Beautiful Restaurant

I usually like this place for their BBQ beef ribs, Mac & cheese and greens but walked in to and got the surprise of my life when I seen what was being served and sold… HOT DOGS & PORK N BEANS! Don’t get me wrong, I was raised on that meal but NEVER have I ever heard let alone SEEN it being sold in a restaurant… and being sold at top dollar!
As I make my way further down the serving trays to look for something a bit more adult to eat and what do I see next??? Smothered Turkey necks! Really people?!
When I’m back in Atlanta I think I’ll stay clear of this place and their Monday specials!
But other than that they have good food!

Good price for good food. I had the catfish which was tasty and the mac and cheese was done right. But my husband didn’t care for the taste of the baked chicken. I ended up giving him one of my pieces of fish which he enjoyed. I’d come back.

This is more like 3.5 Stars
I was in the area for my son’s football game and I was starving so I went 2 Unilocal for a recommendation. The line was long for the cafeteria style setup but I toughed it out. Everyone ahead of me seemed to order oxtails but I wasn’t a fan of the chunks of onions and peppers on top of them so I oped for the Fried Pork Chops and had them throw a little gravy on them. The Chops were sooooooooooo yummy (5 stars) nice and meaty and cooked well. I normally like brown gravy but this light gravy was good and flavorful, yet not 2 salty. My meal came with 2 sides I chose Greens and Mac & Cheese. The greens were very yummy and I would get these again on the next visit. Mac & Cheese looked good but lacked tons of flavor. Wasn’t creamy but had chunks of cheese but it kinda tasted watery… It was very weird and I didn’t finish it. Came with cornbread that wasn’t so great either. Service was good. The male that worked the register was very upbeat and friendly. Another reason for taking a star off is they have a menu up but you can’t order from it which is kinda pointless to me. I will surly go back to Beautiful

Omg the food is awesome you must drive down to have a taste if in town. The fried chicken was like my aunt dawns. The mac and cheese taste like my grand fathers and my soul is satisfied love this place the conversation going on with the elders is comical the south at its best.

Had the turkey wings here a while back… Def worth the trip!!! Absolutely delicious.

What can I say, food was delicious. I had smothered turkey wings, corn bread dressing and macaroni & cheese with a piece of corn bread and a glass of sweet tea. As i ate it brought back thoughts of being at my grandmother’s table enjoying a well cooked meal. Very home cooked that can’t be duplicated at franchises.

Definitely have an open mind when coming to this restaurant. I am very particular when it comes to restaurant ambience; I started wanting leave as soon as I walked in. However, I stuck it out, grabbed a tray and ordered my food. There was a «waiter» in the dinning area who directed my group to a table. He was very friendly and most helpful. He got our utensils and refilled our drinks.
Ordering from the food line did not give the food much of a visual appeal; however, once I took my first bite… wow! Both my 9 year old and I ordered the catfish filet and he just tore into it. Bones and all! I was so worried about him eating the fish bones but the fish was cooked so well… I would dare say you could eat some of the bones too. (I know… It sounds crazy!). But trust me… if my picky and finicky 9 yr old loved this catfish… it means it was really good. For dessert, I ordered the Banana Pudding. It was out of this world.
I came to this restaurant hoping to find some good tasting Southern food and I must say that I was not disappointed. Left satisfied and would definitely come back again.

SOUTHERN FOOD AT ITS BEST! The Beautiful is a must stop for anyone stopping in ATL. The food is great and the people are nice! I have been here half a dozen times and it keeps getting better.
This time I had the pork chop dinner with white beans, mac n cheese, and cream corn. Every meal comes with a good portion of moist cornbread too. They were having a special where every meal was $ 6-​$ 7 which is more than reasonable. My son had the meatballs and gravy, my wife had the fried pork chops, and my Mom in Law had the Baked Chicken Wings… EVERYTHING WAS AMAZING! Mustafa is the nice gentleman who comes by every table, and keeps the guests feeling comfortable! Ms Mary is also a great waitress who was so willing to help! All together our bill came to $ 50-​$ 60…not bad for 3 adults and 2 kids…
This place will always be a MANDATORY STOP when in ATL!

