Spring Restaurant — Restaurant in Marietta

Good news, suburban diners accept mediocrity as a reasonable excuse for fine dining. This should keep Spring well attended for many years to come in spite of how the cuisine has fallen into sadness along with a clear evolution of policy preferring profit to potential pairings.

What began at Spring's inception as a menu of tightly curated, creative content delivered with precision and excellence has softened into an adjective heavy exposition of courses designed to titillate and entice with flabby execution.

We were greeted quickly and kindly before being escorted to our table but it is a good thing I am enamoured with my bride because the impressive delay prior to being addressed by our service team was truly European in duration.

The first dish was pea salad which arrived with nice structure and presentation. I found the ingredients to be high quality, individually flavorful and appropriately prepared. Once my wife and I had both sampled a complete mouthful of the blended ingredients she observed that the level of sodium would have been expected on French fries rather than a salad dish at a high end restaurant.

She found her pasta main to be a lovely choice although I did not taste it and have no notes to contribute.

My lamb was plated in fine fashion and my first flavor was the carrot puree that delivered on its promise to be creamy and balanced. Sadly that was the high point. The lamb was a touch tough and slightly overdone. I realize lamb can be finicky and sensitive but it was deflating to find that Spring is no more deft than other spots of lesser reputation. The third component was a fried potato croquette stuffed with ground lamb and topped with a few bites of fresh salad. Fried food seems to offer an easy path to heat, fat, salt joining in symphony and this was no exception. Ground lamb added nothing to the experience except as a languid protein.

For our final course, we selected a dessert to share. The bowl exited the kitchen with a speckled veneer and suggested careful construction. Beneath that layer of beauty we discovered intensely flavored banana goo that mercifully offered moisture to the parched chocolate cake below. The portion was not excessive but we both declined to finish it.

I will observe that the sourdough and herb butter preceding the pea salad was noteworthy.

One final observation regarding the change in beverage policy...it is disheartening to visit a place that purports to produce food worthy of fine wine pairings (and Spring must believe that of itself given the paltry selection of beer, aperitifs and digestifs) that suffers from either remarkable oenological hubris or a serious focus on wine sales without regard for the patrons' potential to contribute creativity to the meal. As we planned this visit, I was personally thrilled with the chance to pair a special bottle with the courses at Spring. To my surprise and consternation the policy has changed and "outside food and beverages" are not allowed. (I did supress a chuckle as the beverage manager emphasized both "food" and "beverage" since I have never seen anyone tote along a burger and onion rings into a fine dining restaurant, although given the state of cuisine at Spring these days perhaps they have had issues...) Opinions can differ, and the beverage manager was insistent that there were "beautiful" wines on the list, but the options by the glass were unserious and the bottle list lacked balance and age. He was adamant that they had "several" wines from vintages prior to 2017 and all options are perfectly fine to drink now. He pointed out that I can have well aged wine "at my own house," and I suppose if the wine and sommelier were award worthy and critically acclaimed I could appreciate the aggressive defense of the policy. That being said, I have visited plenty of restaurants with wine selections far more robust and somme teams more accomplished that do not impose such a rule.

The years have not been kind to what was a shining exception to the otherwise monochromatic dining canvas of Atlanta's...

Aw man, I really wanted this to be 5 stars but boy was I disappointed.

Specifically to the reviewer gloating about having eatin at Alain Ducasse, Guy Savoy, French Laundry, etc... and comparing it here... really?? I don't think I was ever served plain peas and carrots at places similar to those, and certainly not in any brassieries.

MAN ugh, I wanted to like this place so bad, but everything was off. We ordered both snacks, all 3 starters, and the lamb and halibut entrees. Trying restaurants is a hobby of mine and one that I'm easily able to afford with my current job, so I'd like to give my full opinion here so that someone who may be saving up for a meal like this can get the full picture before going.

Snacks: Oysters were the best part but they weren't better than kimball house and technically cost more. White asperagus felt very premade, at least within the restaurant but the asperagus was cold while hollandaise was warm and tasted more like homemade mayo... although not totally a complaint.

Starters: This was probably the best part but still left us underwhelmed. Salmon crudo was the best of the 3, but left much to be desired. Burrata and beets were pleasant tasting but difficult to eat. Same with the foie gras. Actually we found most things difficult to eat which was really frustrating. Made it seem like they didn't know what they're doing although pictures from previous menus seemed much better constructed. (Compare my picture of the foie gras to the others posted - big difference)

Entrees: We were holding our breath on giving an opinion until we got the entrees, but once we did, woof. Halibut was cooked well but the dish was a bit basic. Somewhat enjoyable until you remember what you paid. The lamb though... no no no no... you can't just serve mildly seasoned lamb with peas, carrots, a teaspoon of carrot puree and then sprinkle mint everywhere, and the added bits of gristle really capped off the experience. Made absolutely no sense as we're not masters of lamb but could definitely cook this better at home.

