Photo by Ann Packwood
The Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail is getting another big-name restaurant. North of Ladybird and Kevin Rathbun Steak, close to Tal Baum’s Rina, sits Indaco, a regional Italian restaurant from Indigo Road Hospitality (O-Ku, Oak Steakhouse, Colletta). Founder Steve Palmer opened the original location in Charleston in 2013. Now, he’s bringing it to his native Atlanta in a prime location: 725 Ponce, across the BeltLine from the original Sears-Roebuck building (now Ponce City Market) where his great-grandmother worked.
Serving wood-fired, thin-crust Neapolitan pizzas and handmade pastas, Indaco strikes a balance between casual and fine dining with a menu catered to Atlantans. “It’s an everyday kind of place—not special occasion,” Palmer explains. “We execute at a very high level and are very approachable.”
He estimates 90 percent of the menu is unique to Atlanta. “We’re not a chain—we want the restaurants in the city to reflect where they are,” he says. Signature items consistent across all four Indaco locations include polpette (meatballs) and tagliatelle with pork tesa, black pepper, Parmesan, chive, and a farm egg. Local offerings range from squash risotto and blue crab bucatini to Heritage pork chop and mushroom pizza.
Photo by Ann Packwood
Photo by Ann Packwood
Photo by Ann Packwood
A three-course family-style tasting menu is available daily with food from every section of the menu. “Long before omakase were all the rage, Italians have been doing this tasting menu family-style format. It’s a great way to experience the menu,” Palmer says. Indaco will begin selling grab-and-go panini and salads from a case near the host stand in the fall.
The beverage menu combines Italian aperitivos with local spirits, while the wine list features numerous Italian varietals. Beverage manager Harper Miller, previously of Indaco Charleston, has created a cocktail list featuring staples such as Aperol spritz and negronis, as well as creations like the Passion Play, made with Dom Q rum, Chinola passion fruit, and lime. Frozen cocktails will be available at a patio bar, along with pizza by the slice.
Photo by Ann Packwood
Photo by Heidi Harris
Photo by Heidi Harris
The 4,800-square-foot space features a coastal vibe with notes of blue, as well as terracotta shades of orange and yellow (think of the Amalfi Coast). “725 Ponce is a very modern industrial building. We tried to lighten things up,” Palmer explains. The dining room looks onto an open kitchen featuring a tiled pizza oven. The 45-seat, dog-friendly patio overlooks a bocce court—easily accessible from the BeltLine. “Bocce is fun. People like to drink when playing bocce,” Palmer says.
Peruse the menus below.