I came here specifically for the Banana Pudding And it was awful. I paid over $ 3.00 for a cup full of nilla wafers and some sugar concoction, not at all what I was expecting. The food looked good but I can’t say I had it. Any soul food place should have good deserts. Apparently, the peach cobbler is good because they were out of it. Next time I will try the food and hopefully I will have better things to say about this spot.

I’ve heard alot about this restaurant. Most people either hate it or love it. I love rightly done soul food so I thought I would check it out one evening. I saw from their website that they have a meat and two sides meal deal so I figured I would go with that.
The set-​up is very Piccadilly-​ish. Or is Piccadilly very Beautiful-​ish? Either way, you pick your food from behind a hot bar and they put it in a container for you. I am not a big fried chicken eater, but that was the most tasty looking thing that they had. They had some wings that were dipped in a sweet sauce but I thought you can’t go wrong with fried chicken. The side items were your basic soul food side items. I opted for two helpings of macaroni.
I thought about trying the banana pudding since people rant and rave about it. It was sitting on the counter and it just looked like it had been there all day. I decided against that. I like my banana pudding chilled.
I think my food was about $ 8/​$ 9, I didn’t get a drink. Good price. The food was ok. I really could have cooked that myself. It was an experience at least. Besides, the origin of the restaurant had me sold. I’m a sucker for a Christian owned and operated soul food place! I liked the patio outside as well, not much of a view but you can definitely do some people watching.

It’s like time stood still at The Beautiful: the interior design, euh did I just say that?, the aprons, the waitresses and many of the patrons. This place is oozing with character and I hope they never ever change anything about it.
Eggs tasted like real eggs and the beef sausage link is cholesterol blasting incredible. My favorite southern gal had cheese grits and although an acquired taste, they could become a habit at The Beautiful.
I’m not eating for the rest of the day.

I seem to remember this place being opened round the clock. They close at ten now, a fact that the staff wouldnt let any late night stragglers forget. The staff was so ready for closing time that i was expected to eat a steak out of a to-​go container with flimsy plastic utensils because they didnt want to have to wash anymore dishes. I shouldnt have to spend good coin on a an otherwise good meal then have have to beg for a decent way to consume it.
The customer service needs to rise up to the standard of the food. I wont go back if it doesn’t.

great food & great service, but a little pricey and the parking lot is horrible. it’s not gonna stop me from returning, though :-)

Ok I gave this place another try with a friend who had heard good things about it from his Coworkers after coming here we order the salmon with rice and gravy and macaroni and cheese it cost $ 12.95 well overpriced… The cornbread tasteb like it’s a week old the Salmon taste ok… Very basic I could have cooked a better piece. The place is in desperate needs for renovations it’s run down… IF YOU WANT REAL GOOD FRESH SOUL FOOD GO TO K &K Soul Food on Donald Lee Holloway … This place is the Pitts… But I bright my friend hear because he wanted to try it.

My best friend says that he feels like he’s on the set of Shaft when he visits Atlanta and I bring him here.
Hey, they never promised sleek and modern, only good soul food, and The Beautiful shines.
I’d definitely visit more often if I still lived on that side of town, but I just savor the times that I’m able to stop by.

This isn’t world-​class fine dining but it’s not supposed to be. It’s just cafeteria style, down-​home soul food. The steam trays are laid out right in front of you so you can see what you’re getting before you order it. Just decide what looks best on any given day and go with that.
People rave about the banana pudding (and it’s delicious) but my favorite dessert is the pink cake. It’s only offered on Sundays when I like to order the half chicken, gravy-​covered dressing, green beans and a teamonade (Arnold Palmer to most). The plate comes with a piece of cornbread.
Despite the fact that there are 5+ million people in metro Atlanta, the employees and many customers are on a first-​name basis. This familiarity gives the place a real hometown vibe and, for some reason, just witnessing it makes me feel more a part of the Atlanta community.
Everyone who works there is really nice and the service is friendly so I choose to eat in. If you’re ridiculously good looking and don’t feel like enduring any eye hustling from other customers you can get your meal to-​go.
Nothing about this place dazzles me but when I want a Sunday soul food meal without having to cook it myself, The Beautiful hits the spot.

