We went to a mano this year for Nick’s 30th birthday. I picked it because I had heard positive things and they had a nice long amari menu. We’ve been into aperitif lately, so much so that we have been concocting our own – but maybe that deserves it’s own post next week….
When we arrived we were seated quickly in a little mini booth next to the bar, the hostess was nice. We waited for a min but the waitress came fairly soon and was also very nice, even said happy birthday to Nick which was lovely. These things were great but I was perplexed during this time because I thought I was going to a somewhat upscale Italian dining experience but the general vibe and music was a little more low-key and even vaguely…pub-ish? Maybe it was that we were on the bar side, but I felt like better music or a little candle or something would’ve gone a long way. Unless maybe this is a new thing? (I did go to Lloyd’s for the first time a few weeks ago, hahah) I mean I’m all for laid back places with upscale food, I actually think there should be more of them, and I dig the concept of a neighborhood bistro but I don’t want to be listening to shitty rock – we have to draw a line somewhere. So I’m big on atmosphere and ambiance, but also hospitality and professionalism so I’ll let the great service nullify the bad music this time but please a mano can we bump it up with some nice vintage ethiopian, acid jazz, old soul – something a little cooler to do the food justice?
Which brings me to the more important factor – how was the food? Well it was just plain fab, dee-lish, A+. We started with the endive salad and the burrata. The salad was Nick’s favorite dish of the night, he called it special after his first bite. We continued on, Nick got the “mezzaluna – marscapone, wild mushrooms, jus, and baby greens” and I got the “vegetable composition – daily selection of farm vegetables” (chefs choice, exciting!) – mine ended up being what seemed to be three brown rice arancini sitting atop little mushroom caps, grilled cabbage quarters, charred spring onions and some lovely flavor-packed veg purees – how fun! And it was very tasty. Nick’s main, man, oh man, it was fantastic.
You have to go and get this magic on a plate. My only qualm is that the portion was a bit small. Yes, yes it was a primi and yes, I am more prone to request a fat ass serving considering it’s considerable deliciousness, but putting that aside, perhaps there could be a larger option for veg’s who may want it as their main whop? We finished with a cappuccino, the $10 flight of amaro (great, do it) and a bread pudding that came with something like a bourbon ice cream and toffee pieces (comped for the b-day, again bravo for these little touches – it makes such a difference) and that was also ridiculously good.
All in all it was fabbo food, great service + reasonably priced – I hope they add more veg options as this is one of the first places I’ve been excited about in a while. Check out my rated list of best Italian restaurants in Atlanta here and see how this measures up (spoiler: skip most of the bullshit buckhead Italian places and just go here.)
