flavor that was a pleasing balance against the lamb. Dessert. There were limited choices. Only ordered 2 for table and they were both the same dish. The table gave mixed reviews. I enjoyed it. Others disappointed. Honestly not what I usually order but I enjoyed the variety of textures, feels, colors and flavors. It was the one with the Brazilian tapioca. It’s the kind of dessert that a designated dessert chef would enjoy creating. The dessert chef came by the table to see how we were enjoying it. Nice touch. Complimentary dessert for birthday. I’m sure the dessert chef would cringe at the suggestion but I’d add a safe harbor dessert, like crepe brûlée, cheesecake or key lime pie. Some diners were up for it and others just wanted a comfort dessert. At the beginning of the meal they served us an amuse bouche. I always enjoy the surprise. They also brought us a small taste of dessert with the bill which was nice. I was truly looking forward to this given the website and the reviews. But the talk of this being the next level for this area is more ambition than fact. It’s a very nice addition and certainly among the best, but we’ve had better in Fayetteville, much less NW Arkansas. Even in our group of diners there was a wide range of...

For my second experience at Atlas, I couldn’t have asked for a better one. This place deserves to be considered for a Michelin star. It rivals every Michelin starred place I’ve had. To start, Carson was our server and he was what brought the entire experience together. He is a master of his craft and understands the menu through and through. He was so gracious and the best host for our meal. Logistics: Our plates for one course were cleared and within moments or next course was out. I drink a tonnnn of water and at no time was I wishing for a refill. Carson lead us on a true journey and understood the assignment. Each course was impeccable. This is truly a gourmet menu with offerings not found anywhere in Arkansas. I’ve read some reviews that state the food is overpriced. Let’s be clear, you are not just paying for a lamb chop, friends. You are paying for the beautiful golden curtains which create your own little slice of Atlas with the perfectly curated modern yet somehow still very warm decor. You’re paying for the service. You’re paying for the entire experience they have thoughtfully created. Appetizer : My partner and I shared the mussels 5/5 and the bone marrow 5/5. The bone marrow on the charred bread with the ground mustard offering the most beautiful acid to the umami marrow was perfectly simpatico. The mussels were perfectly cooked, no rubber texture or fishiness we’re always expecting when getting mussels away from the coast. The sauce was perfect for dipping the basket of bread offered to us. Entree: I had the whole pompano. 5/5. It was crispy, it was fresh, it was a lemon pepper flavor that was executed wonderfully. I also tried the lamb. 5 stars. This dish. This it it. The South African flavors embedded in each, perfectly rare, buttery bite was a spiritual experience for me. I felt like the spices were wrapping me up in a hug and telling me there is peace in the world. And finally the decadent desserts. We had the decadent hospitality. FIVE STARS. Again beautiful with an explosion of well balanced flavors in every single bite. The rich, but not heavy chocolate with the subtle spice and warmth of the ginger ice cream and crunch of the cocoa nibs and hint of strawberry knocked me off my socks. Carson also kindly gifted us a Just Peachy which was an elevated play on peaches and cream. The white wine in the peaches offered a depth that I don’t have the palate to truly explain. Also. The cocktails are bangin’ and you should try a couple. We are so incredibly lucky to have this restaurant in our part of the world....

Absolutely blown away by our visit last night. We went for a reception dinner with a party of 12 and everything about it was top notch! Loved how easy it was to communicate with them via email to book in advance, amazed by how incredibly welcoming and friendly the staff at the host stand was, as well as the kitchen crew and other servers who we interacted with while there. It seemed like every person there truly loves their job.

The star of the show was definitely a tie between the food and our server. We were all absolutely stunned by our phenomenal server (I think her name was Caitlin but I may be wrong because wow were the drinks good!). She knew the answer to every question we had, accommodated for allergies and aversions and anticipated all of our needs! Not once did anyone go thirsty for water or libations, and they even brought us a champagne toast on the house which was so sweet and fun! She did a stellar job all around, plus never left a dirty plate or glass and made sure to replace linens and silverware as needed. I have been in the service industry for 20 years and I love to dine out and I honestly don’t think I’ve ever had such marvelous service. I’m sure the Chef and GM already know this but just in case they don’t - y’all have the best freakin crew!

The food was AMAZING. Literally everyone in our party was impressed and we had a picky eater or two. I had the ribeye which basically melted in my mouth. We also tried a cheese tray and the raviolis, which they made sure to make sans pork for us. The amuse bouche was phenomenal and a nice little treat! As was the little something sweet at the end of meal that no one had room for - but still devoured! We were told this was the last week for that menu so we will definitely be back to try their fall/winter menu. It was worth every penny.

Alsoooo The drinks were so fantastic! I could drink sooo many of those strawberry pisco clarified cocktails I don’t even remember what it was called but WOW! I had only ever been to Atlas for cocktails before and everything I’ve tried there has been unique, aesthetically pleasing, and delicious!

Atlas crew- if you’re reading this- a special thank you to yall for letting us drop off a few tabletop decorations and getting that all set up for us. I hope you got some of the candy we left y’all :)

We felt like everyone there went the extra mile for us and I’m sure they make every single person that comes in feel like that. So yeah, DEFINITELY check out Atlas if you...