Desserts: We didn't order dessert mostly because the entrees were so disappointing, but also because after the entrees, nobody came to our table for what felt like 20-30 min while the guests next to us (we overheard one of them used to work here) were visiting with the people working. This normally wouldn't bother me but they basically left us to sulk in our disappointment while we listened to that same girl loudly laughing about how her boyfriend locked her in a bathroom? Dump him, girl. Also pay your check and leave lol.

Overall, I'm sorry I have to write this review, but I find it offensive that they charge these prices - prices that well exceed that of Ticonderoga and Kimball House but markedly worse in all aspects.

I live in Atlanta, but grew up in Lilburn where we have 2 similar establishments, Three Blind Mice and 1910 Public House. Similar concepts but tastier meals and cheaper (24-32 per entree). Counting my blessings.

I'm SO confused by the other reviews. Our favorite, if not the oysters, was the bread they served with salted onion butter. There's a serious issue with proportioning the plates. Not enough sauce or puree on all dishes that came with it. Auxilliary ingredients required cutting to make sure they were spread out across the dish - especially annoying when you're given 4 walnuts to divide across 2 pieces of toast (for foie gras). Even the menu details were not exciting and you could feel the lack of enthusiasm in conceptualizing these dishes when recieving lamb with a mound of peas and carrots. I'm not paying 45 dollars for a meal I would make at home and still be underwhelmed by. Will not be back.

P.S. with no cocktails and only 3 non-alcoholic beers, it makes our decision that much easier not to return

If you are looking to spend this amount of money for a holistic food experience check out the below:

-Lyla Lila -Kimball House -Ticonderoga Club -Southern...

Let's start with the obvious: Spring is a VERY small restaurant. That's not a bad thing because the reason you would want to go here is precisely that you do NOT want a loud obnoxious atmosphere. Thus, you MUST make reservations. If you think you can just walk up to the door and ask for a table without a reservation, you will be disappointed and embarrassed in front of whomever is with you. It's not happening so don't even try. And you need to make reservations weeks if not months in advance; forget about calling a few days before you need a table because you will be out of luck. Second, this is a nice place --- classy. Don't show up in shorts or a t-shirt and ruin the atmosphere for the quality of the meal; respect the other patrons, the chef, the meal, and the totality of the place. Third, the menu is ever changing so be prepared for whatever is on the list that evening. Fourth, the menu is good. Wait. Let me take that back. The menu is awesome good. Not just average. Not just good. unbelievably good. This is what a white tablecloth place is suppose to be. You will have a very limited selection but you just deal with it because this place does a few things exceptionally well and that's it. The chef knows what he is doing so just accept it and enjoy. Fifth, the wine pairings are limited but exactly what they should be. This is not the place where you have a million choices because the chef says "this is what works and these are the choices." In other words, the wine menu is extremely limited and the beer menu is 3 or 4 choices at best. Sixth, this a place that is going to charge you for the exceptional meal. In other words, you're gonna pay $200-$300 for a dinner for two -- and it will be worth every penny, too. Let me qualify that by saying if you're looking for an all-you-can-eat place where you gauge the quality by how much you can eat, then this is NOT your place. This is superb food in exact proportions that non-buffet-goers will say is enough. If you judge the quality by the quantity, you will be disappointed. Seven, the service is first rate. These guys and gals know what to do, when to do it, how it should be done, and they do it well. You're not gonna get any, "Sweetie, whadda ya have?" These servers are trained and trained well so plan to tip accordingly -- 20% minimum, 25%+ is what they deserve -- because they are very good at they do. Eight, kids under 12 will not appreciate the meal so it's probably not a good idea to bring them and, should you do it anyway, there are no kids seats. Other guests will not be happy with you. Besides, you don't want to spend that sort of money on a kid's meal. Nine, parking is difficult. There is no bar to sit at before the meal, although there is an outside, uncovered porch to enjoy a glass of wine, beer, or cocktail before being seated. I suggest you use Uber/Lyft and go to one of the many other places on the Square before you reservation if you want to drink a few before dinner. Overall, this place is danged good --- and I do mean good, too....