The breakfast was good. I loved the homemade biscuits and the beef sausage links. The cheese grits and eggs were good as well, I just would have preferred a little salt and pepper.
Note that there were flies that landed on food (I made sure to avoid them).
The line was really long at 10:00 so I’m assuming that you should be waiting in your car as soon as the place is set to open.

I love some down home cooking. Real soulfood and this is it.
The staff are so pleasant. Feels like I am in one of those roadside churches, downstairs in the basement after church has let out.
These women really serve you. This is their home and they treat you as such. Do know that you will eat good and be very sleepy. If you’re looking for fine/​fancy dining, this isn’t it. But if you are looking for a true feel of the south, then you’ve found a gem.

I have known about the Beautiful Restaurant for many years, but never made a visit until recently.
The food was good; it tasted like someone from in my family from West Tennessee cooked it! I ordered oxtails (which came with rice). For side items, I selected rutabaga and black eyed peas. Cornbread was included also.
The oxtails were meaty and the rutabaga was a perfect compliment.
I forgot to request banana pudding this time however, but that will be for my next visit, I heard it was good!
There is a small parking area behind the restaurant. I also noticed cars parked on the street; Fontaine Ave.

The Beautiful is a Southwest Atlanta (SWATS for those who know) institution. When you see Soul Food places in movies this is what inspires them. As for the food, it’s both good and bad, requiring you to search around the menu for food that you’ll enjoy. Unfortunately, if you guess wrong, then you’ll have a bad food experience. Right and you’ll post one of those 5 star reviews. It’s this inconsistency that explains reviews all over the map.
Today, I went and had Short Ribs for Lunch. In a word, they were great. Well cooked, falling off of the bone. With a little hot sauce and their gravy, I was taken back to a place in my past where folks congregated after Church on Sunday to discuss the going-​ons of the day.
Then I had mac and cheese and dressing (stuffing, but called dressing at Soul Food restaurants.) The mac and cheese was not great. Not great at all. My nostalgic dream was quickly snapped back to reality. It was too cheesy and not enough of the creamy cheesiness that many places can make with ease. Not sure what went wrong there. I’d be willing to say that most women in my family could make better without any effort.
As for the Dressing, it was not bad, not great. The cornbread flavor was good, but it needed something more or something less — salt for sure. It’s a very salty meal. I am again not sure what could improve it other than I’ve had family members do a much better job.
The Sweet Tea, something I’ve never thought to think about, was a bit strong, but sweet as expected.
Last, was the Sweet Potato Pie. Just short of exactly how my Grandmother would make it, except hers had more sweet potato, more spice and was slightly firmer. This is fairly decent as compared to others I’ve had.
As for the Ambiance, I like it a lot. IT’S A SOUL FOOD RESTAURANT. So that means, almost always, cafeteria style service, pictures of African American art on the wall, sweet tea upon request, tables of older folks sitting down to eat discussing the going-​ons of the day, folks in uniforms and lilting Southern accents. This place does the genre up very well. It’s like complaining at a Luther Vandross concert about not hearing Frank Sinatra — they are two different types of experience.
As compared to the Busy Bee, that’s a high mark for Soul Food in Atlanta. As compared to the vaulted ceilings and power lunch gathers at Paschal’s, this place will seem more pedestrian. But, if you can get the right food and none of the wrong food, you think you’ll be taken to a place that inspired the Civil Rights Movement. Of course, if you get the wrong food, you’ll be mad enough to start a Sit-​In of your own.