Andrew’s Favorites Around Perimeter

Over the years, I’ve spent a lot of time around Sandy Springs, Dunwoody, and the Perimeter area. Between client meetings, date nights with my wife, grabbing lunch between appointments, and exploring new spots on weekends, I’ve built up a pretty long list of places I keep coming back to.

Every time friends, family, clients, or someone new to the area asks where they should eat, grab a drink, or take visitors, I find myself recommending many of the same spots over and over again. So I decided to turn those recommendations into a guide.

This isn’t meant to be a definitive “Best Of” list. It’s simply a collection of places my wife and I genuinely enjoy and keep going back to. Some are well-known local favorites. Others are the kind of spots you could drive past a hundred times without realizing what’s inside.

I’ll keep updating this guide as I discover new places and as the area continues to grow.

If there’s somewhere you think belongs on this list, send me an email at [email protected]. I’m always looking for my next favorite spot.

Let’s get into it!

My wife and I have been going to Tre Vele for probably three years now and I genuinely look forward to it every time we go. The pasta is made in-house, which sounds like a marketing line until you eat it and realize it actually tastes different from every other Italian place in this area. I always get the Cacio e Pepe and I've never once thought about ordering something else, which tells you everything you need to know about how good it is. If the octopus appetizer is on the menu that night, order it before you look at anything else. It's tender in a way that octopus usually isn't, with a char on it that makes it hard to share. My wife usually goes for the lamb pappardelle; she's never come home saying she wished she'd picked something different.

Small pro tip - Order a Lemon Spritz, especially if it's hot outside.

We keep saying we're going to space out the visits more. We never actually do.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Thu 11:30am-9:30pm
Fri-Sat 11:30am-11pm
Sun 11am-9pm
Website: treveleatl.com

I know it's a chain and I really don't care, because North Italia is one of those places that just works every single time no matter what. I've taken clients there when I needed somewhere that wouldn't embarrass me, I've gone with my wife on nights when neither of us felt like thinking too hard about where to eat, and I've sat at the bar alone with a glass of wine after a long day and been perfectly happy. The food comes out hot, the service doesn't disappear on you, and the bill never makes you feel like you overpaid for what you got.

Before you look at anything else on the menu, get the truffle garlic bread. You take one bite and immediately wish you'd ordered two, which is not something I say about garlic bread very often. The spicy vodka rigatoni is the pasta I've been ordering for two years and I'm still not bored of it. The meatballs are solid. It's not going to be the most memorable meal of your life, but it's going to be exactly what you needed, which honestly matters more on most nights.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Thu 11am-10pm
Fri 11am-11pm
Sat 10am-11pm
Sun 10am-10pm
Website: northitalia.com

I've been going to Red Pepper for years and it's one of those places I never get tired of. It's a sports bar, not a restaurant trying to be upscale, and that's exactly what I like about it. There are TVs everywhere, it gets loud on weekends, and the margaritas are strong enough that you'll want to pace yourself after the second one, which is always a good sign. I've shown up planning to watch a game and ended up staying two hours past the final whistle because the food kept being too good to rush through.

The carne asada ranchera is what I always order and I've tried enough other things on the menu to know I'm not switching. The chips and salsa are better than they have any right to be at a sports bar. They're open until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays, which has saved more than a few of my late nights.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Thu 11am-12am
Fri-Sat 11am-1am
Sun 11am-11pm
Website: redpepperatl.com

Whenever someone who just moved to the area asks me where to get tacos, I always send them to Rreal Tacos. The place has a great energy to it, the staff is genuinely fast and friendly, and the food is the reason people keep coming back instead of just trying it once and moving on. The picanha taco and the asada are what I order every time and I've never once felt like I was missing out on something else. The esquite is the starter I always get and always finish before I probably should. If you're going with a group, get a pitcher of margaritas and share it, that's the move.

It gets packed on weekend nights so either get there before 7 or just accept that you're going to wait a bit. Either way it's worth it.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Sat 11am-12am
Sun 11am-11pm
Website: rrealtacos.com

I took my wife to Mikata for dinner a while back and we both walked out saying the same thing, which was that we couldn't believe we'd been living near this place for as long as we had without ever going. The fish is genuinely fresh in a way where you stop mid-bite and actually notice it, which doesn't happen at most sushi spots around here. The cocktail program also surprised me because this isn't the kind of place where you order a drink just to have something in your hand while you wait for food. The French 75 is one of the better cocktails I've had anywhere in this area, and I did not expect to say that about a sushi restaurant. Get one before you even open the menu.

