Cuerno

No wonder it is closed.
Our dining experience at Cuerno was possibly the worst in Atlanta. The service was super slow and the waiter was soooo not attentive.
I have had some great Spanish food before but this place was not good. They had small selection of tapas and out of five plates I ordered, the only thing that was decent was the spanish omelet.
I would not have recommended this place to anyone but now that it is not there anymore, I guess it does not matter.

Cuerno is now closed, I believe their last day of business was Sunday, May 30. It will be missed from my neighborhood. Hopefully they open a new restaurant soon.

Cuerno confuses me.
It’s not an especially spacious restaurant, which in most cases is a good thing to me – I tend to prefer small, intimate spaces to many of the loud, bustling bar-​restaurants that pepper Midtown Atlanta. Once you enter the medium-​sized space, however, you’re confronted with a large metal sculpture of a bull. This isn’t a bad thing, mind you – large art installations are just not the kinds of things you’d expect to find in a restaurant the size of a one-​bedroom Midtown condo.
Despite a dearth of patrons (it was rather early for dinner), the host led my dining companion and me to a small bar table next to a tall plush booth with an accompanying barstool.
While both the booth and the barstool that I sat upon had footrests, the small bar table did not, forcing me to sit in the sometimes-​uncomfortable position with my foot either propped on the footrest or dangling in midair, with a minor fear that a shift of position would upend the artistically-​legged, yet questionally-​balanced table. Indeed, I recall few regular-​height dining tables, aside from a handful by the entrance. I have to wonder why the proprietors would choose such off-​kilter seating for cuisine that may well include the very time-​intensive paella.
My dining companion opted for a couple of tapas, while I chose the hanger steak (Chuleta de Aguayon). My steak was tender and juicy, albeit slightly over-​salted. Of the entire meal, I can, unfortunately, only say it was passable. As someone who doesn’t really partake of fancy mixed drinks, I can’t really speak to the drink menu.
One particular menu item, however, has piqued my curiosity. For now, I’ll give Cuerno 2.5 stars. At some point in the future, I’ll have to come back with a larger group and sample their paella.
Note: both pictures of the restaurant interior here are actually interior shots of Beleza, the sister bar to Cuerno.

After hearing that U Restaurants were donating a portion of their proceeds to Italian Earthquake Relief, I decided it was time to check out Cuerno, as it’s just down the street from me. I decided to sample a fancier-​than-​normal cocktail as well, you know, to help the Italians. I’m nothing if not charitable.
The holy water cocktail was, indeed, something to believe in. Elderflower liquer, Violette, honey, citrus… perfection. I’d order it again in a heartbeat, and in fact have found myself craving it many a night since.
The food, however, was a little less inspired. The patatas bravas were cut too large, making the bite size appeal null. The sauce wasn’t all that flavorful either… I’ve had better in a lot of different spots. The mussels were okay (and artfully arranged, I might add) but I honestly prefer them when they’re served in sauce. Again, I felt the flavor was lacking.
So yeah, I’ll be back for that drink. The food, well, I’ll eat beforehand.

I have eaten here twice and it was good both times. Its not a specific thing, just the whole experience of being comfortable and leaving feeling happy with what you ate. (We ate tapas)

This hip new spot in midtown was packed on Saturday night when we arrived with our party of 8. The neighbors in the condos above were on their balconies having cocktails complaining about the building-​wide smoke alarm that the restaurant had set off — one of many times this has happened. But for those of us crammed into this tiny restaurant, we were grateful there was not a real fire or we would have had a hard time getting out of our chairs.
The space is pretty nice — complete with an anatomically-​correct metal bull sculpture and some big-​ass chandeliers. The staff had to gather extra chairs from an undisclosed location in order to convert our 5-​top into an 8-​top. Good thing we like each other and do not mind touching strangers because we were packed in there real tight. We order 2 pitchers of sangria which were tasty as well as a variety of tapas items — tuna tartar, hot peppers, potatoes, mussels — and some «American Paella.» The food can be summarized in one word — okay. (But the paella was pretty good as was the tuna tartar!)
The potatoes were boring. I know, they were potatoes, but the sauce was lame and they had nothing yummy about them. The mussels were nice, but not amazing. It was all just okay. The crowd was a great eclectic mix of sexy people, tourists, and locals. The service was not bad and the price was very reasonable.

