Cocktails

Twenty-four-year-old David Durnell wins our vote as the city’s rising-star bartender.

The fine collection of agave spirits—boutique tequilas, rare sotols from Chihuahua, and a peerless selection of artisanal mezcals—at Riccardo Ullio’s newest Midtown venture is an education and delight; sip them neat one at a time or in flights of three.

Look beyond the warehouse atmosphere and you’ll find staffers who give helpful service and shelves that can contain some pleasant surprises—including, say, the Antica Formula Carpano vermouth that bartenders love and that’s sold out at every other store.

The original Octane on Marietta Street may be the best study hall in town, with beer, wine, and booze for the twenty-one-and-over set and coffee drinks for everyone.

Lucky Decatur is home to the metro area’s best all-around neighborhood pub, a versatile stomping ground with a sunny dining room serving creative casual bites, a winding come-hither bar, and a chill courtyard patio.

Atlanta’s hometown liquor store. If you went to college here, this was likely the first place you bought a bottle of Smirnoff or Jägermeister.

The connoisseur’s paradise—but what else would you expect from the crew behind Holeman and Finch Public House?

At this East Cobb newcomer, mixologist Chris McNeill’s globally influenced cocktails—with flavors from Latin America, Italy, Asia—match chef-owner Doug Turbush’s world-beat sensibility.

No establishment has done more to raise Atlanta’s cocktail consciousness than Holeman and Finch, a bastion of free-thinking alchemy where smoked egg whites may be a secret ingredient and where Greg Best and Andy Minchow (co-owners among several others) encourage democracy, with the staff banding together to create quirky, exquisite drinks.

Like his menus that flow with the seasons, chef-owner Billy Allin’s beverage program also evolves constantly.