The rolls are put together in a way where the ingredients actually make sense with each other instead of just being piled on, and if someone in your group doesn't eat raw fish, the hibachi gives them a legitimate reason to be excited about being there. You're going to spend more than you would at a strip mall sushi place and you won't think about it once the food starts arriving.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Thu 11:30am-2:30pm & 5-10pm
Fri 11:30am-2:30pm & 5-11pm
Sat 5-11pm
Sun 5-10pm
Website: mikataatl.com

I've been going to Sushi Mito for a while now and I still look forward to it the same way I did the first time, which is genuinely the best thing I can say about any restaurant. Most places slip after a year or two. This one hasn't. The fish is always fresh and they don't skimp on the cuts, which matters a lot more than people realize when you're actually paying for quality sushi. If you want something hot, the katsudon is what I'd point you to. It's filling in a way that's hard to explain until you've had it. The chirashi is what I get when I want to try a little bit of everything and I don't want to have to make too many decisions. They do ramen too and it's exactly what you want on a cold night.

One thing to know: they're closed on Mondays and they close between lunch and dinner service, so if you show up at 3pm on a Tuesday you're going to find a locked door. Plan ahead and you'll be fine.

Price: $$
Hours:
Closed Mon
Tue-Sun 11am-2pm & 5-9:30pm (Fri-Sat until 10pm)
Website: sushimito.com

My wife and I have done two anniversary dinners at H&W now and the second one was genuinely better than the first, which I didn't think was possible after how good the first one was. It's at The Forum in Peachtree Corners and it doesn't have that corporate chain steakhouse feel where everything is perfectly templated and nobody really cares. The service is attentive without hovering, the room feels like a real restaurant, and they have live music on weekends that actually adds something to the night instead of just filling silence.

The lamb chops are what the regulars always talk about and they are completely right to. The crust on them is perfect and the lamb itself is good enough that putting sauce on it would be a mistake, which is something I say about very few things. I've had the wagyu ribeye twice and I would order it both times again without hesitating. Start with the crab cake, it sets the right tone for everything that follows. And make a reservation before you leave the house, not while you're already pulling into the parking lot.

Price: $$$
Hours:
Mon-Thu 5-10pm
Fri 11:30am-2pm & 5-11pm
Sat 4-11pm
Sun 4-9pm
Website: hwsteakhouse.com

Rumi's is my answer whenever I need to take someone somewhere that feels like a special occasion without spending a ridiculous amount of money. I've taken people there who had never eaten Persian food before in their lives and watched them completely fall for it, and that's happened enough times now that Rumi's is just my automatic answer whenever I need somewhere that isn't going to let me down in front of people I'm trying to impress.

The chicken and lamb kabobs are what I always order and I've never felt the need to change that. The lentil rice is one of those sides that you order because it comes with the meal and then end up talking about on the drive home because of the way the raisins give it this subtle sweetness that catches you off guard. Get the hummus and pita to start, share everything at the table, and take your time with it. They add gratuity for larger parties, which is completely fine, just don't be caught doing math at the table when the check arrives.

Price: $$$
Hours:
Mon-Sat 11:30am-11pm
Sun 11:30am-10pm
Website: rumiskitchen.com

Yalda is the place I take people when I want the restaurant to do all the talking for me. The room is beautiful, the cocktails are actually worth ordering, and every plate that comes out looks like someone spent real time thinking about it before it left the kitchen. Every single person I've brought there has texted me afterward to say thank you. That's not nothing.

The shish kabobs are the move, chicken or beef, and honestly you can't go wrong with either one. The rice with lentils and raisins is the thing that catches people off guard because it sounds like a boring side dish and it absolutely isn't. You look down at some point during the meal and realize you've eaten most of it before the kabobs even arrived. Get the baba ghanoush and hummus to start and take your time with it before everything else comes out. Book a reservation before you go because showing up on a Friday night without one is wishful thinking.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Thu 11:30am-2:45pm & 4-9:30pm
Fri 11:30am-2:45pm & 4-10:30pm
Sat 11am-2:45pm & 4-10:15pm
Sun 11am-2:45pm & 4-9:30pm
Website: yaldaatl.com

The first time I drove to Yandy's I pulled into the parking lot and genuinely wasn't sure I had the right address. It's a pizza counter inside a Mexican grocery store on Roswell Road, and you literally walk through the grocery store to get to it. It sounds odd until you get inside, smell the dough and realize this place is completely serious about what they're doing. By the time I finished my first order I was already thinking about when I was coming back.