A Strange place. It’s too upscale for a «neighborhood joint» but the parking situation makes it difficult to visit unless you can find a street spot or live within walking distance. I know they’re trying to change it with a valet, but I’m not sold on that yet.
The place looks trendy and the menu is as well. Caveat I did not have the palleas which is what they are said to be known for.
The food I had was pretty good, though we stuck to appetizers/​tapas which were the usual, meats/​cheeses etc.
I was impressed with their sangria, and they have several versions of mojitos on the menu as well that seemed intriguing.
The service left something to be desired. I felt bad for our waiter who seemed to be the only one in the restaurant… and with their relationship with Beleza next door maybe he was the only one there as well. (You can order drinks off the Beleza menu).
I’m not sure how this place is going to survive. I think it needs to make its food more neighborhood friendly, the Paella is supposed to be it’s star but how about a portion size I can pickup and take home? The menu warns you if your not eating with a platoon of hungry chic marines don’t bother getting it.
The bar seats only about 8, and the restaurant probably maxes out around 25.
Its a good different option, and beats the normal chains etc. But it needs some effort to be exceptional.

I definitely enjoyed Cuerno when I went. The parking situation is unfortunate, but we decided to avoid it and got lucky with a spot on a side street. I really liked the feel of the restaurant — it had a rich tone and felt both rustic and modern. I liked the bull. We sat one of the small high tables that run along the couch. The table felt very small and sitting on the high chair wasn’t very comfortable. But we made the most of it and enjoyed a good meal.
One aspect that I really liked about their menu was how the region of each dish was often labeled if it was a specialty of that area. Definitely a nice touch.
We started with the brandade, which doesn’t look like it’s on their menu currently. They had it at The Porter as well, but Cuerno’s was better. We also had the salad with oranges, which was tasty. For my main course, I had roasted suckling pig (cochinillo) and it was excellent, but it doesn’t seem to be on the current menu either. Hopefully it is a seasonal offering and has not been axed. We also had a good dessert too, but I was here a while back and can’t recall what it was. None of the ones on the current menu ring a bell, so it may not be on there. We also had a couple glasses of nice red wine because they were out of red sangria (?).
The service was good as was the food and atmosphere. I really like Spanish food and Cuerno was a hit for me so I hope to be back soon.
3.5

I give Cuerno ³¹⁄₂ stars. I went to Cuerno for dinner after seeing Beleza didn’t have any «food» on the menu. Cuerno has a nice feel to it. I liked the décor. The service was okay. We had the garlic shrimp appetizer which was (eyes rolling in the back of my head) good. We got the pitcher of sangria which is a better deal than getting it by the glass. it was good but I drank half of the huge pitcher and I was still standing up (go figure). We ordered the Americana paella which has chicken, shrimp and sausage. It was good and could really feed 2 – 4 people. It is a lot of food for two people. Maybe that’s why I didn’t feel the sangria eh??:) I’d like to come back here to try other menu offerings.

Best Paellas in town. One serving can feed 2– 4 people. Don’t miss out on their sangrias, delicious! serve up a pitcher or two. a lot cheaper than ordering per glass. I promise you can’t just have one.

I was surprised the place was so small. And quickly understood this place was intended to be an upscale bar serving good food to the party crowd. Well, the parties may be happening but the food could have been better. The drinks however were excellent! I sampled an array of small foods only to be disappointed by nearly everything I ate with my friends. One of them raved about their South American dish exclaiming how authentic it was. Well, perhaps this kind of authenticity isn’t for my taste buds. I tried.

I work across the street from sister restaurants Fritti & Sotto Sotto, so I was excited to try out Cuerno. Plus, I had heard some great things about the food. But alas, I was in for a somewhat disappointing meal. Don’t get the red sangria – too sweet! The food was average – we tried ham croquettes, which reminded me of fish sticks from the frozen food aisle and the paella for two was subpar. The table next to us actually complained about their paella and sent it back. We had the chocolate bread pudding, which was over microwaved and reminded my friend of the brownie that accompanies his Hungryman’s t.v. dinner. The flan was good though. Ambiance was nice, but the velour covered couches reminded me of early 2000 jogging suits.

This is a sexy restaurant — from the design to the wait staff to the food sharing.
Short on execution — with a decidedly ho-​hum sangria — but long on style. Recommended for diners who place entertainment value above actual food or service.

Ricardo is the MAN! Once again he has given diners in Atlanta more than they know that they want in an authentic food experience. (wow) Thank you for going well beyond the edge of what Atlanta can handle or accept, Keep it up!

I would give this place a 2.5. We went there for tapas and some light food on a Friday night. We decided to try several side dishes because we were unsure whether we were going to like it and we did not want to spend tons of cash. In retrospect, we should have gone for the big items. We had several sides…
1) Gazpacho ~ it was OK. It tasted very fresh and not too salty. The only complaint I have is that it did not have a lot of spice. It was rather middle of the road. It tasted a lot like tomato soup without much else.
2) Spinach salad ~ I loved the spinach salad. The dressing was excellent.
3) Jeff had the ham and cheese sticks (they are called something fancy, but I can’t recall). The cheese was very mild and they were fried well. They tasted like fried cheese sticks. If you love cheesy goodness, then they are amazing.
4) The fava beans with three different sausages was very, very salty. The fava beans were very good but the salt overpowered them.
5) Jeff had a salad that was good. I don’t recall what it was.
All in all, I think it is fair. It did not feel like a spanish tapas place but I would give it a second shot to see if the main dishes are any better. I was not, however, wow-​ed with the side items.

The food and drinks are excellent. I love the décor, very sexy and trendy! The parking situation is a bit odd, but it is Midtown and that’s to be expected.

I’d give Cuerno 3.5 stars if I could — I love the menu, the drinks, the vibe. But on a weekend night it fills like a sardine can in there, and a very loud sardine can at that. And the food, while good, just didn’t live up to expectations of simple Spanish goodness. The paella was a bit too mushy, for example. I loved drinking cava from the porron (that crazy pitcher thing you might have seen people chugging from), but it does feel a bit gimmicky, like being in a tourist trap full of Americans somewhere in Madrid.

I liked the feel of the place. The drinks and the service were great. The food definitely did not live up to the price tag. I got the lamb that cost more the lamb at Wisteria and was no where near as good. We had few tapas that were OK nothing to brag about. I would go for drinks and that is about it.

The restaurant feels very much like Europe – the design firm did a great job of capturing the warmth of Spain with the rich colors, wood, and textures. My dining companion could not stop commenting on the metal bull that is centered smack dab in the restaurant complete with glass cojones.
Since it was only two of us, we did not want to order a lot of food (which we ended up doing anyway), so we chose the croquetas de jamn, fabada Asturiana, ensalada de pulpo (octopus) and the paella Valenciana. The croquetas came out first and they were spectacular. No grease and full of ham-​y goodness. The fabada was another winner. The sausage was delicious and the gigantes (Greek lima beans) were soft and well seasoned. My table mate and I could not stop dipping our bread in the thick broth once all the beans were gone. The pulpo was the only loser of the night and it wasn’t because of execution. The octopus, perched on top of potato medallions, was slightly fishy (a common issue with octopus unless you are by the sea) and very chewy. It was seasoned well and looked beautiful on the plate, but Bliss doesn’t eat fishy octopus. Our server, Eric (?), was attentive and overall sweetheart throughout the whole night. When we decided to send the octopus back (something I rarely do), he didn’t seem put out at all and quickly whisked it away from the table. The main event, the paella, came to our table looking lovely. They place the paella dish on a thick cast iron trivet with a wooden spoon for serving yourself. The paella was delicious, but we could barely finish half of it because we were stuffed by this point. Not a bad thing considering the reasonable prices. Each grain of Bomba rice was perfectly intact and seasoned well. My favorite part of the paella, aside from the perfect socarrat (the toasted ‘crust’ of rice on the bottom of the paella dish), were the massive prawns and tender rabbit. An overall great meal and I am anxious to try more dishes especially after the restaurant hits their stride. If chef Ullio keeps things consistent with our meal last night, Cuerno might just be a regular stop on my restaurant rotation.
Preliminary verdict: The restaurant has only been opened for a couple of weeks, but I have to say that my experience left me wanting to make a return visit to sample more of the dishes – especially the paellas. The bill was around $ 80 bucks (before tip and after the removed the octopus from the bill) including a nice bottle of Spanish red. An overall good value for the amount of food you get. Just an FYI: The parking situation is a bit annoying (you need to use the $ 5 valet in the Wachovia if you don’t score one of the few street spaces), but I am used to parking limitations from San Francisco so it didn’t bother me much.

I was wowed by nearly everything about Cuerno.
Atmosphere: old meets new, very classy. Red velvet couch, high tables, old looking chandeliers cased in large clear translucent lampshades. It really struck me, as décor rarely does. Not too loud and not too dark.
Food: They serve a rather limited menu of tapas, appetizers, entrees and desserts. Everything tasted great. The three types of sangria are tinto (red), blanco (white), and cava (champagne). I had the champagne and thought it was perfect, though there was so much fruit I felt like the cocktail could have been more substantial. Great salad, tortilla de patatas, and the bread and cheese plate. Food presentation was beautiful too — sangria included. Quite pricey — you have to spend $ 36 for a paella for two, and they don’t come smaller than that! Honestly it seems a bit overpriced, but it’s nice enough to warrant it.
Service: The guy wasn’t that polished, but he was accommodating, attentive, and nice. He checked with the kitchen on two separate special orders and said he could accommodate either — vegetarian paella (which is apparently going on the menu soon), and substitution of extra cheese on the meat/​bread/​cheese appetizer.
I guess the one takeaway point for me is that this doesn’t really strike me as a *tapas* place — the selection of tapas to choose from isn’t wide enough for that, and everything is quite expensive. It’s an upscale Spanish restaurant where you can order tapas as appetizers, or a sophisticated Spanish bar where you can order tapas as snacks. But as either of those two things, it rocks my world.