They do New York style and Detroit style, both made to order. The Detroit hot char pepperoni is what most people go back for and I am absolutely one of those people. The New York slice is also really good, the crust has real structure to it and the sauce actually has flavor instead of just being there as a formality. Closed Sundays and they shut down at 8:30, so don't leave it until the last minute.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Sat 11am-8:30pm
Closed Sun
Website: pizzabyyandysatl.com

Hearth is the place I end up at when someone asks where to grab pizza and I don't feel like overthinking it. I've gone three times in a single month before, none of those times planned in advance, and I've never once walked out wishing I'd gone somewhere else. The Simply Red is what I keep ordering and after all those visits it still hasn't gotten old. The crust has real char on it without tipping over into burnt, the sauce doesn't try to overpower everything else, and the cheese situation is exactly right in a way that's actually harder to pull off than it sounds. The Brussels sprouts appetizer is the thing I always tell people to get, and it's the thing they always text me about afterward to say I was right. They rotate the pies regularly so there's almost always something new worth trying, and I've been enough times now that the staff knows what I'm going to order before I say it, which is exactly the kind of relationship I want with a pizza place.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Sat 11am-10pm
Sun 11am-9pm
Website: hearthpizzatavern.com

Canton Cooks has been on Roswell Road long enough that people who grew up in this area have been going there their whole lives, and I've been going long enough now that it just feels like a natural part of the rotation. The portions are genuinely big, the food is the kind of Chinese comfort food that you actually want as opposed to the watered-down version you get at most places, and the prices are low enough that you'll feel slightly guilty about how much food you got for what you paid. The Peking duck is what I order every single time and I haven't found a compelling reason to change that. The snow pea leaves and pork chops are both worth getting. Come hungry because you are going to leave with a box no matter what.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Fri 11am-10pm
Sat-Sun 12pm-10pm
Website: cantonatlanta.com

⚠️ Heads up: Reviews are mixed on consistency. Most people love it, a few have had off nights. Worth knowing going in.

I've made Moondog a Friday regular at this point and I know a solid number of people in this area who have done exactly the same thing. They have about 40 taps that rotate constantly, it's dog friendly, and nobody there is going to make you feel like you need to know more about beer than you do to enjoy being there. They don't serve food, but you can bring your own, so the move is to grab something from somewhere nearby and just settle in for as long as you want.

The staff knows the tap list cold and if you tell them what you actually like they'll point you to something on the board that fits, which beats standing there staring at 40 options and picking something random. I've walked in planning to stay for an hour and left two and a half hours later enough times now that I've stopped pretending I have somewhere else to be.

Price: $
Hours: Mon-Thu 4-9pm
Fri-Sat 11:30am-11pm
Closed Sun
Website: moondoggrowlers.com

Pontoon is the Saturday afternoon spot that I keep going back to, and the reason is simple: it's relaxed, the beer is good, and there's a pizza vendor on site so you're not just drinking on an empty stomach. The tap list rotates, so there's usually something worth trying that wasn't there the last time you went. The crowd on a Saturday is a mix of families with kids, regulars who know the bartender by name, and people who just wandered in for the first time, and somehow everyone seems equally comfortable being there.

I've gone planning to stay for an hour and left three hours later more times than I'd honestly like to admit. The barleywine is what a lot of the regulars specifically talk about and they're right to. Check the tap list before you go so you have a sense of what you're walking into.

Price: $$
Hours:
Mon-Sat 12pm-10pm
Sun 12pm-8pm
Website: pontoonbrewing.com

NFA won best burger in Georgia and they are running the entire operation out of the back of a Chevron gas station on Chamblee Dunwoody Road. I am not making that up. The first time I drove over there I sat in the parking lot for a second genuinely wondering if I had the right address. I did, and I've been going back ever since.

It's a smash burger with crispy edges and beef tallow fries that taste like the fries you remember from when you were a kid before every fast food place started cutting corners on everything. The tater tots have developed their own following among people who've been there, and after one order you'll understand why. You order at the counter, grab a drink from the cooler inside the Chevron, and go find a picnic table out back. The whole meal comes in under $15 and you'll be thinking about it on the drive home.

Closed Mondays and Sundays, and they shut down at 7:30, so don't leave it until the last minute.

Price: $
Hours:
Tue-Sat 11am-7:30pm
Closed Sun-Mon
Website: nfaburger.com

E. 48th Street has been in Dunwoody long enough that half the people who go there grew up going there with their parents, and somehow it still feels like something not enough people know about. It's a family-run Italian deli and I've been going long enough that I genuinely feel like I should know the owner's name by now. The sausage, peppers, onions, and eggs hero is what people talk about most and every word of that reputation is deserved. The Sam hero is the other one you should order.

Beyond the sandwiches they do Italian entrees, stuffed shells, fresh sausage, and they carry imported olive oils, cured meats, pasta, and cheeses that you are simply not going to find at a regular grocery store. They're closed on Sundays, they close at 7pm on weekdays and 6pm on Saturdays. Don't show up at 6:55 expecting a warm welcome.

Price: $
Hours:
Mon-Fri 10am-7pm
Sat 10am-6pm
Closed Sun
Website: e48thstreetmarket.com